I'm 46 and still planting them. I'll cheat and graft a few though. Plant them in bags as described above (long bags of thick plastic intended for pet store fish work very well). Then keep them indoors under 18 hours of light and don't take them out of the bag until the bag falls apart. They grow muc...

This is how I start dudleyas from seed, tray of peat based seed starting mix, tapped on the ripe seed pods over the tray (around sept). Water and cover with a dome and leave in moderate light in the greenhouse all winter, keeping it moist. Typical night lows in the 30's and 40's. Dudleya grow on mos...

This time of year the old leaves of lithops shrivel up and are replaced with new ones. They will look like they're dying, just like your photo when this happens. Do not water until the old leaves are completely replaced with the new ones. Most people kill lithops because they look thirsty at this ti...

I looked at them under a microscope, and they still looked like seeds, but maybe 1/5 as big as they're supposed to be. Maybe aborted seed?
Planted 80% of it and got 1 (one) seedling. Are there any tricks to improving seed set?

It's hard to tell t pachanoi from Peruvianus. Bridgesii will be obvious as it gets larger, the stems are about half the diameter and more blue-gray. Pictured is pachanoi from Mesa garden, with the common hardware store pachanoi in the background. They're both about 6 years growth in those spots, and...

I saw a video of ants carrying around a strombocactus fruit. Maybe the seeds drop out as the ant carries it? They also float, so rain will wash them around and into cracks and crevices.

You done need to drench them, just a normal watering. The plant will become toxic to the bugs for months, you don't need to drown the bugs.

Yes, that will work well!

The proof will be in the pudding if they germinate... Could be aborted embryos, but they looked like the seeds in microscope photos online.

For years I've been frustrated with my strombocacti, they flower reliably but always seemed to dry up without setting fruit like other cacti, the base of the flower would swell a tiny bit and then dry up within a couple weeks - never making what I'd consider a fruit. This year I had three different ...

Escobaria orcuttii v konegii SB92 Luna Co, NM has put on some size since 2014!
Put up a harbor freight 10x12 GH this spring and plants are very happy so far.

The substrate looks too wet, that'll create problems for growing beyond germination. With the right moisture level and sanitation, there should be no algae or moss. It should be moist but not wet. Ideally it will dry out slightly on a daily basis due to the heat from the lights pushing moisture arou...

Dudleya seed is ripe around mid-summer, mine are flowering now. Wait a few months and folks will have some on hand. Dudleya germinate best on living moss, so you can start work on a flat to start them in now. The inland varieties particularly grow on moss on rocks in habitat. I live where they live,...

A lot of the southern california plants, such as echinocactus polycephalus and echinomastus/sclerocactus are extremely picky and slow growing, but opuntia basilaris from the same habitat is very easy. I think the problem is they expect warmish winters and water during that time.

I was able to keep pedio Knowltoni alive for several years watering only from late march-may (northern hemisphere), until I got careless. Most of their moisture comes from spring snow melt. Some of the others can take a bit in the autumn too. It's best to keep them in an obscure corner with other pl...