Bridgesii
MM
Partially documentedMM is a set of initials with at least three histories attached. One thread ties it to the breeder Misplant and guesses the letters stand for Medicine Man, a link the breeder has neither confirmed nor denied; a second has a grower claiming to have named the plant in the United States; a third reads MM as Moran, a rescued from a trailer park along with a called Tammy and given away by the truckload in Northern California. Growers agree on the plant itself more than on its name: short spines, a frequent "dumbo" mutation, strong growth, and a dislike of humidity that shows up as black spots. No or spine measurements have ever been written down.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
- short spines
- dumbo mutation
- vigorous growth
- humidity sensitive
At a glance
Species
No botanical name on file. What the sources do say about its species is in the writing below.
Filed under Bridgesii
Parents
No source names a mother or a father for this one.
Origin
no source says whether it is seed-grown or a cutting line
In the yard
Family line
No source in this library records a confirmed cross for MM, and no other entry here names it as a parent. What the record does hold is below.
No parents are recorded. Seedlings of unknown parentage have also turned up under the name, which the wiki page reads as a sign that more than one line is circulating.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
The longer version
Species, as our sources record it: widely believed to be bridgesii (Bolivian Torch).Reported, but not confirmed.
The first ties the clone to the breeder Misplant, also known as Bob Baker, with a long-running guess that the initials stand for Medicine Man.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
Contributors say Misplant hints at that link in group comments but has never confirmed or denied it, so whether MM and Medicine Man are one plant remains open.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
The second comes from David Gonzalez, who claims to be the person who gave the plant its name in the United States and to have sold a few over the years.Reported by 2 independent sources; we have not seen it ourselves.
The third reads MM as short for Moran and links it to a clone called Tammy: Byron Fan and a grower called Will took the out of a trailer park unit whose new owner wanted the in-ground cacti cleared, and Tammy is that owner's name.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
Will then drove truckloads of the rescued material around Northern California and handed it out free so that other growers would keep it going.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
Members treat Moran and Tammy as very likely the same plant, and as a different plant from one called Kathleen.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
A Californian nursery grows plants under both Moran and Tammy, says they look very alike, and says the two are generally accepted to be the same — while adding, unprompted, that there is no perfect proof of it.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.The same nursery traces Moran to a nursery of that name, and gives Tammy a dated origin: found around 2018 growing in the ground at a Californian trailer park, spread widely through the community when new owners had the plants cleared out, and named for the new owner of the unit.Reported by 2 independent sources; we have not seen it ourselves.A seller volunteering the limits of his own claim is the most useful thing a trade source does.Reported, but not confirmed.
Where the name comes from
Three separate origin stories sit side by side on the wiki page, which the entry itself puts down to names overlapping.Reported by 2 independent sources; we have not seen it ourselves.
Character
- slow and steady to fast grower: this one leans towards fast grower, read from the growth line below.
- nearly smooth to heavily spined: this one leans towards nearly smooth, read from the spines line below.
Not documented yet.
- Skin
- , ribs and spines: no measured description exists — because members call it a bridgesii, the wiki page falls back on the usual species look, meaning strong ribs, brown-yellow spines and green skin under a waxy bloom.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
- Spines
- Growers report short, tidy spines.One source states this, and our house botanist has checked it. Short, neat spination is a common and unremarkable form in this genus.
- Growth habit
- It is commonly reported to throw a "dumbo" mutation. Keepers call it an unusually strong grower once it is established.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.It dislikes humid conditions, which can bring on black spotting.One source states this, and our house botanist has checked it. Damp, still air really does encourage black spotting on these columnar cacti.
What the sources say
The wiki page carries a banner saying it was assembled by a bot from community chat and has not been checked by an editor. Whether MM and Medicine Man are the same clone is unresolved — the breeder is said to imply it without ever stating it. Whether MM means Moran or something else is unresolved, and at least three separate naming claims exist for the same two letters.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.Some members openly dismiss the whole story as marketing mystique around an ordinary bridgesii.Reported, but not confirmed.This is a textbook case of the point our own notes already make: one short clone name can cover several genetically different plants once it starts circulating.Too little stands behind this for us to confirm it.
Related names
Keep exploring
Cultivar histories in this hobby are passed between growers; where sources disagree we say so rather than pick a side.