Chihuahua Snowball is the spiniest, stickeriest ball cactus ever. Native to Mexico, notably the Chihuahua desert at higher elevations, it lives on poor and rocky soil. He was named to honor Mexican plant collector Jose Albert Macdowell. These small balls, actually they can reach 4" in diameter though slow growing, come in a medium, muted green with the many vertical ridges running top to bottom, typical of many ball cacti. Each ridge sports many evenly spaced furry, fuzzy, cottony, white tufts each sprouting a multitude of longish, thin, white spines, all splayed out in a star shape, spines close together enough to cross and touch each other, coating the whole plant in a dense, stickery defense. It really must need protection from marauding wild animals. Warm months bring little bunches of frilled flowers in a vibrant, deep rosy pink with a little red shading in the throats, along with a little bright yellow, hairy flower parts in the center of the pink. This is a solitary plant, prizing its privacy and not spreading and only rarely making pups, and those only in the very mature plant. By the way, SQ means ours comes in a square pot.
- Drought Tolerant,
- Low Maintenance
Quick Care Guide:
- Water - Low (1): Needs very little water to survive. Wait until the plant is completely dry then fully soak. Drought tolerant by nature.
- Light - High - (5): Plant needs a lot of light; direct is even better. These plants do best when placed on a window sill or next to a bright window. Avoid concentrated, hot light from window which may cause burning (magnifying glass effect).
- Difficulty - Low (1): These plants need barely any attention to thrive. Set it and forget it.
View full breakdown of Care Guide here.