Gymnocalycium anisitsii

Very near to the town of Concepción (north Paraguay), you will find a vegetation area with small trees of Acacia and Mimosa. The soil is a very fine-grained clay which gets very hard when it dries and slushy after the rainfalls, also it contains some of salt.

Under the trees and bushes, in a light shadow grows a very nice form of Gymnocalycium anisitsii with a very wide range of variation. There are plants nearly identic to G. damsii and others are very different, from short to long spines. Most of the Gymnocalyciums grow onto little elevations, where the water cannot stay. Altough of the loamly soil, it contains a high grade of nitrogene, because of the decomposition of the leaves.

Other cacti and bromeliads in this habitat are Echinopsis rhodotricha (growing up to a height of 80 cm), Harrisia martinii, H. bonplandii, Selenicereus setaceus, Monvillea cavendishii (Praecereus), Opuntia paraguayensis, O. retrorsa and, as epiphytes Rhipsalis leucorraphis and Tillandsia duratii. Many cacti grow also on carpets of Selaginella, a type of fern-moss.

The climate is mostly warm with an average temperature of 23,5 ºC. Occasionally, the south winds in the winter can drop the temperatures til 0 ºC during the night, but at day they always rise again to over 15 ºC. Most of the rain falls during the sommer months, but sometimes also in the winter. There is not a really dry season.

These cacti grow well in collections, keeping them always with a slight humidity and not in full sun. They flower from spring to autumm.

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii

G. anisitsii