My Cacti 2014

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hegar
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Location: El Paso, Texas

Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by hegar »

Here are a few more images of cacti that flowered recently. Some of the plants did flower, but the blossoms were already closed by the time I came home from work. (Echinocereus coahuilensis, Thelocactus bicolor, and two Opuntia species). I did not take any pictures of those, but hope, that some of them will bloom at a better time.
Most of the Echinocereus dasyacanthus plants do have huge flower buds, but have yet to open them. I shall place a few images here, if several nice flowers are open while I have my camera at the ready. Here is the first plant, that did have four blossoms on one stem.
The second Echinocereus coccineus hybrid is still flowering (see picture). Another plant that blooms for the first time in my yard is an Opuntia aciculata, which does have nice red blossoms.

Harald
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Arjen
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by Arjen »

very beautiful!
With apologies to the late Professor C. D. Darlington the following misquotation springs to
mind ‘cactus taxonomy is the pursuit of the impossible by the incompetent’ - Fearn & Pearcy, Rebutia (1981)
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hegar
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Location: El Paso, Texas

Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by hegar »

Today three cacti were flowering, one of them has been "doing its thing" for almost a week now and there is still no end in sight until it will rest.
I do have two Thelocactus bicolor ("Glory of Texas") plants. The larger one already flowered and I was not home to take a photo. Today the smaller one had its blossom still a little open when I came home from work.
The plant that is "flowering its head off" is a prickly pear (Opuntia violacea). The cladodes are full with flower buds. The slightly orange looking flowers are those produced yesterday, while those that opened today are more yellow.
The last cactus is yet another prickly pear, named Opuntia macrocentra.

Harald
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Mark
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by Mark »

Great pics Harald! I like that Opuntia with the red flower. :D


Mark
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Arjen
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by Arjen »

lovely pictures harald, that yellow and red of the opuntia looks amazing
I would also love to see that T. bicolor flower fully open ;)
With apologies to the late Professor C. D. Darlington the following misquotation springs to
mind ‘cactus taxonomy is the pursuit of the impossible by the incompetent’ - Fearn & Pearcy, Rebutia (1981)
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hegar
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Location: El Paso, Texas

Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by hegar »

Hello Mark, of all the kinds of Opuntia that grow at my place, O. aciculatus is one of my favorites. Not just because of the nice flower color, but also because the cladodes look so tidy, with the neat arrangement of those round glochid groupings.
Arjen, I shall try to photograph the Thelocactus bicolor once more, if I spot it with the blossom fully open. :) We have had some high temperatures and the flowers do not last long.
Today I shall post yet another Opuntia in bloom. This one produces orange-red flowers. I received a pad of the "mother plant", when the local Plant Rescue Center needed to thin out prickly pear cacti and make room for other plants.
Also, I will post two more images of our local beauty (Echinocereus dasyacanthus). It certainly is worth growing. If I had more space, I would most likely have several dozen of them instead of just a dozen or so. :). One of my plants does have five blossoms open at this time and several did produce four huge flowers per stem!

Harald
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AgavaSK
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by AgavaSK »

Uau! Great flowers! I love those orange and red flowered opuntias... what are you doing with them to make them flower so much? :-k
More pictures of my cacti&succulents in 2016:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 933bd488be" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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hegar
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by hegar »

Well, AgavaSK,
I cannot really tell, what makes a cactus flower profusely one year and not nearly the same the next year. With the Opuntias I did not have many blossoms when they were a little younger. Now they produce more flowers than vegetative growth (cladodes). I believe, it also helped, that I enhance their environment. I do acidify the very alkaline water we have here with regular vinegar. I also fertilize the plants with 1/3 to 1/2 strength water soluble fertilizer, making sure, that the second number in the formula (Phosphorus) is a large one, while the first, which stands for Nitrogen is a small one. This will increase flower and fruit production with all plants. Also, I believe, that it helped the plants be more vigorous for me to have applied a nematicide for the last three seasons. I do have a root-knot-nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) problem. The weather will also most likely play a part in how the plant will do.
Another thing to mention is, not all cacti - at least at my place - produce a lot of flowers. For example, my Echinocereus rigidissimus ssp. rubispinus plant only has one blossom year after year. :( However, other plants not only give me a lot of flowers, but some even bloom repeatedly. That more than makes up for those that are stingy.
I hope, that your plants are doing fine for you and that my response to your question was at least a little helpful. At your location you will be growing cacti in pots and you do have more control over the situation surrounding your plants than I do have with my cacti, which are all in the ground, except for one Peniocereus maculatus.

