German epiphytic cactus collector Eckhard Meier set out to combine the best features of two Hylocereus species. Two of his resulting hybrids were published in the German cactus journal (KuaS 52(6):141-144, 2001) and are offered here. The first is named for a friend of the hybridizer. The seed parent, H. undatus (photo 3), is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics (even tolerating a few degrees of frost) for its massive white flowers, to 30 cm long and 25 cm across. H. stenopterus (photo 4) is a more tender, tropical species from Costa Rica with smaller but still sizable flowers to 12 cm long and 15 cm across but of a rich red-violet color. This color has carried over to H. ‘Connie Mayer’ which can produce flowers to 28 cm wide. Both selections exhibit two series of perianth parts, apparently the influence of H. undatus, the inner whorl composed of shorter and broader tepals with paler pink toward the margins. Rooted cuts of HBG 95201. $8.
Published in the Cactus and Succulent Journal, Vol. 79 (2), March - April, 2007