I bought this cactus in 2012; this year it finally bloomed. It was well worth the wait.

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Echinobivia rainbow burst is a hybrid that gets it name from being a cross between echinopsis and lobivia. Colors of blooms range from white, gold, yellow, orange, pink, red, purple, and sometimes in bicolor. Mine turned out to be this lovely shade of pink.

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The bloom is just so striking I just keep taking pictures of it. And it opened wider a the day went on.

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The echeveria in the pot with it doesn’t show up well in the picture. And you can see the parent plant has made babies that I will harvest so I can have more of these beautiful blooms. Of course, small as they are, it will take a while before I see results. When I looked at it this evening it was still open, so it may be one of the cactus whose flower stays open for more than one day, a plus.

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This shot shows more of the green in the throat and you can see the pistil.

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Echinobivia is not cold-hardy and likes bright light and lots of moving air. I have had my issues with mealy bugs with it due to the moving air requirement, but consistent application of soapy water and change of location seems to have done the trick.

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This is a cactus you don’t see very often. I’ll have to admit I don’t remember where I bought it. So just keep your eyes open and you may run across one. I highly recommend you scoop it up before someone else does.

 

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