Trichocereus 'Love Child'

Sometimes, you dream of a plant for years, and on rare occasions, those dreams comes true. Such is the case with Trichocereus 'Love Child'. Since I was a child, I dreamed of being able to grow giant Saguaro cactus outdoors in Zone 7b, but failed every time. A circuitous route to a similar goal began when NC plantsman Mike Papay hybridized Trichocereus bruchii, resulting in a hardy second generation plant he named Trichocereus 'Big Time'. He created another hardy hybrid using Trichocereus bruchii and Trichocereus thelogonus that he named Trichocereus 'Iridescent Watermelon'. We subsequently crossed both of Mike's hybrids together to create a seed strain we named Trichocereus 'Love Child'. Our plants sailed through 11F unscathed so far, but keeping them dry in the winter in the key. The flower show of huge tubular flowers in the range of fluorescent carmines, and the mature heights range from 18" to 3'+, depending on the seedling.