All the information and photos in cactus art file are now available also in the new the Enciclopedia of Cacti. We hope you find this new site informative and useful.

Escobaria minima
(Syn: Escobaria nellieae)

Escobaria minima SB423 Brewster Co, TX
This tiny cactus with its thick whitish spines and attractive pink flowers (larger than the plant itself), is highly prized among collectors.
 

Description: Escobaria minima is a tiny cactus with rounded, single stems up to 2,5cm tall and 6-17 mm wide, occasionally with a short tap root; tubercles 2 to 4 mm wide.  A cultivated plant can be slightly larger, and clumped .
Spines: The plant is crowded with thick, corky, white spines (1 to 4 centrals, 4 to 6 mm long; 13 to 23 radials, 3.5 to 5 mm long)
Flowers: Numerous, pink, up to 2.5 cm in diameter, 1.5 cm long.
It blooms in several flushes, primarily in May, but the blooming period lasts from March until June.
Fruit: It produces ovoid, green fruit (1.5-5 cm long) that ripens from June to October.

The flowers are easy to pollinate, and produce around thirty seeds per fruit.

Photo and © copyright by Andrea B. (Bologna, Italy)
http://www.cactusfriends.com/Andrea/index.html 
 

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Scientific name:  scobaria minima (Baird) D. R. Hunt

Origin:  Chihuahuan desert in the USA, they are found from only three populations, all in a tiny area of Brewster County, Texas.

Habitat: Grows in desert grassland, usually among the chips of weathered and physically fractured Caballos Novaculite rock (a quartz-like material). This species is now known only from three small sites

Conservation status: Listed in CITES appendix 2.

Common Names include: Nellie Cory cactus

• Escobaria nelliae Croizat) Backeberg
• Coryphantha minima Baird
• Coryphantha nellieae Croizat
• Mammillaria nelliae (Croizat) Croizat

Remarks:

 and  E. hesteri (From an adjacent hill) are two miniature plant which resemble dwarf races of E. vivipara, to wich they shares some characteristic, but much smaller in all parts. They can survive to –25°C in dry-winter regions.

This is the smallest  Escobaria, a real gem, and very beautiful!!!  Plants flowering in cultivation do not self-pollinate, but are easy to hand pollinate, and  produce around thirty seeds per fruit.
 

Cultivation: Very slow-growing, but easy to cultivate.  Water regularly in summer, but do not over-water.   It prefers a completely dry place during winter with much drainage. An unheated greenhoouse would be perfect. It can survive low temperatures (appr. -12 C). Full sun to light shade

Propagation: easy to propagate from seed, cuttings and grafting.

All the information and photos in cactus art file are now available also in the new the Enciclopedia of Cacti. We hope you find this new site informative and useful.