Cereus chalybaeus

Cereus chalybaeus Otto ex Walp., nom. inval. (1843)

🌵 Author(s)	Wilhelm Gerhard Walpers
🌵 Published in	Repert. Bot. Syst. (Walpers) 2(2): 340 (1843)

Etymology

Latin chălybēïus, chălybaeus ‘steel-blue’. Not explained by Walpers. For the color of the epidermis. Cels (Cereus calybaeus hort. ex F.Cels in Ann. Fl. Pomone 9: 197. 1841): “Blue cereus. […] This plant closely resembles [Cereus] cærulescens [= Cereus coerulescens Salm-Dyck = Pilosocereus aurisetus] in its habit and shape; the color is a darker and more pleasant shade of blue” (“Cierge bleu. […] Cette plante ressemble beaucoup au [Cereus] cærulescens pour le port et la forme; la couleur est d’un bleu plus foncé et plus agréable”). Riccobono (Piptanthocereus chalybaeus (Otto ex Walp.) Riccob. in Boll. Reale Orto Bot. Palermo 8: 227. 1909): “Stem columnar, branching, dark green when mature, and bluish-green in new growth” (“Fusto colonnare, ramoso, verde-scuro da adulto, e cerulescente nella nuova vegetazione”).