Beautiful hanging cactus with meter-long clear green stems and funnel-shaped flowers, perfect for hanging baskets

Aporocactus 'Melanie' is a beautiful hanging cactus with long, pendulous stems that can reach up to a meter in length. This makes it perfect for placing in a hanging basket where the stems can cascade down and display all their glory. The stems are clear green with tips that can be slightly lighter and reddish, and there are many small spines along the stems.

Short, brush-like spines give the green plant a finely textured surface while the slender stems remain flexible enough to hang. New shoots start upright and then bend over the pot as they grow longer. Older growth becomes thicker, darker, and more branched, eventually forming a dense curtain. Mature stems can produce large funnel-shaped flowers from the sides, with flower color varying between different plants.

Aporocactus and related Disocactus species originate from Mexico and Central America where their slender stems hang from trees, cliffs, and hillsides in forested mountainous environments.

Botanical Description

'Melanie' is a horticultural hanging cactus sold under the name Aporocactus. There is no documented information about the breeder or parentage associated with the name. It has sometimes been equated with ×Aporodisocactus mallisonii, but that name specifically belongs to the documented artificial cross Aporocactus flagelliformis × Disocactus speciosus, and this equivalence cannot be assumed for 'Melanie'.

Care Instructions

Thrives in a bright location with some direct sun. As an epiphytic cactus, it is treated more like a tropical plant than a desert cactus. Allow the soil to dry out slightly between waterings, but do not let it dry out completely during the growing season. Use well-draining cactus or orchid soil.

Water more sparingly in winter. Fertilize with cactus fertilizer during the growing season. Ideal temperature 18-26 degrees Celsius. Perfect as a hanging plant!