Oreocereus Species, Man of the Andes

I have not had luck with Oreocereus (Celsianus & Trollii) here in the four corners. They survive up to about late December or January bef...Read Moreore keeling over, probably because of our cold nights that regularly dip into the teens. That being said, they are definitely fairly hardy, and are not tender tropical plants like they are often treated as. These might do fine somewhere slightly warmer in the winter like ABQ.

I have one that sits under my covered patio facing South in the Vegas desert heat and it actually grows fast considering. It does not tol...Read Moreerate the full hot summer Vegas sun. It will sunburn so either give it partial or full shade especially from 11.00 until later afternoon during summer. It's been growing an average of 3" every year just sitting under the patio in a well draining soil with bright light only. I don't even cover it during the winter but when we do get the occasional cold snap warning I just cover it with a towel just in case. It is hardy to 10F.

Very cold hardy! I purchased this cactus at Lowe's when it was 3-4" tall in Spring 2009. Transplanted to a larger pot & kept it in that ...Read Morepot for a year. Left it unprotected outside last winter here in zone 9a. In Jan we had a terrible cold spell where temps went down in the mid teens at night for a couple weeks. We had much freeze damage & even lost several citrus trees & cactus plants, but this wonderful cactus remained completely unscathed! It's grown several inches since then. I've just put it in the ground last week & am looking forward to watching this beautiful cactus grow big & tall.

Propagation: Seeds