Growing in an area with virtually zero measurable annual rainfall, this species relies entirely on the heavy, daily Camanchaca fog that rolls inland from the Pacific Ocean. Its main metabolic activity, root hair development, and cellular growth occur during the cool, high-humidity months of late winter and spring. It drops into a profound, defensive dormancy during the intense dry heat of mid-summer to prevent moisture loss. In cultivation, its large taproot is exceptionally vulnerable to stagnant moisture and fungal pathogens; it requires a radically lean, strictly inorganic, mineral substrate (like an 80% to 90% pumice and crushed granite mix) and should be watered with a highly disciplined hand only during the cool shoulder seasons when night temperatures are low.