photo #7369372

Giant Crested peyote (Lophophora sp.)The Lophophoras are famous spineless cacti commonly known as "Peyote". The stem is often glaucous green, dull bluish or greyish green, very succulent, globular, top-shaped, or somewhat flattened with a woolly top. There are several different species, variety and forms (plus some intermediates and hybrid populations) In addition to the foregoing there exists an impressive array of cristates which forms nicely contorted and convoluted brain-like mounds. They are some of the more striking and priced crested cacti. They shows different crested shapes each of them has it own particular fascination.The cause of cresting is not fully explained; biologists disagree as to why some saguaros grow in this unusual form. Some speculate that it is a genetic mutation. Others say it is the result of lightning strike or freeze damage, but whatever the stimulus, the growth point of the stem has switched from a geometric point, to a line, which folds and undulates as the crest expands. Though these crested Lophophoras are somewhat rare (1 in 50,000), cresting occurs naturally throughout the range of the Lophophora, and can be encountered in many other cactus species. In the ontogenesis a crest can appear any time, but development of crests on large columnar cactus species in the early stages of ontogenesis is unlikely. On the other hand, small species may crest early already at the cotyledons stage. Credtis to the rightful owner