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Scientific: Echinopsis spachiana (Synonym: Trichocereus spachianus)
Common: golden torch cactus, Easter lily cactus, sea urchin cactus
Family: Cactaceae
Origin: Bolivia to western Argentina

Pronounciation: E-ki-NOP-sis spa-key-AN-a

Hardiness zones
Sunset
12-24
USDA 9-11 (in semi arid and arid regions only)

Landscape Use: Functional accent cactus for more formal desert gardens and landscaped areas, container culture.

Form & Character: A refined cylindrical cactus, strongly upright.

Growth Habit: Succulent perennial, a slow growing rather smaller upright cactus, cylindrical stems that typically branch upward from the base to 6-feet tall, each stem is 2-inches wide.

Foliage/Texture: Areoles and spines are golden yellow, spines clustered up to 10 per areole, generally 2- to 2.5-inches long and the remainder are up to 1.5-inches long, stems are ridged, 12 to 18 ribs per stem segment; stems range rfom lighter to darker green in color; coarse texture.

Flowers & Fruits: Beautiful short-lived, large nocturnal white flowers during spring; fruits globose, inconspicuous.

Seasonal Color: None.

Temperature: Heat loving, cold hardy to 25oF

Light: Partial to full sun. Some resources will report that golden torch cactus requires partial shade in Phoenix in order to survive, but I've observed that this cactus will grow well in a full sun landscape location.

Soil: Like all cactus, golden torch cactus needs good soil drainage.

Watering: Generally no supplemental water is necessary.

Pruning: Only occasionally every few years remove any elongated cylindrical stems that slough off and trail onto the ground.

Propagation: Asexually by rooting of stems segments. Allow stem segments to callus for several weeks before directly sticking into the soil.

Disease and Pests: Root rot in poorly drained soil.

Additional comments: This is an outstanding small columnar cactus for formal desert gardens.