It is not unusual to see flowering cacti, but to
see a flowering San Pedro cactus is a rather special sight, as this cactus is
not a prolific flowerer and can take anything between five and ten years to
show its first beautiful white nocturnal flowers.
Although
similar in looks, it is not to be confused with the more common Queen of the
Night cactus or with the Organ Pipes cactus. The San Pedro (Echinopsis
pachanoi) is native to the Andes mountains where it grows at high altitudes.
They vary in length from 3 – 6 meters with the tallest recorded specimen
measuring a whopping 12.2 meters.
San Pedros
have for centuries been widely used in Andean tradition medicine. Archeological
studies have found evidence dating back as far as two thousand years ago of the
Moche and Chavin cultures using this cactus for traditional medicine. The
English name of St Peter cactus is attributed to the belief that as St Peter
holds the key to heaven, the psychoactive effect of this cactus allows users to
reach heaven while still on earth.
JIt is not unusual to see flowering cacti, but to see a flowering San Pedro cactus is a rather special sight, as this cactus is not a prolific flowerer and can take anything between five and ten years to show its first beautiful white nocturnal flowers. The plant, which is about ten years old, has grown
to over three meters in height so far. Van Biljon says it was absolutely incredible
to watch the flowers open, gently unfurling their petals to the night.
Sadly, the
flowers, which can reach a diameter of up to 20cm, only flower for two days.
According
to internet sources it is legal to cultivate and plant these cacti for gardening
purposes, but not for consumption.