About Coryphantha macromeris (Engelm.) Lem.
This cactus, scientifically named Coryphantha macromeris (Engelm.) Lem. and also referenced as Pelecyphora macromeris, typically grows in clustered groups reaching up to 15 centimeters tall and 100 centimeters across, and it has fleshy roots. Individual shoots are spherical to cylindrical, dark green to blue-green, occasionally fading to gray-green with age, and are somewhat soft and fleshy. Shoots grow up to 23 centimeters high and 4 to 8 centimeters in diameter. The species has very prominent conical to cylindrical warts that can reach 15 millimeters in length, with a delicate epidermis. The furrow along each wart only extends halfway down from the wart’s tip, and nectar glands are sometimes present on the warts. It has one to four, rarely six, central spines that are blackish, brown, or gray; these spines are curved, somewhat flexible, and measure 2.5 to 3.5 centimeters long. There are also nine to 15 slender marginal spines, ranging from white to brown, that are 1.6 to 2.5 centimeters long. The flowers are bright pink or magenta, 3 to 5 centimeters long, and reach 4.5 to 7 centimeters in diameter. The flower bracts of this species are ciliated. After blooming, the plant produces green fruits that grow up to 2.5 centimeters long. Naturally, this species occurs in the United States in Texas and New Mexico, where it prefers growing in shade beneath larger plants in irregular clusters or mounds. In Mexico, it is found in the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, San Luis Potosí, and Tamaulipas, where it grows on sandy alluvial soils within Chihuahuan Desert vegetation. It blooms in late summer, producing purple or pink flowers before developing green fruit.
