Commonly called the pincushion or Common Spinystar cactus, this very cold-hardy species hails right from my own back yard, and puts on an incredibly surprising show. Plants reach upward of around 6 inches tall with roughly cylindrical stems adorned with finger-like protrusions, on the tips of which are the starlike clusters of spines that give this species its name. Occasionally pups will form around the base, making colonies, or during or in place of flowering/fruiting viviparous plantlets may form that fall off and root into new individuals. During wetter late springs especially, each plant may produce one to nearly a dozen gigantic brilliant pink flowers with slender pointed petals and yellow centers, giving way to slightly sour red-green fruits filled with seeds in late summer to fall. They do best in very well-drained dry sandy soils.
Approx. 30+ seeds per packet; germination may be slow and erratic, possibly benefiting from a dry winter-long stratification if they don't germinate immediately.