Oreocereus

Oreocereus is a genus of cacti (family Cactaceae), known only from high altitudes of the Andes. Its name means "mountain cereus", formed from the Greek prefix oreo- (ὀρεο-, mountain)[1] and the Neo-Latin cereus, meaning wax or torch.

Oreocereus
Oreocereus celsianus
Scientific classification e
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Subfamily: Cactoideae
Tribe: Trichocereeae
Genus: Oreocereus
(A.Berger) Riccob.
Type species
Oreocereus celsianus
Species

See Text etc.

As they are covered with woolly white fuzz (modified spines), a few species in this genus are sometimes known as the old-man cactus,[2][3] a generic name that also refers to Cephalocereus senilis or Espostoa lanata. More rarely, the old man of the mountain is also used for some species.[nb 1]

Species

ImageScientific nameDistribution
Oreocereus australis (F.Ritter) A.E.Hoffm.Peru to Chile (Tarapacá)
Oreocereus celsianus (Lem. ex Salm-Dyck) A.Berger ex Riccob.Peru, Bolivia, Argentina (Jujuy)
Oreocereus doelzianus (Backeb.) BorgPeru.
Oreocereus fossulatus (Labour.) Backeb.Peru to Argentina (Jujuy)
Oreocereus hempelianus (Gürke) D.R.HuntPeru to Chile (Tarapacá)
Oreocereus hendriksenianus Backeb.Peru, Chile
Oreocereus leucotrichus (Phil.) Wagenkn.Chile, Peru
Oreocereus ritteri CullmannPeru
Oreocereus tacnaensis F.RitterPeru
Oreocereus trollii (Kupper) Backeb.Argentina, Bolivia
Oreocereus varicolor Backeb.Chile, Peru

Synonymy

The following genera have been included in this genus:

References

  1. “[...] hairy cacti in cultivation include: golden old man (C. chrysacanthus), old woman (Mammillaria hahniana), Chilean old lady (Neoporteria senilis), and old man of the mountain (Borzicactus trollii).”[4] [emphasis added, B. trollii being an old name for O. trollii].[5]
  1. "oreography". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  2. University of Vermont, Indoor Plants
  3. Barry Walker; Huw Lloyd (2007). Peruvian Wildlife: A Visitor's Guide to the Central Andes. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 23. ISBN 978-1-84162-167-8.
  4. Encyclopædia Britannica (1991), entry ‘old-man cactus’.
  5. D. J. Mabberley (2008-05-01). Mabberley's Plant-book: A Portable Dictionary of Plants, Their Classifications, and Uses. Cambridge University Press. p. 608. ISBN 978-0-521-82071-4.
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