Species · genus Mammillaria · Cactaceae
Thimble Cactus
Mammillaria vetula Mart.
Also known as: Pincushion Cactus
Cultivars of M. vetula
The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.
No named cultivars catalogued under M. vetula 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.
The thimble cactus
Mammillaria vetula subsp. gracilis is a small clustering cactus known in cultivation as the thimble cactus, also sold under the older name Mammillaria gracilis. It belongs to Cactaceae, a family of spiny, spherical to columnar succulents.
Source: RHS
Mexican dry-shrubland native
This plant's native range lies in Mexico, from Guanajuato to Veracruz, where it grows as a succulent subshrub in desert and dry shrubland. It was first described by Martius in 1832, and the widely grown form gracilis was long treated as its own species before being folded in as a subspecies.
Source: Kew
Clustered, tubercled, spiny stems
As a Mammillaria, it carries the hallmark spherical to columnar stems studded with many prominent tubercles rather than ribs, usually growing in clusters. Its spines cover the stem densely, and funnel-shaped flowers appear in a ring near the tip of the stem. A selection called 'Arizona Snowcap' is grown for a notably pale, snowy spine covering.
Source: RHS
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 14-28d)
- Humidity
- ai:claude-opus-4-8
- Soil
- ai:claude-fable-5
- Care
- ai:claude-fable-5
Direct sun
≈ every 28 days
Low — average room
10–29 °C
Gritty, fast-draining cactus mix with extra pumice or perlite
Offsets clustered readily, separated and callused before potting
Dilute low-nitrogen cactus feed monthly in spring and summer
Slow
Small creamy-yellow flowers in a ring during spring
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.
PrimarySources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-28d) · ai:claude-fable-5
Kept true by its growers
Every fact here carries its source. Grow Thimble Cactus yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — and a clear photo of your plant are exactly what keep this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.
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