Species library › Discocactus › Discocactus ferricola
Succulents Well documented

Discocactus ferricola

An endangered, night-flowering Discocactus from the Brazil–Bolivia border region, where (as its name says) it grows on iron-rich rock. It wants high heat, strong light, a mineral mix and must never sit cold and wet.

Discocactus ferricola
Photo: PierreBraun, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Warm-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Bright, filtered lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

The epithet means growing on iron; it grows on ferruginous stony ground and outcrops in the Corumbá area of Mato Grosso do Sul and adjacent Bolivia, in open dry scrub.

Records lie from near sea level to 344 m, median about 190 m.

Mato Grosso do SulBrazilBolivia

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

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-SA 4.0 licence, unmodified.