Lophophora williamsii 'Starr County'
Lophophora williamsii 'Starr County is a locality-provenance form of peyote originating from the wild populations of Starr County and the surrounding lower Rio Grande valley of southern Texas, near the US–Mexico border. Like other provenance selections, it is not a bred cultivar so much as seed-grown stock traced to a particular geographic population, valued by collectors for representing peyote at the northeastern edge of its range.
Care follows that of the parent species, Lophophora williamsii; see that page for the full Care details.
Description
Plants of the 'Starr County' provenance are typical of the species: soft, spineless, blue-green to grey-green button-shaped bodies with low, rounded ribs bearing tufts of white or greyish wool at the areoles instead of spines. As with all peyote, the plant sits atop a stout, carrot-like taproot and pulls itself down toward soil level in drought.
Provenance forms like this one are prized less for a single dramatic trait and more for the subtle differences that can appear in populations at a range margin — collectors report tendencies in body colour, rib count and clustering habit, though such characters vary from plant to plant and overlap broadly with the wider species. Flowers are the usual small, pale pink blooms emerging from the woolly crown.
Cultivation
Cultivation is exactly as for the parent species — see Lophophora williamsii for the full account. In brief, grow in a very free-draining, mostly mineral mix in a pot deep enough for the taproot, in bright light, watering thoroughly only once the soil has dried and keeping the plant dry through a cool winter rest. Lophophora is exceptionally slow, and overwatering is the commonest cause of loss. See also Watering and Repotting.
Because provenance is the whole point of a form like this, growers who wish to keep the line distinct should raise it from seed of documented Starr County parentage and avoid crossing it with plants of other origins. As peyote is naturally slow from seed, some growers graft young seedlings onto a vigorous rootstock to speed early growth, then return them to their own roots later. See Propagation — seed and Propagation — offsets for technique.
Legal status
Peyote, Lophophora williamsii, contains mescaline and is a controlled substance in many jurisdictions; a locality form such as 'Starr County' carries exactly the same legal status as the species. In the United States it is listed as a Schedule I substance under federal law, meaning cultivation and possession are generally prohibited. A long-standing statutory and regulatory exemption exists for the sacramental use of peyote by the Native American Church, reflecting the plant's deep ceremonial history among Indigenous peoples of the region — an exemption that is specific in scope and does not extend to general horticultural or personal possession.
Like the whole cactus family, Lophophora is also listed under CITES Appendix II, which regulates international trade. Wild peyote populations, including those in the Texas borderlands from which this form derives, have declined sharply due to overharvesting and habitat loss, and are a focus of conservation concern.
Laws vary considerably between countries and, in the US, between states; anyone considering growing this plant should confirm what is permitted where they live. This article is horticultural and legal-status reference only.
See also
- Lophophora williamsii — the parent species
- Lophophora — the genus overview
- Grafting · Soil and potting mix · Watering · Propagation — seed
- CITES · Native American Church