Say this one fast: Tephrocactus articulatus papyracanthus. I ran an errand and thought I might peep in on some more "flowery" succulents (i.e. a big Echeveria type) that don't need the afternoon sun to thrive. The boutique plants find me. Like, really. I typed “nurseries” into Maps to figure out my new neighborhood, and the plant spirits guided me haha. I hadn’t seen this species at Home Depot (I’m not there every morning, but I regularly check in), and it was shoved way under the shelf. It could use some light and nutrients, and it needs to work on growing another neck. Note that this guy is three times the size of the other specimen in my collection. When deciding which of the 50 versions of “well draining soil” to use on succulents, I usually glance over where it lives (Western Argentina in this case). “It is easy to grow but usually couldn’t get very tall as segment kept falling apart” and “is very easy to grow by just knocking off one of the 'cones' and stuffing it in the ground” sounds like a no-brainer. Looking at the underground root system (this is a mature plant), I’m safe in assuming it prefers to get busy above ground 😀 (I used a mix of yellow bag soil, pumice and clay balls. Nothing complicated.) This species is one of my favorites because it always looks frozen in a chaotic moment.
