PlantFiles: Star Plant, Monk's Hood
Astrophytum ornatum

In my experience at least, one of the easiest Astrophytums to grow. They will flower prolifically throughout the spring and summer. I have one one in my garden that was baseball sized when planted a decade ago. I pretty much stuck it in the ground and left it to nature. It's now over 14 inches tall and 8 inches across. Grown in some shade it has unfortunately lost most of its flecking.

The pot grown specimen has been grown in full sun and maintained its flecking beautifully. This suggests to me that these plants appreciate the highest level of light you can give them to maintain the beauty and form of the plant. Howhever both plants seem to flower often producing outstanding displays of 2 inch wide flowers.

Fruits are as spiny as the flower bud, nestled down into the spination of the plant, and seed can be a little challenging to collect. When they are ripe they burst open ejecting the top of the flower bud and splaying out sideways among the new growth spines at the top of the plant. I've found a common table fork works well to collect the large black seeds which germinate fairly easily.

This cactus is pretty cold hardy,,, it survived 10F for 4 days and nights. Covered it with a black plastic pot.. was real surprised! I just love it!

Though usually grown in pots as odd and attractive specimens, this plant and most of the other Astrophytums have done well in my old cactus garden in So Cal. Some develop nice twists with age.