Description

The golden spined cereus is found in the hills along the immediate coast in San Diego County, northern Baja California, Catalina Island and San Clemente Island where it benefits from the moderating effect of the Pacific. It grows as an expanding patch of ribbed, upright columns with a yellow green hue and yellow spines that inspired this cactus’s common name. We think of cactus as thriving in intense heat and sun, but the golden cereus will decline under these conditions. In nature a reliable marine layer protects it from the most intense periods of sunshine, and the Pacific makes for mild temperatures. In the SF Bay Area, the golden cereus should be considered frost tender and be provided with half a day of shade or so. It is best grown in a pot. I have found it quite hardy in San Jose in a pot but have not yet seen a flower after several years.