mammillaria WM 5620

in flower in these days this mammillaria blossfeldiana from "paolo panarotto greenhouse" in verona, shows very pale flowers.
is labelled WM 5620 from punta baja - baja california.

I have a couple of plant sof this species, but small and still waiting for a flower. I'll let you know if the flowers are the same.
Interesting colour for a blossfeldiana, much darker body and spines.

To me, it does not look like M. blossfeldiana. Interestingly, on the website of Ralph Martin and on mammillarias.net, WM 5620 is listed as M. goodrichii.
So, I would suggest to skip the name of the plant and keep it labelled as Mammillaria WM5620 (or perhaps M. sp. aff. dioica WM 5620, for to me it looks more like M. dioica).

If you look in the Pilbeam book under M. goodridgei, you see two WM numbers mentioned, WM 402 and 572. John Pilbeam adds the following remark to these numbers: 'these reported questionably from the main peninsula of Baja California and probably not this species".
These examples once again show how difficult it is to attach a name to a plant found in nature!

Wolter.

I hesitated in my earlier reply to question if it was really blossfeldiana, but I agree with you, Wolter, it doesnt look right under that name. WM5620 comes from the same place as WM402 and WM572, namely Punta Baja, El rosario.

I have previously thought that nothing from the mainland could be M. goodridgei, but I am now having second thoughts. This plant does have some similarities to M. dioica, but it looks different, but bearing mind that I only have seedlings, it is early to say this with certainty.

However, just checking on the species in Pilbeam, I note that he says that M. blossfeldiana is also found in the north of Isla Cedros, although none of the field numbers he references are from there. If this is true, there is no real reason why M. goodridgei should not have done the reverse journey to the mainland.

I think the usual cop-out applies here - more field work in needed!

however the colour of the flower is always too light in case of goodrichii.
might be interesting to have other fhotographs of WM 5620.
thank you for the attention.

WM 5620 is present in "il sole rarità botaniche" catalogue 2011...

this is a m.blossfeldiana WM 2361
(the plant with flowers on areolas)

I also have chekced my plants, I have two seedlings from my own sowing left now, but one larger plant in bud now which came from Zanovelli (Il SoleRarita Botaniche). In a week or so I hope to see the flowers.
Your plant, Maurillo, shown above has a very typical blossfeldiana flower, rather different from that of M. dioica. So, with that information, I think it has to be just a very interesting form of blossfeldiana. Very interesting......

I bought a plant similar to Maurillio plant from the nursery Panarotto over 15 years ago. The plant is labeled mammillaria blossfeldiana v. shurliana.
The plant is similar to m. dioica, but it can not be m. dioica, because it does not have bristles in axils.

From The Journal of The Mammillaria Society, volume 42 page 10,
"Note on the 2002 Seed Distribution" by Bill Maddams:


"M.blossfeldiana is one of the gems of the genus and
even among its allies in the Series Ancistracanthae
, whose blooms are noticeable for their charisma, it
has few peers. Mature plants, with offsets, present
a magnificent sight when in flower in mid-summer.
The blooms, as much as 4cm in diameter, have white
petals with a broad pinkish-purple central stripe,
golden stamens and green stigma lobes. WM 5620
is the variant with a taller body that has often been
called M.shurliana."