One plant I like to introduce from my succulent collection is the rat tail peanut cactus (Echinopsis silvestrii). I love it when they bloom, as the flowers come in an orange red color. Â
When I first got a small cutting of this succulent (a few years ago) it was just one prickly stem. And now it’s just spilling out all over the pot.
Rat tail cactus originate in the highland plateaus of Mexico, but are cultivated throughout Latin America. In my case, they are growing very well in our northern California climate.
This photo was taken in the spring of 2008. I need to remember to take more pictures when they start to bloom again.
Succulents have some of the most prettiest blooms, especially coming from such dangerous looking plants. The danger part being how painful the little spines can be when you get some on your skin. So do be careful when planting or moving them.
Update 11/18/12: I think these are really “peanut cactus” due to the offset (babies) that look like peanuts. I prefer the corrected name over “rat tail” any day!
Kalanchoe Tubiflora - another cool succulent!
12:15 am on July 10th, 2010
Really nice plant. This looks like my Echinopsis silvestrii. Very similar and the flowers are almost the same. I think they are a little more red!
10:06 pm on July 10th, 2010
I remember the flower, I thought it was producing a flower before it die, sort of leaving a legacy. I can’t believe it has grown that fast and how often does it produce a flower?
6:00 pm on July 12th, 2010
Hi Candy,
I looked up your echinopsis silvestrii and they do look very much like mine. I will have to make corrections now. Thanks!
6:03 pm on July 12th, 2010
Hi Nye,
Welcome back from your vacation.
It did have flowers last spring, but I forget to take a pic.
5:36 pm on May 15th, 2011
[...] last time I saw this Rat Tail cactus, there may have been at least 10-15 buds. I was just counting the days to a bouquet of cactus [...]
10:39 pm on May 25th, 2013
[...] is almost here and I found my Peanut Cactus in bloom. This photo is from the first year of growing the cactus. It must have gotten it names from the peanut like [...]