Oreocereus
The Oreocereus genus is named for the Greek "oros", mountain, and Latin "cereus", candle, for the habitats that these species possess, usually over 10,000 feet in elevation.
The unifying feature of all Oreocereus cacti is the formation of thick white wool or hair, often obscuring the shortly-columnar stems entirely. As a result, species are commonly dubbed "old man cactus", "old woman cactus", "old man of the mountain", or "old man of the Andes" in cultivation (1).
The unifying feature of all Oreocereus cacti is the formation of thick white wool or hair, often obscuring the shortly-columnar stems entirely. As a result, species are commonly dubbed "old man cactus", "old woman cactus", "old man of the mountain", or "old man of the Andes" in cultivation (1).