Actual size and flowering may vary slightly based on season.
Native Fire Barrel Bareroot Multi
Native Fire Barrel Bareroot Multi is a multi-headed cluster of the native California or compass barrel, sold with bare roots for planting in the ground. Several red-spined heads grow together from one base, so a single planting reads as a group. Each head slowly becomes a column, and each can open its own ring of yellow flowers in late spring. Pricing and sizes are on request.
Best for: a focal point in a native bed, an instant cluster instead of several single barrels, and rocky banks.
Several red-spined heads rise from one base, so one planting looks like a finished group. It makes a strong focal point in a native bed.
The fire barrel grows wild in Arizona deserts and needs very little water once rooted.
Set the bareroot cluster at the depth it grew on a bank or rocky bed, with its sun side facing south. Gravel mulch helps hold it steady.
Clusters are heavy, so plan for two people to move it. Soil that stays wet rots the roots.
- Cactus grouping3 ft apart
- Open planting4 ft apart
Keep it dry and in shade until you plant. Cleanly trim any broken or frayed roots, then let the cut roots dry for a few days in shade so they can seal over.
Move the cluster on a padded hand truck or in a carpet sling with a helper. Set it at the depth it grew, sun side south, and firm the soil around the roots.
Plant it into dry soil and wait about a week before the first water. Then water every other week while nights stay above 60°F. In cooler weather, water only after 2 to 4 weeks without rain.
Cover the new planting with light shade cloth or a few desert shrub branches for several weeks while it settles in.
Drainage test first. Dig the hole and fill it with water. If water is still sitting in the hole a day later, you likely hit caliche, clay or hard soil, so fix the drainage before planting. If it drains very fast, the soil is sandy. Standing water around roots is a common reason new plants fail.
Weed cloth. Cut it away from the planting hole and where the roots will spread. Remove any plastic sheeting completely, since it keeps water and air out of the soil.
Rock or decomposed granite with no soil underneath. Bring in soil close in texture to your native soil, mix it with the soil below, and build up enough depth for roots before planting.
If you can break through. Use a breaker bar, pick, or jackhammer. Dig through the caliche and break out the solid chunks. Backfill with the soil you dug out, with no compost or manure in the hole. Confirm drainage before planting.
If you cannot break through. Dig narrow holes through the hard layer beside the root ball, not under it, and refill them with the same soil, not gravel. If it still will not drain, plant on a low mound of the same soil.
Root ball. Check the outside edges for any roots circling around. Loosen or cut those so they grow outward. Do not break up the center of the root ball.
Depth. The top of the root ball should sit at or just slightly above the surrounding soil level. Planting too deep can lead to rot and kill the plant.
Drip emitters. At planting, put the emitters on the root ball, on different sides of the plant. After about 2 months, move them to the outer edge of the root ball. Over the first year, add emitters farther out toward the edge of the branches as roots grow. Once a plant is rooted, never water only at the trunk.
What is a multi-head barrel?
It is a cluster of several barrel heads growing from one base, sold as one plant. It gives the look of a group in one hole.
How do I move a heavy cluster?
Wrap it in folded carpet or a moving blanket and lift it with a helper or a padded hand truck. Never lift it by a head or by the roots.
How do I plant it?
Trim broken roots and let them dry a few days in shade. Dig a wide, shallow hole, set the cluster at the depth it grew with the sun side facing south, and firm the soil around the roots.
When do I water it?
Wait about a week after planting, then water every other week while nights stay above 60°F. Once rooted, every 2 to 4 weeks in summer is enough.
Is it native to Arizona?
Yes. The fire barrel grows wild in the Mojave and Sonoran deserts, including Arizona.
How big does it get?
Each head slowly becomes a column that can reach 5 to 10 feet over many years. The cluster spreads wider than a single barrel.
Does it flower?
Yes. Each head can open a ring of yellow flowers on top from late spring into summer, and native bees visit them.
How cold can it take?
It is hardy to about 10 to 20°F. Cover a new planting with frost cloth on a hard freeze night.
Does it have sharp spines?
Yes. Each head is covered in long, stiff red to yellow spines. Plant it back from walkways and wear thick gloves when you handle it.
Native Fire Barrel Bareroot Multi for sale in Arizona, delivered to you
Native Fire Barrel Bareroot Multi is a clustered form of Ferocactus cylindraceus, the Arizona native barrel. This page covers what arrives, planting a heavy cluster, first waterings, sun, cold and flowers.
Sourced from trusted Arizona growers and delivered directly to your door, job site, or property. We deliver across the Valley and to nearby towns, and quote delivery anywhere else in Arizona.
What arrives with a multi-head bareroot barrel?
A cluster of several native barrel heads on one base, with bare roots, ready to plant.
Moving a heavy barrel cluster
Use a padded hand truck or a carpet sling and a helper. Never lift it by the roots or a single head.
Planting a bareroot cluster
Plant into dry soil at the same depth and facing the same way it grew, and firm the soil.
Watering after planting
Wait a week, then water every other week while nights stay above 60°F.
Is it native to Arizona?
Yes. The fire barrel grows wild in Arizona deserts.
Flowers on a barrel cluster
Each head can open a ring of yellow flowers in late spring.
We deliver across the Valley, from Phoenix, Scottsdale and Mesa out to San Tan Valley, Maricopa and Casa Grande, and up to Prescott, Sedona, Payson and Globe. See delivery areas and rates.