First we'll look at pup #1 right before it was transplanted:
In a 2" waterproofed terracotta pot:
Now we'll fast-forward to the 2014 growing season -- 3/16 on the left followed by 5 months of growth:
No doubt about it -- #1 has grown a nice set of roots, and it may be ready for a bigger pot in 2 years. If it throws out an offset next year, I think that'll seal the deal. Now what about pup #2? That one I just had to keep because A. it already had a taproot, and B. it came with another tiny pup in tow:
Although I abandoned my experiment with plastic pots, I'm glad I still held onto them just in case. Here's #2 in a 4" plastic pot:
Another fast-forward, and #2 came in handy as a winter shriveling/spring plumping demonstration. 3/8 on the left, then on the right you may notice a new little addition that popped up just 1 week later:
On 3/16, and once again after 5 months of growing magic:
All I can say is -- wow! Since #2 is now the proud parent with a brood of its own, I can't ask for anything better than to see how well my disaster recovery effort has come along. Survivor #1's progress can't be far behind, so I'll end here with a few observations:
1. Copiapoas tend to be opportunistic growers, but they usually don't do much in the summertime. This has certainly been true in my 3 years of experience with hypogaea, so it wouldn't be unusual to detect new growth starting in early to mid-March as springtime seems to be their prime growing season. Fall in my area is warm enough for some late season growing activity with a number of cacti well through October (sometimes even later!). Such being the case, I wouldn't be surprised if my Copiapoas give a last "hurrah" before they go to sleep for the winter.
2. What did surprise me was to experience how big the new pup on #2 got. I've heard that rooted offsets may be encouraged to grow more quickly than they would if they stay on the parent plant. Don't know if it's true or not, but it'll be fun watching what #2 is up to as it keeps on growing over the years.
3. Theoretically, hypogaea should be fine as a "top shelf" plant to keep its skin a deep bronze color. However, even 40% shade cloth wasn't enough to prevent sunscorch on my old one before it rotted. When I got the new 2-shelf plant bench last summer, I had to make a trade-off -- either keep the hypogaea under full sun all the time and hope for the best, or place it in Shady Glen so the plant can get shade in the middle of the day. Yeah, summer heat is one thing, but the heat waves in my coastal microclimate come as sudden spikes -- that plus blazing sun aren't a good combination for Copiapoas. I had no problem making the compromise in favor of shade, so while my hypogaeas won't have that deep bronze look, they seem to be happy right where they are. The laui and tenuissima aren't complaining either.
As always, any feedback is appreciated!
Good to see your plant has rebounded so well Steve.