Worth knowing:
The Old Man of the Andes is among the most beautiful spiked and hairy column cactus species. It grows rather slowly, but can reach a growth height of one to two meters over the years. The sprouts are densely covered by white-coloured hairs that give the plant the appearance of an old man with a white beard, but actually serves as a protection against cold and dehydration. During summer, the Old Man of the Andes produces up to 10 cm long, crimson-pink coloured flowers from the shoot tips.
Natural Location:
The cactus plant has its natural habitat in the high altitudes of the Andes Mountains of up to 4000 meters.
Cultivation:
Seed propagation indoors is possible throughout the year. Spread the seeds onto finely sieved potting compost or cactus earth that contains about 25% sand and is moistened with a water vaporizer. For a light germinator you don’t need to put any potting earth on top. Cover the seed container with clear film to prevent the earth from drying out, but don’t forget to make some holes in the clear film and take it every second or third day completely off for about 2 hours. That way you avoid mold formation on your potting compost. Place the seed container somewhere bright and warm with a temperature between 20°C and 25°Celsius and keep the earth – preferably with a water sprayer – moist, but not wet. The first seedlings will come up after one or two weeks.
Place:
Due to its natural habitat in high altitudes, the Old Man of the Andes needs a sunny place with a clear difference between day and night temperature, while it should be at least 15° Celsius during the day, and not less than 5° Celsius at night. In the summer season, the plant can also be kept in a preferably wind and rain-sheltered place outdoors in the garden or on your balcony.
Care:
The Old Man of the Andes can easily be cultivated in common cactus soil and should be watered with preferably lime-deficient water. See that you avoid waterlogging, and spray the plant regularly. From March until June it also needs fluid fertilizer for cactus plants once a month, but don’t fertilize during blossoming.
During the winter:
The Old Man of the Andes hibernates best in a bright, dry and cool place with a temperature around 5 to 8°Celsius, and preferably with a high difference in temperatures. Water only sparsely during winter. Since heavy frosts are a rather common phenomenon in the Andes Mountains of South America, your cactus can also hibernate outdoors as long as the temperatures don’t fall below -20° Celsius. Frost is actually promoting the flower formation next year.
Picture credits:
- © © Luis Miguel Bugallo Sánchez - CC-BY-SA-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Sabine Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Sabine Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Sabine Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Sabine Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Sascha Grabow - CC-BY-SA-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
- © Leonora Enking - CC-BY-SA-2.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
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