Pfeiffera boliviana

Natural range and habitat of Pfeiffera boliviana

Pfeiffera boliviana is native to Bolivia. In the Yungas of La Paz, it grows on trees at around 1,800 m elevation.

The roots occupy small pockets of organic material above the forest floor. These pockets receive regular moisture, drain quickly and stay exposed to moving air.

How to care for Pfeiffera boliviana

• Potting mix: use an epiphytic cactus mix with coarse material such as bark that drains quickly and stays loose around the roots.
• Humidity: keep humidity moderate to high and let air move around the crown and trailing stems.
• Light: give it bright filtered or indirect light. Introduce gentle direct sun gradually.
• Water: while new stems are growing, water the pot thoroughly and let it drain. When growth slows, wait until the mix is mostly dry before watering again.
• Temperature: keep it warm and above about 10 °C.
• Feeding: a light dose of balanced liquid fertiliser a few times while new stems are growing is enough.
• Propagation: raise new plants from seed or rooted stem sections.
• Repotting: repot when roots crowd the container or the mix compacts and water no longer drains freely.

Pfeiffera boliviana problems and solutions

• Wrinkled, limp segments: dry roots or rotten roots can leave the stems short of water. Check the roots first. If they are firm and dry, water thoroughly and let the pot drain. If they are soft or rotten, cut away all rot to firm healthy tissue with a clean tool, discard the rot, and repot the remaining healthy rooted plant in fresh, fast-draining mix.
• Cottony deposits in areoles or branch joints: mealybugs may settle in protected parts of the stems. Isolate an active infestation, remove visible insects, and use a product labelled for mealybugs on ornamental plants at the stated dose and repeat interval.
• Pale or dry patches on exposed stems: a sudden increase in direct sun can scorch the surface. Return the plant to filtered light and build up direct sun gradually.
• Soft dark tissue at the crown or stem base: compacted mix that stays wet for too long can damage roots and stems. Cut away all rotten material to firm healthy tissue with a clean tool, discard the rot, let the cuts dry, then repot the remaining healthy rooted plant in fresh, fast-draining epiphytic mix.

Keep Pfeiffera boliviana away from children and pets

• Keep this plant away from children, cats and dogs.
• Its effects after chewing or swallowing are unclear, and plant material can still cause an upset stomach.
• Contact a veterinarian or medical professional if symptoms develop or do not settle.

How did Pfeiffera boliviana get its name?

Pfeiffera commemorates Ludwig Karl Georg Pfeiffer. The epithet boliviana means Bolivian and refers to Bolivia.

Joseph Franz Maria Anton Hubert Ignatz Fürst zu Salm-Reifferscheid-Dyck established the genus Pfeiffera in 1845 in Cacteae in Horto Dyckensi Cultae, 1844, page 40.

Nathaniel Lord Britton first described it as Hariota boliviana in 1893 in Memoirs of the Torrey Botanical Club, volume 3, issue 3, page 40. David Richard Hunt later placed it in Pfeiffera as Pfeiffera boliviana in 2002 in Cactaceae Systematics Initiatives, volume 14, page 18.