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Selenicereus Anthonyanus Zig Zag Rick Rack Fishbone Orchid Cactus
Packet containing 2x large well rooted established cuttings!
This fella has a heap of confusion surrounding it.
The main reason is that it shares the common names of ric rak, rick rack, zig zag, fish bone and orchid cactus.
These are the same names used to describe other near identical looking species such as Epiyphyllum anguliger, Disocactus anguliger, and Weberocereus imitans.
Epiphyllum anguliger and Disocactus anguliger are actually the same plant and they generally have large white flowers. Weberocereus imitans is very uncommon and has very small flowers and fruit.
This fella is called Pitayita Nocturna in Spanish it was once known as Cryptocereus anthonyanus.
Selenicereus anthonyanus is the current correct name and it has a large pink and white flower that are uniquely spiny at the base. They form a large fruit with various levels of spination depending on the selection and although they are very sharp they are also surprisingly easy to deal with.
Another unexpected bonus is that once you eat the fruit and throw away the spiky skin they decompose and blunten very quickly in the compost.
Since they don’t have the small irritating glochids/hairs other cactus like Opuntia Cactus have, eating them is pretty straight forward too. Just cut in half like a dragonfruit or kiwi fruit and scoop out the delicious opaque green yellow flesh.
It tastes of sweet Kiwi fruit and Honeydew melon and was very different to all the other relatives I have tried. Pretty bloody awesome actually and I can’t wait to see some of my hybrids of this fella crossed with the larger blander Dragonfruit reach maturity!
I am told the beautiful flowering Asunta dragonfruit has this in the lineage which is why it has large pink flowers instead of more common white.
The fruit pictured and the ones I tried were from my neighbours plants and they set fruit without the help of manual cross-pollination, but I am also told some are self-sterile requiring cross-pollination for fruit set. Probably a good idea to cross if fruit is the goal.
Most folks don’t know they fruit at all and they just grow them like an orchid either in a pot or just attached to a tree. The distinctive leaf and flower being the main attraction.
To my eye with the fruit is better tasting than a lot of fancy dragonfruit cultivars I have tried over the years and once word gets out fruit production and for use in hybridisation will no doubt become a major market too.
They handle full sun but prefer a little shade at least initially, and the growth is quite rapid. Most of mine are in pots in full sun, the rest are planted on posts and at the base of short trees and shrubs.
They flower and fruit from downward hanging branches so cut the tip off when they reach a height that leaves them in a position that you like. They then branch out from that point forming lots of side shoots and this is where the flowers and fruit are formed.
Super easy to grow from well rooted cuttings and once started the hard part is done.
My trials show they don’t have the same risk of failure as when freshly taken and shipped unrooted. Like that the fresh open wound packed sweating in a sealed package is the ideal conditions for rot to kill them in transit.
By buying my fancy already rooted cuttings you avoid this issue entirely.
When they rock up just give them a wash and plant them root down in a nice quite dry sandy well draining soil mix and place in a sheltered shady position for a couple weeks to recover. Introduce strong sunlight gradually to prevent any burns, easy as.
If you have other varieties of Selenicereus, Cereus or Epicactus especially large or coloured fruiting types feel free to hit me up for a swap via the FairDinkumSeeds Contact form, same deal if you have any other interesting plants, particularly drought tolerant hardy Cactus Species.
Grown by me and the Mrs organically, no chems, no nasties, no problems!
