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Species library › Pachycereus › Pachycereus pecten-aboriginum
Succulents Well documented

Pachycereus pecten-aboriginum

A giant branching columnar cactus of western Mexico's thorn scrub and tropical deciduous forest, famous for its bristly, comb-like fruits. Young plants grow well in pots given heat, full sun and a hard dry winter. It is more frost-tender than desert columnars.

Pachycereus pecten-aboriginum
Photo: Amante Darmanin from Malta, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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

Slopes, plains, arroyos and foothills in thorn scrub, tropical deciduous forest and southern Sonoran desert scrub, often standing above the leafless dry-season canopy.

Recorded from 3 to about 2,280 m, with a median of 133 m. It is mainly a lowland and foothill plant.

Mexico NorthwestMexico SouthwestMexico CentralMexico NortheastMexico Southeast

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

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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 2.0 licence, unmodified.