The mostly solitary, glaucous gray, globular stems of this Argentine cactus inspired it redescription as Lobivia glauca Rausch, so that name is now considered a synonym. Its showy diurnal flowers come in a range of colors from yellow to orange, pink or red. E. marsoneri can be confused with E. jajoiana, which differs in its seeds and red flowers. Both have a prominent circle of fused filaments and a dark, sometimes almost black, throat. HBG 104721, plants from controlled pollination of material originally collected by Walter Rausch, WR 218, as Lobivia glauca, at Quebrada de Humahuaca, Jujuy, Argentina. $6.
Published in the Cactus and Succulent Journal, Vol. 83 (2), March - April, 2011