Ariocarpus fissuratus

Taxobox
name="Ariocarpus fissuratus"

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image_width = 240px
regnum=Plantae
divisio=Magnoliophyta
classis=Magnoliopsida
ordo=Caryophyllales
familia=Cactaceae
subfamilia=Cactoideae
tribus=Cacteae
genus="Ariocarpus"
species="A. fissuratus"
binomial="Ariocarpus fissuratus"

"Ariocarpus fissuratus" is a species of extremely slow growing cacti found in rare numbers in Mexico and the southern United States. Commonly called "living rocks," these cacti usually blend in well with the terrain around them. They are greyish-green in color, sometimes taking on a yellowish tint with age.

These cacti consist of many small tubercles growing from a large tap root. They are usually solitary, rarely giving rise to side shoots from old areoles. These cacti are difficult to spot in their natural habitat. When they are found, it is usually due to their pinkish flowers.

Cultivation

In cultivation, "Ariocarpus fissuratus" is often grafted to a faster growing columnar cactus to speed growth, as they would generally take at least a decade to reach maturity on their own. They require very little water and fertilizer, a good amount of light, and a loose sandy soil with good drainage.

Psychoactivity

"Ariocarpus fissuratus" is a unique species in that is has been used by Native American tribes as a mind altering substance, usually only as a substitute for peyote [Ratsch, C: "The Sun", page 67. Park Street Press, 2005] . While it does not contain mescaline like many other North American cactus species (such as "Lophophora williamsii" or Peyote), it has been found to contain other mind altering substances, such as "N"-methyltyramine and Hordenine [Ratsch, C: "The Sun", page 67. Park Street Press, 2005] . This cactus is also commonly referred to as the "False Peyote," "Peyote Cimmaron,"(Spanish,"wild peyote") or simply "Sunami."

Notes

References

Ratsch, C. (2005).The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants: Ethnopharmocology and its Applications, Vertmont: Park Street Press. ISBN 0-89281-978-2

External links

* [http://www.living-rocks.com/luethyfiss.htm Living-rocks.com]
* [http://www.living-rocks.com/fissuratus.htm Living-rocks.com]
* [http://www.desert-tropicals.com/Plants/Cactaceae/Ariocarpus_fissuratus.html Desert-tropicals.com]