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A list of cacti organised by genus, with their most important characteristics.

TYPE: Column Cacti

GENUS	CHARACTERISTICS
Browningia	Blue "frosting"
hertingiana

Cephalocereus	Grey hairs

Cereus	Hairless Blossom

Cleistocactus	Flower without cilia

Echinocereus	Green stigmas

Espostoa	White or grey-haired
	covering

Eulychina	Wooley areoles

Haageocereus	(Often) coloured spines

Hildewintera	Short inner blossom
	leaves

Oreocereus	White or grey-haired
	covering

Pilosocereus	Long and woolly
	areoles

Setiechinopis	Star-like flowers with
	very short petals

Stetsonia	V-shaped ridge
	crossing the areoles

Trichocereus	Circle of stigmas in the
	centre


TYPE: Rattail Cacti

GENUS	CHARACTERISTICS
Aporocactus	Red flowers, open
	during the day

Selenicereus	Flowers open at night,
	10" (25cm) tall


TYPE: Barrel Cacti

GENUS	CHARACTERISTICS
Astrophtum	Woolly surface

Echinocactus	Very large barrel cacti

Echinofossulo-	Lamella-like ribs
cactus

Echinopsis	Centre has a wreath of
	stamens. Relatively
	long tubelike flowers

Ferocactus	(Often) flattened
	hooked spines or curly
	spines

Gymnocalcium	Areoles with horizontal
	ridges; flowers with
	large bald scales on the
	outside

Lobivia	Centre with a stigma
	circle and short
	tubelike flowers

Neoporteria	Many different shapes

Notocactus	Often red stigmas

Parodia	Flower with heavy
	spine growth on the
	outside; (often) hooked
	spines

Rebutia	Flowers develop
	sideways near the base

Sulcorebutia	Combine spines

Thelocactus	Flowers are located at
	the end of a short
	furrow

Turbinicarpus	Paperlike or feathery
	spines


TYPE: True tubercle cacti (tubercles and flowers develop in the tubercles)

GENUS	CHARACTERISTICS
Coryphantha	Flowering tubercles,
	grooved

Mammillaira	Tubercles not grooved


TYPE: Leaf cacti

GENUS	CHARACTERISTICS
Phyllocacti	Flowers more than 3/4"
	(2cm) long

Rhipsalis	Flowers up to 3/4"
	(2cm) long


TYPE: Cacti with jointed branches

GENUS	CHARACTERISTICS
Rhipsalidopsis	Flowers radially
	symmetrical

Rhipsalis	Flowers up to 3/8"
	(1cm) in diameter

Schlumbergera	Flowers double-sidedly
	symmetrical


TYPE: Opuntiae

GENUS	CHARACTERISTICS
Opuntia	(Often) flat, leaflike
	pads