Lophophora diffusa f. caespitosa
Lophophora diffusa f. caespitosa is a freely offsetting form of Lophophora diffusa, a peyote relative from Querétaro in central Mexico. Where the typical species tends to stay solitary or clump only slowly, this form pups eagerly from the base to build low, multi-headed mounds of soft, pale-green, spineless bodies. It is a form (or clonal selection) rather than a distinct species, and its care follows the parent species — see Lophophora diffusa.
Description
Like all Lophophora, the individual heads are squat, button-shaped and spineless, with a firm but yielding, waxy body and tufts of woolly hair rising from the areoles along the low, rounded ribs. The colour is the pale, slightly yellowish blue-green typical of L. diffusa, softer and less blue than Lophophora williamsii. Ribs are indistinct and often broken into flat, rounded tubercles rather than the sharper ridges of the true peyote.
The defining trait of this form is its readiness to offset: heads bud freely around the crown and base, so a mature plant becomes a tight cluster of many small buttons rising from a common rootstock. Flowers, when they come, are small and whitish to pale yellow, opening from the woolly centre of each head in the warmer months.
Cultivation
Care is as for the parent species; see Lophophora diffusa for the full account. In short, Lophophora are slow, thirsty-in-summer but rot-prone plants that want a gritty, fast-draining, mostly mineral mix, bright light, warmth, and a completely dry winter rest during which the heads naturally shrink and pull down toward the soil. Water thoroughly only once the mix has dried out, and err on the side of underwatering — the fat taproot stores plenty. See Watering and Repotting for general technique.
Because clustering plants hold moisture between crowded heads, good airflow and an especially open mix help prevent rot where the buttons meet. This form is often grown on its own roots, but growers in a hurry sometimes graft a head to speed it along before returning it to its own roots later.
Propagation
The great advantage of a caespitose form is easy vegetative increase. Established offsets can be removed and rooted as offsets, left to callus for several days before being set on a barely-moist mineral surface. The species is also readily grown from seed, though seedlings are slow and will not all inherit the same degree of clustering.
Legal status
Lophophora as a genus is listed under CITES Appendix II, so international trade in plants is regulated. In several countries the genus is additionally caught up in controls on peyote (Lophophora williamsii) because of its mescaline content; L. diffusa contains only very low levels of mescaline compared with true peyote, but law generally makes no botanical distinction and may treat all Lophophora alike. Legality of ownership, cultivation and sale therefore varies widely by jurisdiction, and growers should check the rules that apply where they live. This article is horticultural reference only.
See also
- Lophophora — the genus overview
- Lophophora diffusa — the parent species
- Lophophora williamsii — the true peyote
- Grafting · Soil and potting mix · Watering · Propagation — offsets · Propagation — seed