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Cereus repandus

 
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Family: Cactaceae (kak-TAY-see-ee) (Info)
Genus: Cereus (KER-ee-us) (Info)
Species: repandus (REP-an-dus) (Info)

Synonym:Cereus grenadensis
Synonym:Cereus peruvianus
Synonym:Cereus margaritensis
Synonym:Cereus remolinensis
Synonym:Cereus atroviridis

3 members have or want this plant for trade.

Category:
Cactus and Succulents

Height:
8-10 ft. (2.4-3 m)
10-12 ft. (3-3.6 m)
12-15 ft. (3.6-4.7 m)

Spacing:
6-8 ft. (1.8-2.4 m)

Hardiness:
USDA Zone 9a: to -6.6 °C (20 °F)
USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 °C (25 °F)
USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 °C (30 °F)
USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 °C (35 °F)
USDA Zone 11: above 4.5 °C (40 °F)

Sun Exposure:
Full Sun

Danger:
Plant has spines or sharp edges; use extreme caution when handling

Bloom Color:
Rose/Mauve
White/Near White

Bloom Time:
Late Spring/Early Summer
Mid Summer
Late Summer/Early Fall

Foliage:
Herbaceous
Succulent

Other details:
This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds
Drought-tolerant; suitable for xeriscaping
Average Water Needs; Water regularly; do not overwater

Soil pH requirements:
Unknown - Tell us

Patent Information:
Unknown - Tell us

Propagation Methods:
From woody stem cuttings
From softwood cuttings
Allow cut surface to callous over before planting

Seed Collecting:
Seed does not store well; sow as soon as possible

By Evert
Thumbnail #1 of Cereus repandus by Evert

By palmbob
Thumbnail #2 of Cereus repandus by palmbob

By manimalon
Thumbnail #3 of Cereus repandus by manimalon

By kmenzel
Thumbnail #4 of Cereus repandus by kmenzel

By kmenzel
Thumbnail #5 of Cereus repandus by kmenzel

By kmenzel
Thumbnail #6 of Cereus repandus by kmenzel

Profile:

11 positives
2 neutrals
1 negative

Gardeners' Notes:

RatingAuthorComment
Positive cherannhers On Aug 23, 2008, cherannhers from Summerfield, FL wrote:

I live in Florida and my Cereus Peruvianus is about 25 feet tall. This year evidently due to all the rain my cactus is about to bloom for the third time this year and this time it will have at least 100 blooms hopefully all within a few days time. I am considering calling the newspaper to see if they want a picture of it. Is this unusual to have this many blooms at once?

Positive manimalon On Feb 4, 2008, manimalon from Buenos Aires
() wrote:

The plant was in the garden when I bought the house. Someone cutted the catus across many years ago and still it grew back. It is 15 feet tall and I estimate 30-40 years.
It is extremely beautyfull at blossom (as said here, only one night long). Gets full of bees at dusk (now late summer here in Buenos Aires: 34° lalitude South, 17°C mean temperature, 1000mm annual rainfall, some frost days a year).

Positive scottncindy On Aug 24, 2007, scottncindy from Tucson, AZ wrote:

I bought this cactus at a Tucson nursury in early June and planted it next to the front porch of our house. It was already three feet tall. During the first summer, it didn't grow any taller but it did put out a large number of flowers, each of which opened for only one night, turning black and falling off in the next day's sunshine. This plant seems to do very well in the Tucson climate.

Positive thaihotgardens On Jul 1, 2007, thaihotgardens from Brandon, FL wrote:

I started with a 5' specimen of this cactus 3 years ago. It grew to about 10 feet that year, and the beginning of next spring I cut it into 14 section between 2' and 4' each. Despite having a rough start (many of the ridge edges browned and fell off, leaving less pronounced ridges), they have all taken, giving me a nice natural fence which is blooming 4-10 flowers on each plant. I have about 20 or so fruits that look like they are nearly ripe now, was wondering if there is anything special I should do before eating? Very fun cactus to watch growing, and the blooms are awesome, short-lived though they are

Positive entr_acte On Jul 4, 2006, entr_acte from Kansas City, MO wrote:

I've had my potted cereus rapandus since 1998. The winters here in Kansas City are too harsh of course to allow me to leave it out past frost but it has done extraordinarily well growing to 6 feet on the patio. It has flowered now for the second year. This year it put on 6 flowers, blooming the night of July 3rd into the 4th in a spectacular display!

