Hardy Gardening

Tony · Post by **Tony** » Fri Jun 05, 2009 1:04 pm

Andy_CT wrote:Bill, I can't tell ya what they are but I can tell ya that I like em

Chris, That huge munzii is amazing! What else you hiding in your garden? I'd love to see em all

What Andy said.

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Fri Jun 05, 2009 1:23 pm

Chris that is a very nice plant. It looks huge! I can see by the growth it is more candelabra shaped than the spinosior. It also appears to put on substantial yearly growth. Very nice to see it in action.
John

ihc6480 · Post by **ihc6480** » Fri Jun 05, 2009 11:56 pm

Awesome munzii Chris

I often envy the warmer climate growers.

Welp, got some more opuntia blooming

Let me know when you get tired of opuntia and I'll stop posting them--- NOT

Didn't realize I had another of these beauties in the garden

It's trying to become a hybrid with O. rhodantha

Heres another that was suppose to be O. engelmannii (and might be) but it has orangish flowers.

Escobaria vivipara is still putting on a show

Heres a view of what people slowdown to look at as they drive down the street in front of my house.

Hope I'm not boring anyone

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Sat Jun 06, 2009 3:25 am

I think I'd have to stop, get out and take a good long look myself!

Always nice!!

birdguy34 · Post by **birdguy34** » Sat Jun 06, 2009 6:19 am

First, Andy I was meaning to say before how cool that "potatoe" O. fragilis is, looks almost like a Tephro.
Bill, I think I'd have to park and stare in awe of all the color in your cactus bed, unbelieveable how many flowers are on that one plant.
Now, from here today.
Opuntia anacantha/elata

O. polyacantha-Mt Whitney type

Cylindopuntia arbuscula

C. imbricata thing

O. microdasys

O. microdasys "rufida"

O. leuchotricha

O. lindheimerii

O.engelmannii type from near Organ Pipe

And whole plant

Chris

Andy_CT · Post by **Andy_CT** » Sat Jun 06, 2009 12:30 pm

Wow chris you have alot of awesome big clumps in your garden! So cool that you can grow microdasy's outdoors

Bill, love the vivipara. Mine will be there in a few weeks. That's an interesting orange color on that big punty!

Andy_CT · Post by **Andy_CT** » Sun Jun 07, 2009 11:19 pm

this guy blooms on June 7th for the second straight year

I've got room for a 2 or 3 more small plants in the trough, any suggestions?

poobar · Post by **poobar** » Sun Jun 07, 2009 11:43 pm

Hey Andy what kinds of cacti are you growing?
I live in Massachusetts so we probably have fairly similar weather and I would like to try to grow some cacti outdoors, but I have no idea where to start...
What do you do with them in the winter??

Andy_CT · Post by **Andy_CT** » Sun Jun 07, 2009 11:58 pm

poobar wrote:Hey Andy what kinds of cacti are you growing?
I live in Massachusetts so we probably have fairly similar weather and I would like to try to grow some cacti outdoors, but I have no idea where to start...
What do you do with them in the winter??

This trough stays put all year so the plants stay outside all winter unprotected. They are tough plants. I am actually more worried about heavy rains in the spring and summer than I am about the winter cold believe it or not. The ones you see are Escobaria Missouriensis (two different clones), Echinocereus Viridiflorus and the Opuntia is a Polyacantha/Fragilis hybrid.

The hardiest cactus outdoors for us are the hardy Opuntias. Opuntia Humifusa is native to the Connecticut, Mass and Rhode Island shorelines so that one is best adapted to our conditions. Other Opuntias like Polyacantha, Fragilis and Macrorhiza are easier ones here to.

There's others but these are the best ones to start with. I've lost several plants to rot so you'll have to live with a few fatalities at times.

Good drainage is the key to keeping these plants alive, they can't sit in soaked soil all the time. Raised mounds is the best approach for this.

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Mon Jun 08, 2009 3:02 am

The rainy cool weather has moderated. We gained twenty degrees in temp today from the mid fifties to the mid seventies. The flowers are finally opening instead of half opening and then melting. thought I'd post a few closeups. The last is a peek at what's lift to come.

Tony · Post by **Tony** » Mon Jun 08, 2009 3:09 am

Great show... everyone!

Andy_CT · Post by **Andy_CT** » Mon Jun 08, 2009 11:48 am

Lots of nice flowers John, the Grusonia is tops!

Post by **CoronaCactus** » Mon Jun 08, 2009 2:55 pm

Wow, i miss 3 days and look at all the great stuff that gets posted.

Awesome pics everyone, loving it!

ihc6480 · Post by **ihc6480** » Tue Jun 09, 2009 1:15 am

Man, I'm loving all the hardy pictures

.
Andy, good to see some flowers in your garden

John, you have a rainbow of colors in that garden of yours and enjoying them all

Heres a few more in my garden.
C. whipplei-- dwarf form

O. compressa starting to cut loose.

Another smaller variety and one of my favorites.
O. pottsii-- salmon colored flowers.

Post by **CoronaCactus** » Tue Jun 09, 2009 5:18 am

More nice ones, Bill

I like the form of the whipplei flower.