description was incomplete and proved unhelpful to later scholars.

During the years 1848 to

1856, George Engelmann made extensive studies of a plant he named Echinocereus caespitosus.
[5]
Prior to this Joseph zu Salm-Reifferscheidt-Dyck referred to plants in European collections
as Echinopsis pectinate var. reichenbachiana, and he later discussed the possibility with Engelmann
that these two plants were one and the same.[6]
Despite the early indication of a naming error, Engelmann's binomial was used to describe the plant
until 1893, when F.A. Haage Jr. changed Terscheck's Echinocactus reichenbachiito Echinocereus
reichenbachii, which Nathaniel Lord Britton and Joseph Nelson Rose later adopted. This broke with
the long-standing botanical tradition to use the earliest known name, but because Terscheck's
description was lacking and possibly referred to as many as a dozen species, his binomial was
supplanted by Haage's.[6]

Variations and subspecies[edit]

Variations of Echinocereus
reichenbachii include E. reichenbachii var. albertii, E. reichenbachii var. fitchii, E. reichenbachii var. a
lbispinus, E. reichenbachii ssp. armatus, E. reichenbachii ssp. burrensis,
and E. reichenbachii ssp. fitchii. Direct children
include E. reichenbachii var. baileyi, E. reichenbachii var. perbellus,
and E. reichenbachii var. reichenbachii.[7]
E. reichenbachii var. albertii (commonly called the Black Lace cactus) is a federally
listed endangered species of the United States that is endemic to Texas.[8] It has been listed as
endangered since 1979. Populations of E. reichenbachii var. albertii are found near the Kleberg, Jim
Wells, and Refugio counties of south Texas.[9] Destruction of habitat, over-collecting, and livestock
grazing have all contributed to its endangered status.[10]

Description[edit]

E. reichenbachii

Echinocereus reichenbachii is a perennial plant and shrub.[1] It is one of the

smaller Echinocereus species.[3] Immature specimens are spherical, and as they grow they become
cylindrical.[4] Plants are solitary or multi-branched in clusters of as many as twelve, with erect stems
with 10 to 19 slightly undulate ribs. They reach 7.5 to 30 centimetres (3.0 to 11.8 in) tall and 4 to 10
centimetres (1.6 to 3.9 in) wide.[11]The stems are dark green and obscured by the spines, especially
when the plant is dehydrated. Areoles are elliptical or oval.[3] They are spaced 1 to 6 millimetres
(0.039 to 0.236 in) apart, with 15 to 36 spines each. The spines are tan, to brown, black, purplish
black, or pink, and the tips are usually darker than the shaft. The central spines tend to be the
darkest. There are up to 7 central spines per areole; they are 1 to 6 millimetres (0.039 to 0.236 in)
long.[11]
Plants flower in early May and late June, and they fruit 6 to 10 weeks after flowering. [11] Flowers open
for just one day, but anthesis is usually staggered so plants have blooming flowers for a full week;
buds are covered in white wool that hides the fruit as it develops.[3] The flower's inner tepals are
silvery pink or magenta; the outer portions are white, crimson, green, or multicolored. They are
approximately 4.5 to 8 centimetres (1.8 to 3.1 in) by 5 to 10 centimetres (2.0 to 3.9 in), and the
flower tubes are 22 to 40 millimetres (0.87 to 1.57 in) by 10 to 30 millimetres (0.39 to 1.18 in). The
tube hairs are 5 to 15 millimetres (0.20 to 0.59 in) long, and the nectar chamber is 2 to 5 millimetres
(0.079 to 0.197 in) deep.[11] Flowers have 30 to 50 petals each, which are ragged or
notched. Pistils are multi-lobed and green, and stamens are cream-colored or yellow.[4] Fruits are
various shades of green and 15 to 28 millimetres (0.59 to 1.10 in) long.[11]

