Photo © Andy T. Powell

Description of Turbinicarpus gielsdorfianus

Body solitary, spherical - oval or somewhat elongated and short cylindrical, 5-7 cm high, 4.5-5 cm in diameter, dull blue - to grey green, older parts with whitish markings. Apex barely sunken, covered with white wool and dark brown spines. Ribs completely divided into tubercles, which are very loosely ordered. Tubercles approx. 6 mm high, conical - or somewhat pyramidal, younger with steeper lateral surfaces, the older somewhat flattened out, rising from a wide, irregularly hexagonal base, at the side occasionally somewhat compressed on the upper side mostly somewhat clearly edged, slightly indented below the areole. Areole elliptical, up to 2 mm long, near the apex with dense, flaky - white wool, later only with a tuft of wool in the short furrow, soon completely bald and corky. (Radial -) spines mostly 6, more rarely 7, near the apex rather erect, in older parts diagonal, never completely horizontally spreading, thin - awl-shaped, straight or frequently with the tip curved, to 2 cm long, near the apex dark brown, tips almost blackish, at the base brighter, in age upper half becomes dark brown, often turning grey, at the base becoming brighter and almost whitish grey, somewhat rough, at the base slightly thickened. Old spines dirty dark grey brown and packed together. Central spines not present.

Flowers from the apical wool, individually or few, funnel-shaped; whole flower 2-2.2 cm long, when open approx. 2 cm in diameter; ovary small, round - oblong, pale green, smooth, completely bare, the perianth tube with a ring-shaped constriction. Perianth tube approx. 5 mm long, expanding above, lower part without scales, pale olive-brownish. Scales only at the end, oblong, approx. 2-8 mm long, merging into the outer perianth segments, pale brownish green with light edge, reddish median, at the end with a somewhat curved, russet coarse hair-like tip. Edge smooth or only faintly somewhat cut. Outer perianth segments oblong - lanceolate, to 12 mm long, 3 mm broad, after the tip narrower, yellowish - cream coloured with bay mid-stripe, typically smooth edged. Internal perianth segments approx. 1.2 cm long, 3-4 mm broad, innermost somewhat shorter and narrower, oblong - lanceolate, lucidly ivory coloured. Edge mostly slightly jagged, tip short, brownish, filaments white, anthers chrome yellow. Style white, approx. 12 mm long. Stigma lobes 5-6, overstanding the stamens, approx. 2 mm long, white, spreading, very papillose, almost hairy. Fruit unknown. Seeds slightly kidney shaped, 1-1.2 mm long, dull, black.

Locality: near Cerritos, San Luis Potosi México.

Notes

The original description erroneously gives the type locality as the area of Jaumave, in the state Tamaulipas, México. This plant generally offsets more than the description indicates.

Related taxa

T. gielsdorfianus is possibly a transitional taxon between the former members of the genus Gymnocactus and the "true" Turbinicarpus species via the saueri and lophophoroides aggregates.

It is also very likely that this species is one of the parents of the hybrid T. roseiflorus.

References

• Monatsschrift der Deutschen Kakteen Gesellshaft, 215-216, 1929.
• Identification guide to threatened cacti of México, Charles E. Glass.

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