Echinomastus johnsonii care

Discuss repotting, soil, lighting, fertilizing, watering, etc. in this category.
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oldcat61
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Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by oldcat61 »

I just bought an Echinomastus johnsonii. Any tips on its care? It will be in a GH. Thanks, Sue
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CactusFanDan
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by CactusFanDan »

Not always easy if you treat them like a Summer-growing cactus. :wink: Echinomastus will only really take up water in later Winter/Spring when it's cold. If the day temperatures are around 10C (50F) and night temps are a bit cooler then that's the best time to water them. Make sure they get very good light too. :) You can give them a drink over the Summer dormancy period, but they don't seem to bother taking up any water at that time, so it's probably better to withhold watering.
-Dan
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oldcat61
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by oldcat61 »

Wow, that's weird. With all those spines you'd think that were made for heat. Got a lot to research. Sue
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CactusFanDan
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by CactusFanDan »

They can take a lot of heat and sun, but they won't take up water very well in those conditions. :P They're Spring burst growers, throwing out a bunch of aeroles in record time when it's still quite cool in Spring, then more or less grinding to a halt in Summer. A lot of people have difficulty with them, along with Pediocactus and Sclerocactus.
-Dan
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iann
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by iann »

I don't find these easy at all. They are not classic spring growers like many Sclerocactus, or at least don't explode the way that those others do. The same general rules seem to apply though. Be very cautious with water except for that obvious spring growth period.

Possibly more similar to Echinocactus polycephalus as they are found in very similar habitat. These will take up water mostly in winter, possibly best in snowmelt conditions, and then actually do their growing when it is hotter. Mine are in full growth now, but I've stopped watering.

Or just ignore my advice. My plants are alive and growing but not exactly rampant.
--ian
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oldcat61
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by oldcat61 »

Thanks iann. Not sure I can decide what plan to follow; everyone seems negative in a different way. It is making new spines so I have been watering, but less than for most others. My GH doesn't get overly warm, so maybe it won't shut down in the summer. Just love the red spines. Sue
iann
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by iann »

Warm nights will shut it down, warm days won't. They are adapted to extreme heat (found in Death Valley) but they have adapted by becoming dormant when conditions are too inhospitable. Also this is one of the few cacti that thrive in areas without much summer rainfall, and all are considered difficult in cultivation. The majority of rainfall in E. johnsonii habitat is in December to March, with very occasional and not very helpful July/August storms.

Here is the sort of new growth you're probably seeing. Always a good sign, but I find it continues long after the plant loses interest in water, so don't try to push the growing season by watering more. This was taken in April last year. This year we had a very warm winter and I haven't had so much growth.
johnsonii-0415.jpg
johnsonii-0415.jpg (83.15 KiB) Viewed 4147 times
--ian
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oldcat61
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by oldcat61 »

Thanks, I keep the big fan on 24/7 in the summer so the GH doesn't get too hot. We like to have evening cocktails there & just enjoy the beauty & the peace ( can't hear the darn phone). I'll keep an eye on the new spines & watch for a slow down but right now our evenings are still cool. Sue
A. Dean Stock
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by A. Dean Stock »

They grow well for me here with Opuntia conditons. I try to keep them a little drier in the winter by sheltering them as I'm at 5100 ft. elevation. They grow commonly a little to the west of my locality in SW Utah, with monsoon summer rain and little moisture in the winter. I suspect that they will grow in many different environments and greenhouse conditions as long as you don't overwater them, especially when it is cold. I don't think that you can go wrong if you water them when they are actively growing as long as you let them dry out between watering.
Dean
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iann
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by iann »

What's the wettest month on Kanab? Also I only know Johnson Canyon from near St George. I'm assuming you live in a different one since that's in a state park and I didn't see any homes there. Also quite a but lower than 5100', I think.

I was just looking at the distribution map for E. johnsonii and was surprised by how far into Arizona it is found (and how little in Utah!). Is it widespread but not common in Arizona, or just better known from locations in California and Nevada? Is it found any further east (or north?) than St George?
--ian
A. Dean Stock
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by A. Dean Stock »

Iann, I'm about 95 miles east of St. George (by road) and 10 miles east of Kanab. There is also a Johnson Canyon that is a very small region on the north side of St. George. Echinomastus johnsonii doesn't get quite to St. George and not much farther east than about 10 miles west of St. George. It doesn't occur on the "Arizona Strip". It seems to grow fairly well and flower here if I'm careful with it. We get deep snow but where it occurs on the Beaver Dam Mtns. west of St.George, snow is fairly rare and lasts only a short time. I believe that our wettest month would be January but July comes close. Winter in extreme SW Utah where E. johnsonii occurs commonly would be much drier and probably more rain occurs during spring and mid summer. It is odd, but Ferrocactus acanthodes does make it to St.George along with Opuntia chlorotica, Escobaria deserti and diploid Echinocereus "engelmannii", but E. johnsonii doesn't make it. In Arizona, it is a common plant along the south side of Lake Mead and scattered in suitable areas farther south in Arizona. It is "spotty" in occurrence but tends to be common if it occurs at all.
Dean
Albert Dean Stock,Ph.D.
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oldcat61
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by oldcat61 »

Where it grows naturally is neat to know but I'm never getting West to see any cactus in habitat. So have you all come to any conclusions for my situation in New Jersey? If the GH stays cool at night, can I water during the summer? Sue
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bruno
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by bruno »

Here in Rome I do not water johnsonii in summer or when night temps are too high. I usually stop watering northern echinomastus, pedios and scleros in mid may. Depending on their conditions, they may get water a couple of times from mid august to september. Hope this helps :)
bruno
iann
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by iann »

I've stopped watering mine now and no matter what you do your summer nights are going to be warmer than mine. I will typically give it a splash or two in late summer but make sure it dries out quickly, and some water in autumn. Still, my plant is far from perfect. Bruno probably does much better.
--ian
peterb
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Re: Echinomastus johnsonii care

Post by peterb »

Let's not forget the nice population up on the edges of Death Valley too! (my apologies if I missed mention of that abaove, kind of in a hurry today).

Good advice above, also can help to leave the base of the plant elevated a bit from the soil or surrounded by rocks. I grow johnsonii in very poor, mineral soil low in organics, very gritty. They do not enjoy the climate in Phoenix as the window of growth for them is very short when days are hot but nights are still cool. They grow like weeds up along 93 outside Wickenburg at higher elevations than here. The AZ populations do get most of their water in two shots: winter and then summer monsoons. The winter rains might be important, but I'm not sure.

anyway, keep them on the dry side definitely. most are from habitat that gets 5-7 inches of rain in good years.

peterb
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