Experimenting (and starting small)

Discuss hardy cacti grown outside all year.
daiv
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Post by daiv »

Yes, excellent! Looking forward to some flower pics on some of those!
All Cacti are succulents, but not all succulents are Cacti
RayC
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Post by RayC »

daiv wrote:Yes, excellent! Looking forward to some flower pics on some of those!
Only time will tell, with the exception of the O. humifusa (which added a few pads last summer) none of mine have gone through a active growth season yet (others had been obtained mid-july or later last summer)
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It seems

Post by RayC »

Its seems as though I can now see the first signs that some of the first-year-overwintered really are happy where they are:
O.Nameo-rose
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O. Pony?
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I also think I can see signs of something happening with the red fragilis.
They really have made some progress the past 3 days or so with temps in the 80's (first time since Sept here).
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Andy_CT
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Post by Andy_CT »

Its go time!! :smilebox:

What's the red fragilis, red flower?

My O. fragilis v. brachyartha is the only Opuntia so far with new growth starting.
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Post by ihc6480 »

Good to see the new growth Ray. Also good to see someone else with O. pony and nameo-rose :) . I'll have to get some pics of mine with new growth up.
Bill

If it sticks ya or pokes ya, I like it
RayC
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Post by RayC »

Andy_CT wrote:

What's the red fragilis, red flower?
I think its supposed to be red. In general I have been trying to get red flowering ones (but of course yellows seem to be easier to obtain)
daiv
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Post by daiv »

Hey Ray, again you guys are about a month ahead of us here. Those pads are nice and plump and the new growth is sure a contrast to what they look like when the snow first melts!
All Cacti are succulents, but not all succulents are Cacti
RayC
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Post by RayC »

Well after about 11 months or so (including a wet summer and fairly decent real winter), I guess I'm going to have to say my 'experiment' is a success (thanks in large part to stuff on cacti-guide, Andy and Opuntia Bill in particular since they grow under similar conditions). Everything now has new growth.
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The last pic is overview of the new section I just planted this spring. they all seem to be doing fine also so far.
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kevin63129
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Post by kevin63129 »

Man,your garden looks awesome now.I am glad you had good luck over the winter.I am just starting out and I have been learning from professor bill and Andy and john weiser and the rest of the cold hardy growers.You are doing great.
Addicted to crackti !
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Andy_CT
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Post by Andy_CT »

Looks good Ray :D

I'm not sure how many slugs you get in your yard but keep an eye out for damage it can happen fast. When the buds are tiny like this just a few bites can cause the pads to grow deformed.
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Post by ihc6480 »

Nice looking garden Ray and good to see the new growth :)
Bill

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RayC
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Post by RayC »

Andy_CT wrote:Looks good Ray :D

I'm not sure how many slugs you get in your yard but keep an eye out for damage it can happen fast. When the buds are tiny like this just a few bites can cause the pads to grow deformed.
I did find one the other day. Gonna give them a beer bath to swim in, supposed to work.
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Post by Tom2643 »

Looking good! The first winter is always the scariest.
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Post by RayC »

Time for a little update since I don't have anything to contribute to this years hardy gardening topic (yet)
This one has a couple strange growths on it, I was going to cut them off but I guess I'll wait a bit:
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Not surprisingly (since its native here in Ct)O humifusa looks pretty happy:
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And everything else is doing good:
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Also there appears to be a resident critter who is a little camera when I tried to get pic, but has left its mark:
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Have had a few slugs, couple of which I caught 6 or 8 took their final bath in beer and succumbed. Little damage done to new growth but not to bad.

O ellisiana doing well also (but hasn't gone through winter here yet):
Image
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Post by ihc6480 »

Your garden is looking good Ray :) Don't cut any strange growths off till you see what the flower looks like :wink:

I'll be waiting for pictures in the Hardy Gardening thread 8)
Bill

If it sticks ya or pokes ya, I like it
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