Native habitat[edit]
E. reichenbachii's native habitat includes the entirety of the Chihuahuan Desert and its nearby
grasslands, as well as in woodlands of oak and juniper. They grown at elevations up to 1,500 meters
(4,900 ft).[11] In the United States, E. reichenbachii is native to Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, and
Nebraska.[1] They are also found in Kansas and Oklahoma. The variety found in Oklahoma, E.
reichenbachii baileyi, have especially long "bristlelike" spines.[11] E. reichenbachii is native to the
northern Mexican states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.[11]

Cultivation and propagation[edit]

E. reichenbachii prefer full sun and require little water. They thrive in dry, well-drained, gravelly, clay,
and loam soils, and near rock outcroppings. They are cold and heat tolerant, and grow well under
glass.[12] They are drought resistant, but susceptible to mealybugs and scale insects.[13]
Propagation is facilitated by seeds collected as the fruits begin to dry. The species is used in
commercial landscaping as ornamental features, particularly in desert environments. Plants are
considered deer resistant.[4] E. reichenbachii earned the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of
Garden Merit.[13][14]

Gallery[edit]


Echinocereus reichenbachii
 

Flower

E. reichenbachii var. baileyi

References[edit]
1. ^ Jump up to:a b c United States Department of Agriculture.

2. Jump up^ Holloway & Neill 2005, p. 60.

3. ^ Jump up to:a b c d Powell & Weedin 2004, p. 245.

4. ^ Jump up to:a b c d Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center.

5. Jump up^ Weniger 1969, p. 20.

6. ^ Jump up to:a b Weniger 1969, p. 21.

7. Jump up^ Integrated Taxonomic Information System.

8. Jump up^ Texas Parks and Wildlife, pp. 1–24.

9. Jump up^ Texas Parks and Wildlife (b).

10. Jump up^ Center for Plant Conservation.

11. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h Flora of North America.

 12. Jump up^ Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center; Royal Horticultural Society: loam soil and
grown under glass.

13. ^ Jump up to:a b Royal Horticultural Society.

14. Jump up^ "AGM Plants - Ornamental" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 34.
Retrieved 6 February 2018.
Bibliography

 "CPC National Collection Plant Profile: Echinocereus reichenbachii var. albertii", Center for Plant
Conservation, retrieved September 14, 2015

 Holloway, Joel Ellis; Neill, Amanda (2005), Neill, Amanda, ed., A Dictionary of Common Wildflowers of
Texas & the Southern Great Plains (Illustrated ed.), TCU Press, ISBN 978-0-87565-309-9

 "Echinocereus reichenbachii", Flora of North America, 4, p. 173

 "Echinocereus reichenbachii", Integrated Taxonomic Information System, retrieved September

11, 2015

 "Native Plant Database: Echinocereus reichenbachii", Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center, University
of Texas at Austin, retrieved September 12, 2015

 Powell, A. Michael; Weedin, James (2004), Cacti of the Trans-Pecos & Adjacent Areas: Grover E.
Murray Studies in the American Southwest Series (Illustrated ed.), Texas Tech University
Press, ISBN 978-0-89672-531-7

 "Echinocereus reichenbachii", Royal Horticultural Society, retrieved September 11, 2015

 "Black Lace Cactus (Echinocereus reichenbachii var. albertii): 5-year Review: Summary and
Evaluation" (PDF), Texas Parks and Wildlife Department; United States Fish and Wildlife Service; Corpus
Christi Ecological Services Field Office, retrieved September 14, 2015

 "Black Lace Cactus (Echinocereus reichenbachii var. albertii)", Texas Parks and Wildlife Department,
retrieved September 14, 2015

 "Plant Profile: Echinocereus reichenbachii", United States Department of Agriculture,

retrieved September 11, 2015

 Weniger, Del (1969), Cacti of the Southwest: Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and
Louisiana (Illustrated ed.), University of Texas Press, ISBN 978-0-292-70000-0