Summer monsoon weather in coastal L.A. w/ a few pics

[Steve Johnson]

Earlier this week, a tropical storm in Baja spread its wings and sent a bunch of hot, moist air north to the Los Angeles basin. The last few days have been feeling more like Florida, with triple-digit -- humidity? I know more than 100% is impossible, but sure felt that way. Miserable for us humans, although my cacti are loving it! Here are a few weekend pics to show you...

From yesterday -- Gymnocalycium stenopleurum:





Also from yesterday -- this is the Copiapoa laui I got last summer:



I didn't know if the laui is mature enough to flower yet. But that little tuft of wool on the apex is brand-new -- could it be a bud? Hmmmmm, I'll have to keep an eye on that.

The cloud cover yesterday was definitely monsoonal, and it built up to a decent amount of summer rain last night. All the way through to the coast too, which is quite unusual. While it wasn't enough to replace my regular watering schedule, this was more than I'd normally get for the time of year. A real summer soaker in my part of L.A. would be wonderful for the cacti, so I'll see what the next couple of months have in store. In the meantime...

From today -- my Frailea castanea with a perfectly-formed seed pod:



With my love for dwarf cacti, Pygmaeocereus is a new name I had in mind. My preference was familiaris, but for reasons unknown to me, this species doesn't show up on the radar screens of our cactus nurseries. Such being the case, I made do with bylesianus, which was available through Mesa Garden. I find it to be a pretty plant, so I wasn't disappointed about what I got last summer. Not mature enough to flower yet, but with the impressive amount of new growth the bylesianus has put on, the situation may be changing. As I inspected it last weekend, I noticed a fluffy little something appearing on the stem. Could it be the bylesianus' very first bud?



Also from today -- yep, sure looks like it!



I could go on more, but this weekend left me a bit preoccupied with the flowering activities of my Astrophytums. While I won't give away too much here, I'll leave you with a little hint. It concerns a certain species that hasn't flowered for me until now. Stay tuned, y'all!

[DaveW]

Looks like a flower Steve, but remember like Setiechinopsis, Pygmaeocereus are nocturnal flowering so you may need to bring it into the house when it's ready to flower or you may miss it, because it may be closing the next morning.

I think P. familiaris is hard to find anywhere. The Pygmaeocereus names are so mixed up anyway and most of that type of spination are now usually sunk under bylesianus as just minor forms. Whether this link is P. familiaris I do not know, but if so not a lot of difference from P. bylesianus:-

http://www.cactus-art.biz/schede/PYGMAE ... liaris.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The really different looking one is P. bieblii and it's variety kuehhasii. I just recently obtained a bieblii grown from habitat seed by Graham Charles at our National Convention.

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/212358/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/CACT ... _kuehhasii" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[fanaticactus]

Steve, a few years ago I bought a P. bylesianus bearing an alternate name of Mediolobivia haagei. When I received it in late summer (?) it had a small bud on it and I was excited at the prospect of having it open. We hadn't moved full time to VT at that point, so not wanting to miss the flower, I took it back to NY safely in a cupholder in the car. It was not in the direct line of the A/C flow, but apparently it was cool enough to cause the bud to drop. Since then it has grown two long stems but no flowers. I'm probably going to repot it in pumice during my next repotting frenzy--maybe today. Good luck with yours

[Steve Johnson]

Thanks for your responses, guys!

I think P. familiaris is hard to find anywhere. The Pygmaeocereus names are so mixed up anyway and most of that type of spination are now usually sunk under bylesianus as just minor forms.

Cactuspedia was my primary reference point when I went trolling for interesting species I hadn't grown before -- and that's how I glommed on to familiaris. The Encyclopedia of Cacti is more comprehensive, so let's have a look:

http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/CACT ... bylesianus" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/CACT ... familiaris" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The differences in form and spination don't look minor to me, so I would say we have 2 different species here. Then again, I have no credentials as a taxonomist, and I'm not sure if TEOC is the best authority on current taxonomic labels. Doesn't matter if these are 2 different species or 1 species with a lot of variability -- either way, I've been glad to have my bylesianus in the collection. By the by, thanks for your heads up about its night-blooming behavior. Since I got a wonderful first-hand introduction to the phenomenon with my Discocactus buenekeri, I'll know what to look out for when the time comes!

[jp29]

.......... I have no credentials as a taxonomist, and I'm not sure if TEOC is the best authority on current taxonomic labels ...........

I don't either, Steve. I have found the following two resources to be very useful and reliable:

The Plant List

ITIS (Integrated Taxonomic Information System)

They both provide easy to use navigation to the genera and/or species you are researching.

[Steve Johnson]

.......... I have no credentials as a taxonomist, and I'm not sure if TEOC is the best authority on current taxonomic labels ...........

I don't either, Steve. I have found the following two resources to be very useful and reliable:

The Plant List

ITIS (Integrated Taxonomic Information System)

They both provide easy to use navigation to the genera and/or species you are researching.

I just checked out your links, and I'm bookmarking them for future reference -- as you said, very useful and reliable! Looking at The Plant List, there's no synonymy between bylesianus and familiaris, so we are discussing 2 different species. Why neither is popular among hobbyists? That's a head-scratcher.

Thanks, James!

[jp29]

.......... Looking at The Plant List, there's no synonymy between bylesianus and familiaris, so we are discussing 2 different species. Why neither is popular among hobbyists? That's a head-scratcher ...........

Click on the ITIS bylesianus link and you will find familiaris as a synonym Steve:

http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/S ... lue=908386" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I should have included the link to:

IPNI (International Plant Names Index)

[iann]

You'll have to concentrate on the Caribbean and South American plants. Forget those pesky US species that like baking dry summer weather!