Gymnocalycium schickendantzii

Gymnocalycium schickendantzii is a small cactus. It comes from northern Argentina. It belongs to Cactaceae, the cactus family. Kew lists its life form as a succulent subshrub. Its home range has a subtropical climate. LLIFLE records it in nine provinces in northwestern Argentina. These include Catamarca, Córdoba, La Rioja, Mendoza, and Salta. The rest are Santiago del Estero, San Juan, San Luis, and Tucumán. The RHS confirms it is not native to Britain or Ireland.

In the wild, this species grows on flat ground. It grows in sand or silt, not at rocky sites. It also grows away from steep slopes. Shrubs often shade the plants in these open sites. Records span heights of about 328–3,937 feet [100–1,200 metres]. The species has a broad range within its home region. Plants can be common at some sites in that range. Farms may affect groups of plants in the range's northeast.

The stem forms a broad ball with a somewhat flat shape. Young plants have a wide, round body. With age, the body grows about as tall as wide. Its reported width is about 0.33 feet [0.10 metres]. Its height at maturity is thus around 0.33 feet [0.10 metres], too. The stem ranges from deep olive green to brownish green. It has seven to sixteen ribs with clear bumps, called tubercles. Grooves run across the ribs and divide these raised parts. Long areoles, which bear the spines, also hold white fuzz.

Each areole bears six or seven radial spines. These spread from it, with no central spines. The strong spines are a little flat. They bend outward or downward. Their colours range from reddish grey to yellowish brown. Older spines fade towards ash-grey. Some plants have long spines that cross one another. Spines reach about 0.10 feet [0.03 metres], sometimes more. Their top faces can look dark brown, with grey beneath.

Flowers grow from both the stem's sides and its crown. They form funnels with long tubes, in white to reddish shades. Each flower reaches about 0.16 feet [0.05 metres] long. The stigma splits into twelve yellowish lobes. The egg-shaped fruit ranges from green to bluish. The supplied sources for this species give no firm bloom season. They also give no care, hardiness, or food-safety guidance for this species.