Harald
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AgavaSK
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by AgavaSK »

Thank you for you answer. I will try with ferlitizing, becouse till now I haven`t ferlitize them. I have one hardy Opuntia planted outside and it blooms every year although I am not doing anything special with it.... but all the others, planted in pots, haven`t bloom till now althougt they are quite old.
Thank you once again for tips, I will report the progress.
More pictures of my cacti&succulents in 2016:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 933bd488be" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
fanaticactus
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by fanaticactus »

You've got some dazzling Springtime colors out there in El Paso, Harald. I love the natural look of your garden. I know it often takes a lot of work to make it look "natural". :lol: Obviously, the placement of the rocks around the cacti protects them during the winter and the heat absorbed then released by the rocks helps the roots as well. Just to mention a few specific ones, the E. dasyacanthus flowers are huge and plentiful. I think this is the first A. uncinatus I've seen in a garden; they all seem to have been cultivated indoors. I've got to get an E. coccineus for my cold hardy garden; their flowers are among the most vivid I've seen.
Catch a falling star--but don't try it with a cactus!
bluetexasbonnie
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Location: Geronimo, Texas (near San Antonio) Edge of zone 8a - 8b.

Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by bluetexasbonnie »

I love these! Are they all growing outside? I might have to reconsider and get me some of them '"spiny ball things". I especially love the color of the first.
My cactus must be gods. They demand blood sacrifice.
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hegar
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by hegar »

Hello everyone, I am back with more images of course. Thank you very much bluetexasbonnie and fanaticactus for your nice comments.
All my cacti, except for the still young Peniocereus maculatus are grown in both the front and back yard. Some of these plants - especially the Opuntias are growing quite a bit and are starting to crowd out the smaller plants. I will either need to severely thin them out or even get rid of them. When I planted them I seemed to have ample space.
First off, one of my two large Echinocactus texensis (aka "horse crippler") began to flower. Another cactus, Echinocereus engelmannii, flowered for the first time. I am pleased with the dark pink, almost purple color of the blossom, but do not know, if the flower did not fully open because of the overcast skies or if that is normal for this plant.
The next plant to bloom was the Echinocereus reichenbachii. Unfortunately, I was only home to see it with one flower open. Another day, three of them unfurled, but I was at work. A seedling plant of two years of age is also going to flower!
A cactus that had not flowered for three or four years also decided to finally do it for me. It is the pretty Echinocereus triglochidatus, another cactus that is named "claret cup".
I also had a "Glory of Texas" cactus flower for the second time. Here are two open blossoms of Thelocactus bicolor, especially photographed for you, Arjen.
I am going to close with a few images of prickly pear blossoms. The first one is either Opuntia dillenii or orbiculata and the second one I cannot figure out. The strange thing about this one is, that it never dropped its fruit.

Harald
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fanaticactus
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by fanaticactus »

Whatever that last unknown Opuntia is, I love that red starburst pattern in the center. :shock:
Catch a falling star--but don't try it with a cactus!
Eutow_Intermedium
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by Eutow_Intermedium »

Thats a fantastic selection of Echinocereus flowers you have there. I do love Echinocereus , but I only ever looked after on successfully and that was E. lauii. You almost never see them in IEAK or the local garden centres. The only ones you tend to see are excessively pink spines :lol:

=^~^= Wish I had an E. Texensis. yet another Genus we very rarely see over here.
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hegar
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Re: My Cacti 2014

Post by hegar »

Several more plants did come into bloom and I shall place a few images of them right now.
One of the ones starting to flower was an old Echinocactus horizonthalonius. That plant does grow near to where I live and is one of the plants removed, when construction was starting to destroy its habitat. We do not have any other species of Echinocactus growing in the vicinity of El Paso, Texas.
Also, one of my Echinocereus coahuilense, which to me seems to be more or less the same as E. pectinatus produced its first flower.
Another one to bloom was the Echinocereus fendleri ssp. kuenzleri, followed by my "purple pentalophus" Echinocereus pentalophus.
That plant always looks to be near death, but it does make up for its sad look with beautiful blossoms. :)
Yet another prickly pear - this time Opuntia microdasys - added flowers to the cactus planting. Not overly pretty ones, but I will take them nevertheless. Another Opuntia also "chimed in". This one is a vigorous plant from San Saba, Texas, probably a hybrid.
The last one is one of the few - and my favorite - Mammillarias in my collection. I am not sure what it is. However, some time ago I placed its picture on the blog and someone told me, that it is a M. solisioides. Looking at images of that species still does not convince me fully about that ID, because my plant has extremely dense spines. Perhaps it is a hybrid. No matter what, it is pretty in my opinion.Although it is only a small cactus, the flower is quite large for its size.

Harald
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