Quick facts
| Scope | A hybrid cross program among Echinopsis sensu lato taxa, bred by Rod Schick |
|---|---|
| Genus | Echinopsis |
| Curated by | The Huntington Botanical Gardens, San Marino, California |
| Related page | See Trichocereus hybrids for other, less formally documented named crosses |
| Legal/conservation status | As for the parent taxa involved: CITES Appendix II, as for the whole family Cactaceae |
Taxonomy and names
The Huntington documents its material with three different kinds of number: ISI introduction numbers, HBG accession numbers (consecutive since 1930), and Schick cross-plus-clone numbers. A cross number identifies a specific pollination event; the suffix after it identifies one selected individual from that cross. "77-4," for example, identifies an individual selected from cross 77 — it is not a species name; the same cross produced the named selection Echinopsis 'Rosalie' (Schick #77-4). Typically fewer than 50 seedlings germinate from a given cross, numbered cross-number–clone-number; most are discarded, and only exceptional individuals are given a cultivar name.
Cultivars and forms
Bob (Robert) Schick, of Northridge, California, built on Harry Johnson's earlier "Paramount" hybrid work, repeatedly crossing and re-crossing plants in his backyard nursery; Johnson's hybrids frequently served as parents to Schick's, and the two growers corresponded. Between 1986 and 2004, Schick introduced 128 named hybrids through The Huntington Botanical Garden's International Succulent Introductions (ISI) program — one of the most widely distributed bodies of named Echinopsis/Trichocereus flowering hybrids in cultivation. A flower that resembles a catalogue photograph is not sufficient authentication on its own. Record the supplier and the vegetative propagation chain for a named selection, and keep seed-grown descendants under their own individual identities rather than the parent's name.
The Huntington · Schick hybrid records ↗ · The Huntington · Verso, "Echinopsis Queen for a Day" ↗ · Freaky Cacti · Harry Johnson's Paramount hybrids ↗
Cultivation
Published Huntington cultivation notes reflect that garden's collection and growing conditions. Use them as a starting reference, then adjust for your own light, season, pot and drying rate.
References
The Huntington · Schick hybrid records ↗ · The Huntington · Verso, "Echinopsis Queen for a Day" ↗ · Freaky Cacti · Harry Johnson's Paramount hybrids ↗