Fox-Tail or Beehive Cactus
Coryphantha vivipara (formerly Mammillaria vivipara) (CACTACEAE)
Planting and Growing Fox-Tail Cactus
You’ll find everything you need to know to plant and grow fox-tail or beehive cactus in the accompanying table’s tabs:
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- Flowers, foliage, and fruit of fox-tail or beehive cactus
- Growing conditions for fox-tail or beehive cactus
- When and where to plant fox-tail or beehive cactus
- How to plant fox-tail or beehive cactus
- How to shape, prune and control growth of fox-tail or beehive cactus
- Watering, fertilizing, and care of fox-tail or beehive cactus
- Landscape uses of fox-tail or beehive cactus
- Pest and disease control for fox-tail or beehive cactus
Growing Fox-Tail Cactus
Several horticultural varieties of slow-growing, ball-shaped becoming erect and oblong, knobby cacti, to 6 in. (15 cm) tall, armed with white or red, black-tipped, needlelike spines in flat, radiating clusters, to 5/8 in. (16 mm) long, surrounding erect, central spines, to 1 in. (25 mm) long.
Fox-Tail Cactus Planting and Care Guide
Flowers and Fruit
Showy, yellow green, pink, purple, open, double-petaled flowers, to 2 in. (50 mm) wide, in early summer, form red, ball-shaped fruit, to 1 in. (25 mm) wide, in winter.
Best Climates
U.S.D.A. Plant Hardiness Zones 3–11. Hardy. Best in arid, cold-winter climates.
Soil Type and Fertility
Damp to dry, well-drained, sandy soil. Fertility: Average. 6.5–7.5 pH.
Where and How to Plant
Full sun. Space 6–12 in. (15–30 cm) apart.
Proper Care
Easy. Keep damp; allow soil to dry completely between waterings and throughout winter. Fertilize annually in summer. Propagate by offsets, seed.
About This Species
Good choice for borders, containers, edgings, foregrounds in arid, natural, small-space gardens. Good as houseplant. Pest resistant. Fungal disease susceptible.
Warning:
Spines can be hazardous; avoid planting in gardens frequented by pets and children.