Need advice on Fenestraria and Frithia Pulchra Seedlings...

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AshleyP
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Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 3:17 am
Location: Singapore

Need advice on Fenestraria and Frithia Pulchra Seedlings...

Post by AshleyP »

Here are my fenestraria and frithia pulchra seedlings respectively, about three months after germination. I would like to ask if their slow progress is normal? And why are they so red? Are they getting too much light? Please help me in keeping them alive!

Fenestraria:
Image
I sowed about ten seeds and had only one germinate. This seedling has produced its first pair of true leaves. What should I be doing next?

Frithia pulchra:
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Nine out of ten seeds germinated, but only two survived up to now. True leaves are only now beginning to peek out, progress is real slow.

Growing conditions:

Medium: aquarium sand
Watering: One day after the bottom of their two inch pots feel dry. Then I bottom water with a silicone cupcake holder, with one drop of rice vinegar added to frithia pulchra's water.
Light: Morning sun
Temperature: I live in tropical Singapore, constant 25-30C year round, so I put these plants and my lithops in the fridge at night.
iann
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Joined: Mon Jul 24, 2006 11:10 pm
Location: England

Re: Need advice on Fenestraria and Frithia Pulchra Seedlings

Post by iann »

I'm going to predict that you won't keep the Fenestraria alive. Your climate is too warm and they grow when it is cooler. Maybe the fridge is too cold though? I can only imagine that is why the seedling is stressed. They can germinate in direct sun here and grow perfectly well and entirely green. Obviously not quite your sun, but still. Seedlings will grow even when adults shut down with the heat (grow or die!) and I would expect several leaf pairs at this stage. Maybe it even needs more sun? You certainly can't grow these in the shade, Singapore or anywhere else.

Frithia should do much better in your climate. I don't think the fridge is a good idea for them. Despite being mesembs they are most definitely summer growers and they like warmth and water, although I don't know just how warm they can take it at night before they give up. They shouldn't be allowed to dry out at this stage, and I would guess that is what is setting them back. Water them more, keep them warm, and give them some sun, perhaps just morning and evening. They also look stressed and I would be looking for them to send up a (single!) green leaf fairly quickly.

Here are some that I germinated this spring. Six months later and they now fill that pot to overflowing.
pulchra-0222.jpg
pulchra-0222.jpg (68.6 KiB) Viewed 2481 times
--ian
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AshleyP
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Location: Singapore

Re: Need advice on Fenestraria and Frithia Pulchra Seedlings

Post by AshleyP »

I guess I kind of knew it'd be a struggle for them here. Wanted to try anyway. So it's too cold in the fridge, too warm outside. Quite the situation. What would be an ideal temperature for them both? 16C? Maybe I can place them in front of the air conditioner at night.
iann
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Re: Need advice on Fenestraria and Frithia Pulchra Seedlings

Post by iann »

AshleyP wrote:I guess I kind of knew it'd be a struggle for them here. Wanted to try anyway. So it's too cold in the fridge, too warm outside. Quite the situation. What would be an ideal temperature for them both? 16C? Maybe I can place them in front of the air conditioner at night.
There is no ideal temperature for them both. You couldn't have picked two mesembs needing more different conditions.

Frithia, warm and wet summer, cool dry winter. Should be fine outdoors for at least part of the year. Maybe in the fridge for a while to pretend it is winter.

Fenestraria cool all the time, water sparingly, dormant if nights get too warm. 5-10C at night should be good for adults, with bright sunny days. They expect high humidity on those cool nights though, and I don't know if they'd get that in the fridge. You'll have to experiment.

Seedlings of all mesembs will grow even outside their normal temperature range. They have no choice. Germination will be inhibited though, and this might be what happened to your Fenestraria seed. Germination of either shouldn't be difficult at the right temperature.
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1bigfruit
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Location: Kelso, Scotland, East Coast

Re: Need advice on Fenestraria and Frithia Pulchra Seedlings

Post by 1bigfruit »

Wow they look a bit embarassed.
Lots of mesembs will go red in the cold. I would probably blame the fridge.
Fenestraria grows in winter and frithia grows in summer. Singapore might be too hot and humid for this kind of succulent.
I wouldnt bother with the vinegar its an old wives tale. I grow both of these in just sandy loam they are several years old. They are really not that fussy. You need to put them out in the sunshine.
A Moth is Lighter than the Sea, but Dimmer than the Light it Sees.
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