Species · genus Mammillaria · Cactaceae

Feather Cactus

Mammillaria plumosa F.A.C.Weber

Growth habit
succulent subshrub
Native range
Mexico Northeast
Reference · M. plumosa

Cultivars of M. plumosa

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under M. plumosa yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

A small clustering cactus from the arid limestone hills of northeastern Mexico, covered in soft feathery white spines. It stores water in its body and rots if kept damp, so plant it in gritty, fast-draining mix and water only when the soil is bone dry all the way through. Give it the brightest light you have, ideally several hours of direct sun.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified
Light
ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water
ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-30d)
Humidity
ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil
ai:claude-fable-5
Care
ai:claude-fable-5
Light

Direct sun

Water

≈ every 30 days

Humidity

Low — average room

Temperature

10–32 °C

Soil mix

Extra-gritty, fast-draining cactus mix

Propagation

Offsets separated and rooted after callusing

Fertilizing

Dilute low-nitrogen cactus feed sparingly in summer

Growth rate

Slow

Flowering

Small pale cream flowers in autumn

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Not yet documented

This is where toxicity lives — every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-30d) · ai:claude-fable-5

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Feather Cactus yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.

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