Melocactus peruvianus

A Turk's-cap cactus from the dry coastal hills and Andean valleys of Peru and southern Ecuador. Mature plants grow a woolly cephalium and stop growing taller. It needs full sun, constant warmth and a long, almost rainless dry season, and it is touchy about cold, wet roots.

At home, aim for

Day IntermediateTargets 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

Grows on rocky slopes, gravel and boulder fields in desert and dry scrub, from coastal foothills up into dry inter-Andean valleys, often wedged among stones.

Recorded at about 330 to 2,340 m, median 1,320 m, though only 12 records carry an elevation.

PeruEcuador

🔒 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

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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.