Echinocactus grusonii (Golden barrel)

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Echinocactus grusonii Hildm.

Golden barrel, golden ball, mother-in-law’s cushion, golden barrel cactus

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Caryophyllidae	Cacti, many other succulents, carnivorous plants, and leadworts
Order	Caryophyllales	Includes cacti, carnations, amaranths, ice plants, and many carnivorous plants
Family	Cactaceae	Succulent (water-storing) plants, often spiny
Genus	Echinocactus	From echinos, “hedgehog or spine,” and cactus
Species	grusonii	Named for industrialist and plant collector Hermann Gruson, founder of the Gruson-Gewächshäuser Magdeburg Exotische Pflanzensammlung botanical garden

About plant names...

Golden barrel cactus is native to Mexico. Although very popular in cultivation, this cactus is rare and critically endangered in the wild. In 1990, most of the few remaining plants were to be flooded as part of a dam project in the Rio Moctezuma Valley in Mexico. A Mexican botanical garden scrambled to relocate as many plants as possible, and this conservation project led to their cultivation.

Identification: Golden barrels are 8-51″ (20-130 cm) high, and 1-2½′ (40-80 cm) in diameter. Each globe has 21-37 ribs. Spines are in groups of 8-10, up to 1″ (3 cm) long. The yellow spines provide a golden sheen. Small yellow flowers appear on the top. Greenish fruits, round or slightly oval, are ⅜-¾″ (1.2-2 cm) long.

References:

Anderson, Edward F., The Cactus Family, Timber Press, 2001, p. 227

Online References:

Wikipedia

as Compiled by the Master Gardeners of the University of Arizona Pima County Cooperative Extension

Desert-tropicals.com

Cactus Art: the World of Cacti & Succulents

SEINet—the Southwest Environmental Information Network

Echinocactus grusonii description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (57 × 38 cm)

4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland · ≈ 2 × 1′ (62 × 41 cm)

The golden barrels are on the left. · 4/11/1979 · Huntington Library Cactus Garden, San Marino, California

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona

5/25/2009 · Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Superior, Arizona · ≈ 3½ × 2½′ (110 × 73 cm)

Range: Zones 9a-11:

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