Species · genus Mammillaria · Cactaceae

Spiny Pincushion Cactus

Mammillaria spinosissima Lem.

Also known as: Pincushion Cactus · Red-headed Irishman

Growth habit

succulent subshrub

Native range

Mexico Central, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Southwest

Reference · M. spinosissima

Cultivars of M. spinosissima

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

No named cultivars catalogued under M. spinosissima 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.

Mammillaria spinosissima is a clumping succulent cactus from arid and semi-arid central and northern Mexico, built to store water and endure long dry spells. Give it bright, direct sun and gritty, fast-draining mineral mix, and water deeply only once the soil has dried out completely throughout the pot. In the cooler, darker months reduce watering further, as cold wet soil is the surest way to rot the roots.

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

10–29 °C

Soil mix

Gritty, fast-draining cactus mix with extra pumice or perlite

Propagation

Offsets separated and callused before potting

Fertilizing

Dilute low-nitrogen cactus feed monthly in spring and summer

Growth rate

Slow

Flowering

Pink crown of blooms in spring with a bright, cool winter rest

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 Spiny Pincushion 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.