Stats

Lifespan

75+ years

Size

Large

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Arid mountains

Range

South America

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Seeds

Defense

Spines, Toxins

Status

Rare

About

This tall columnar cactus grows along the high slopes of the Andes Mountains. It can sprout up to twelve inches of new stem height during a single growing season.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

• View on iNaturalist →
• Watch on YouTube →

Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Caryophyllales

Family

Cactaceae

Genus

Trichocereus

Species

Trichocereus macrogonus