I just purchased this Mammillaria theresae grafted on Echinopsis root stock.
Is this a difficult species to care for? Most importantly, should my care specifications be met according to the root stock's needs (i.e. care for it like an Echinopsis), or should they be met for those of M.theresae?
Also, how easy is it for me pluck off one of the offsets later (If I successfully cultivated it) and allow it to stand on its own root? I heard it's nearly impossible to germinate the seeds of this beautiful mamm..it's a little disheartening. I can see little cryptocarpic fruits embedded at the bases of the tubercles, but I'm too afraid to pry them open without damaging the plant. Any tips on how to extract the seeds?
I have not found it dificult to care for. Easiest way is to remove an offset and root it if you want one on it's own roots. I have grown mine on it's own roots for years. The seeds are difficult to extract from the cryptocarpic fruits as you say, probably in nature they are set when the plant dies, which means the seed probably needs to age before they will germinate.
Usually you cultivate for the stock, unless they say have different temperature requirements in winter. If say you had a hardy stock but the scion could not stand low temperatures you would have to ensure they did not drop too low. The converse often happens though when hardy scions are grafted on winter tender stocks like Myrtillocactus, when the scion may survive cold but the stock will not.
That is indeed my plan. I am going to try and root one of the pups as soon as more are produced. I think I'll leave the prospect of reproducing them from seeds later, as it seems there hasn't been any advance on germination knowledge over the last few years regarding this class of mamms.
I guess my best strategy is to strike a happy medium between the stock and the graft. Luckily, both M.theresae and Echinopsis are rather winter hardy, so I supposed that'll make my life easier
Thanks for the answer DaveW! If anyone in the past 2-3 years have germinated M.theresae and its relatives successfully, I'm all ears.
I sowed some this spring. Got decent germination. Don't know how old the seeds were, though. I suspect it is not that hard to raise M. theresae from seed. There are tougher ones out there...!
I got great germination from some this past spring... I accidentally killed them all but it was from dehydration not over watering. But overall germination was pretty darn easy.
