Sign in Start free
Species library › Cephalocereus › Cephalocereus fulviceps
Succulents Well documented

Cephalocereus fulviceps

A giant, much-branched columnar cactus (formerly Pachycereus or Mitrocereus fulviceps) of the Tehuacán–Cuicatlán valley in Puebla and Oaxaca, known for the tawny woolly pseudocephalium on flowering stems. It grows in full sun on dry limestone slopes with a summer-rain, dry-winter climate. In pots it is slow and stays columnar for many years; give heat, sun and a dry winter.

Cephalocereus fulviceps
Photo: Amante Darmanin from Malta, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Cool-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Open dry scrub and columnar-cactus forest on rocky, often limestone slopes and canyon sides in a rain-shadow valley.

Recorded from about 900 to 2,750 m, median about 1,730 m.

Mexico CentralMexico Southwest

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

Grow Cephalocereus fulviceps? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.

Start free Sign in

More Cephalocereus

Cephalocereus columna-trajani Cephalocereus macrocephalus Cephalocereus polylophus Cephalocereus euphorbioides Cephalocereus apicicephalium Cephalocereus mezcalaensis Cephalocereus scoparius Cephalocereus senilis Cephalocereus tetetzo Cephalocereus novus Cephalocereus nudus Cephalocereus parvispinus

Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY 2.0 licence, unmodified.