So unusual

Amazing pic, how many years it took to reach that size while keeping every segment pristine, no corking, no marking of any sort even at the base!! Wow. And thinking each plantlet in the background would go for $50-70 a pop nowadays....Wow. Can't seem to get a fourth segment on mine and the first segment looks like it had a very hard life already :) Humbling!

Mine just had one segment when I got it, but it's been stuck at three for a while now.

Appears to be Tephrocactus City.

Holy crap that is crazy!!! Like Alain has already stated each one of those little tephro pots could be sold between $50-$100 easliy. Here’s a seller from Etsy.

I have a similar experience with mine as SLD. I bought my Tephrocactus as a single ball in 2017, and it stayed that way for two yrs, but the third yr it grew a new ball. It grew another one this yr. I’m hoping next yr is the yr for tons of new balls!

The man in the above pic has huge Tephrocactus balls, mine are not that big. I see that with this plant, some T. geometricus are more egg shaped, big, round, spiny, less spiny, and so on. Very different from plant to plant.

I got mine at two segments, and that is still where it is, but it looks happier than last year, so some hope for next year. But corking and whatever else on the bottom, and brownish 'zits' on the top and bottom. Not an easy customer to keep looking good. Same for Puna bonnieae, IME.