Positive mojavegardener On Aug 25, 2005, mojavegardener from Inyokern, CA
(Zone 8a) wrote:

I live in the Mojave, Zone 8a. I grow these in pots, as they must be brought in during the winter for frost protection. They love the hot summers here, requiring little water or care. Great flowers in late summer, draws a lot of giant black bumblebees!!!

Neutral Xenomorf On Mar 2, 2005, Xenomorf from Valley of the Sun, AZ
(Zone 9b) wrote:

One source states that this is probably native to the western Caribbean and Venezuela. The fruit & stems are edible. This cactus is cultivated for living fences, furniture, soap substitutes and firewood.

Additional valid synonyms are:
Cactus peruvianus
Cactus repandus
Cephalocereus atroviridis
Cephalocereus remolinensis
Cereus margaritensis var. micracanthus
Pilocereus atroviridis
Pilocereus remolinensis
Pilocereus repandus
Pilocereus russelianus subsp. margaritensis
Piptanthocereus peruvianus
Subpilocereus atroviridis
Subpilocereus grenadensis
Subpilocereus margaritensis
Subpilocereus remolinensis
Subpilocereus repandus
Subpilocereus repandus subsp. micracanthus
Subpilocereus russelianus var. margaritensis

Positive QueenB On Nov 3, 2004, QueenB from Shepherd, TX
(Zone 8b) wrote:

It holds up to freezing temperatures much better than I anticipated. It was uncovered through at least a week's worth of freezing nights (independently), and suffered minimal damage. The only parts that actually froze were new arm buds that hadn't had a chance to harden. Several people have it growing in their yards here. Does best in a protected southern position.

Positive monkeyboy On Oct 5, 2004, monkeyboy from Grand Rapids, MI wrote:

hello everybody, i am new to this site.
i just have bought this cactus 5 days ago. when i bought it, it already had two buds on there, ready to bloom.
does anyone know how long it takes from bud to bloom? it would be really awesome if anyone could help. thanks a lot everyone

Positive deborahgrand On Aug 16, 2004, deborahgrand from Baton Rouge, LA wrote:

I thought I'd lost this one years ago and in clearing debris from old greenhouse area, there it was still going strong and absolutely COVERED in apples. Can limit height growth by keeping it in a small pot, I've discovered. Can't wait to see what it does when I put it in the ground.

Neutral palmbob On May 31, 2004, palmbob from Tarzana, CA
(Zone 9b) wrote:

Large, green, slightly knobby, branching tall columnar cactus from South America (or maybe West Indies- origin not really clear).

Positive IslandJim On Jun 9, 2003, IslandJim from Keizer, OR
(Zone 8b) wrote:

This plant is a no brainer for most living in the sunbelt. Its only drawback is the spectacular flowers open at dusk and die before noon the next day, so to see them at their best you have to view them at night or in the very early a.m. The fruit is better than the "cactus apple" of the opuntia if only because it has no spines and can be eaten out of hand. It is called "pitaya" but it is not as tasty as the fruit of hylocereus undata, which is also called "pitaya."

Positive adkomondor On Apr 30, 2003, adkomondor from North Charleston, SC wrote:

Grows very well a a potted plant. As it gets taller, you can cut it back with a hand saw, and the plant will send out branches. Loves warmth and full sun. Will bloom in the house (at least for me). Blooms at night. Each blossom is only open for one night.

Negative daveguitar On Apr 2, 2003, daveguitar from skegness
() wrote:

From England - I have a 'monstrosa' version of this plant, 500cm. tall which suffered severe damage when the greenhouse temperature dropped below 4 degrees C last winter. [I cut the top off which was undamaged and it rooted ok]

Regional...

This plant has been said to grow in the following regions:

Phoenix, Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona (2 reports)
Garden Grove, California
Spring Valley, California
Thousand Oaks, California
Vacaville, California
Yorba Linda, California
Brandon, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Hollywood, Florida
Melbourne, Florida
North Port, Florida
Saint Petersburg, Florida
Summerfield, Florida
Tallahassee, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Venice, Florida
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Santa Fe, Texas
Shepherd, Texas
Seattle, Washington



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