Trichocereus bridgesii ‘RS0005’ (Bolivian Torch)
Lot ECHI-LAGE-RS0005-01 8 available, sold individually
$90.00
- Plant: Trichocereus bridgesii RS0005
- Cultivation: unrooted cutting, ungrafted
- Size: about 12 in (30 cm) long
- Also known as: Bolivian torch cactus
- Lineage: Kakster, pictured in Trout’s Notes
- Listing: one cutting from the batch pictured, sold individually
- Grown: our own mother plant, grown outdoors in Orange County
In stock
The photo shows a representative cutting. Yours is cut from the same clone to the stated length.
- Flat $12 shipping anywhere in the United States, for one plant or several.
- Ships within 1 to 3 business days and usually arrives 2 to 5 business days later.
- All sales are final. If a plant arrives dead, email photos of the plant and packaging within a couple of days. Shipping and returns
- 237 plants sold
- Grown in Orange County, California
- Artificially propagated, never wild-collected
Description
Type: Unrooted, callused cutting, ungrafted · Length: about 12 in · 8 available, sold individually
Bolivian torch cactus RS0005 is a Trichocereus bridgesii clone that came from the grower Kakster and appears in Trout’s Notes, and we have eight 12 inch cuttings of it for sale. The photo shows representative stems on our mother plant. Your cutting comes from the same clone at the same length, unrooted and ungrafted.
About Bolivian torch cactus RS0005
RS0005 is a classic bridgesii, the kind of plant that ends up as the reference photo in a book, and that is close to what happened: Trout’s Notes uses it to illustrate the species. Kakster passed it into the collector network, and Cactus Affinity has grown and distributed it since.
It also melts.
Not every stem, and not every year, but often enough that growers talk about it.
Several growers report melty, monstrose stretches on their plants, where ribs soften, fold and run together like candle wax for a few inches before the stem straightens out again. You cannot force it, and some stems never do it, but it is a large part of the clone’s appeal and the reason many collectors keep more than one RS0005 growing.
What to look for
Expect a medium column in soft blue-green with well-spaced areoles and long, thin, honey-colored spines, the Bolivian torch look in a clean form. Some names in the trade have drifted over the years, and you will occasionally see RS0005 described as a macrogonus or a peruvianus. The sources that document it, Trout’s Notes and the growers who distribute it, place it firmly with bridgesii.
The species name POWO accepts is Echinopsis lageniformis, and our Echinopsis lageniformis species page covers the Bolivian torch in detail, from habitat to cultivation.
The Bolivian torch is a Bolivian species, and in cultivation it makes a slimmer, more upright column than the Peruvian torch, with longer spines and white flowers that open at night. Because RS0005 is a clone, every cutting of it is genetically the same plant Kakster passed on. Seed from it would give you new plants, interesting in their own right but no longer RS0005, which is why the clone travels as cuttings.
How we grow it
At rarecactus.com we grow our Trichocereus mother plants outdoors in full sun in Orange County, California, in a 50/50 soil mix of organic and inorganic material. Bridgesii grows at a steady rather than explosive pace, so we let each column put on good length before we take cuttings. All eight come from our own plant of the clone, and none are grafted.
When your Bolivian torch cactus RS0005 cutting arrives
Check the cut end. If it is dry and hard, it is ready to root; if it is still soft, give it a few more days upright in bright shade.
A 12 inch cutting has plenty of stored water and energy, so it roots readily and usually starts new growth in its first warm season.
Let it root in a dry area: stand it upright in bright indirect light and keep it dry until roots form, which usually takes a few weeks in warm weather. Then pot it in a 50/50 soil mix of organic and inorganic material and begin light watering, bringing it into full sun over two or three weeks. Like every bridgesii it dislikes wet roots, so let the mix dry right out between waterings.
Provenance and legality
Trichocereus, like most cacti, is listed on CITES Appendix II, and this is cultivated stock propagated in the United States. San Pedro and its relatives are legal to own as ornamentals in all fifty states, and our legality guide cites the statute for each state. More clones are in our Bolivian torch cactus for sale collection, and the Echinopsis encyclopedia hub covers the genus.
Questions before you buy
What exactly arrives?
A cutting from the same clone, cut to the stated length and shipped unrooted, as cuttings are. The photo shows a representative cutting, and the lot line under the title shows how many remain.
How does it ship?
From our greenhouse in Orange County, California, within 1 to 3 business days, for a flat $12 anywhere in the United States. It usually arrives 2 to 5 business days later.
Is it legal to own?
Yes. Every plant we sell is artificially propagated, cut from our own mother plants, with no wild collection at any stage. CITES rules apply to international trade, and we sell within the United States only, so no export permit is involved.
What if it arrives dead?
All sales are final, because each plant is a living one of a kind. If it arrives dead, take clear photos of the plant and the packaging within a couple of days of delivery and tell us. If anything else about the order is not right, say so and we will help where we can.
Growing Echinopsis
Echinopsis are vigorous South American cacti, most of them Andean columns, and they want full sun, a free-draining 50/50 soil mix, generous summer water and a dry winter rest.
- Sun exposure
- Full sun, acclimatised
- Full sun, acclimatised gradually after winter, keeps growth firm. Light afternoon shade helps in the hottest climates, and E. pachanoi tolerates bright filtered light.
- Watering
- Generous, weekly in heat
- Water generously from spring to autumn, weekly in peak summer heat, letting the mix dry between soaks. Keep plants dry or nearly dry through winter, especially below 10°C.
- Soil
- 50/50 organic/mineral
- Half organic, half inorganic: cactus soil cut about 50/50 with pumice, granite grit or lava. That is richer than most succulents take, and it is how we grow our Trichocereus.
- Cold tolerance
- Cold hardy, no freezing
- Cold hardy, but cannot handle freezing temperatures. Protect plants before any frost, and keep them dry through cold spells, since wet cold does the most damage.
- Container
- Deep and stable
- Deep, stable pots for the big columnar species, whose root systems are extensive; repot yearly while young. Spreading E. chamaecereus suits a shallow pan or hanging basket.
- Growth rate
- Fast for cacti
- Fast for cacti. E. pachanoi adds 30 to 60 cm a year in good conditions, E. lageniformis 15 to 30 cm, and E. chamaecereus clumps up quickly.
Shipping & Returns
Shipping
Flat $12 shipping anywhere in the United States, for one plant or several. Orders ship within 1 to 3 business days and usually arrive 2 to 5 business days later. Every plant is packed by hand to travel safely.
Returns
Every plant we sell is alive, so all sales are final and we do not accept returns or exchanges. If a plant arrives dead, take clear photos of the plant and the packaging within a couple of days of delivery and email support@rarecactus.com. If anything else about your order is not right, tell us and we will help where we can.
