Saving Melocactus matanzanus

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jp29
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Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by jp29 »

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Happy, and healthy, Melocactus matanzanus growing in 2¾" (7cm) square plastic pots

No doubt about it, Melocactus matanzanus is the most widely available (and most frequently cultivated by enthusiasts) Melocactus species. This miniature Cuban plant has many desirable attributes: it has a beautiful symmetrical apple green body; prominent ribs with nicely curved & neat spines; develops a striking orange bristly cephalium at maturity; can be grown and maintained in small containers; and is relatively easy to cultivate (for a Melocactus) if its basic needs are met.

Several years ago I started a personal (unscientific) project the goal of which was to sever, and then root, small (mostly cephalium bearing) apical offsets from some damaged mature Melocactus matanzanus plants that were growing in one of Dan Bach's Cactus Nursery greenhouses here in Tucson. Those plants were headed for the dumpster for, although they had provided large quantities of seed, they were no longer needed. Dan Bach is an old friend of mine and when I asked him if I could have some to use in this project, he readily agreed.

I had wanted to attempt this project for some time, mostly because of the challenges it presented. Melocactus have a long held reputation for being tricky to cultivate because of their need for winter warmth and their intolerance for having their root system disturbed during repotting. Therein lay my first problem: It was mid-winter when I started this project and all superfluous plants had to be removed from the greenhouse they were growing in to provide essential bench space for the upcoming spring seedling-flat and grafted plant staging.

But I pressed on and, with Dan's help and support, achieved the results I was hoping for. After severing the offsets from the mother plants (using an X-acto knife) and dusting the cut surfaces with sulfer, I set them out to dry in a heated greenhouse (minimum nighttime temperature of 45°F -- approx. 7.25°C) for about one month. I potted the offsets shallowly in 2¾" (7cm) square plastic pots using Dan Bach's Cactus Nursery mix (no top dressing):

60% screened coarse and uniform horticultural pumice
20% high quality Canadian sphagnum peat moss
20% well composted shredded pine tree forest bark
(plus his personal micro-nutrient "additives")

I set the potted-up plants aside on a bench in the greenhouse, just mist spraying them now and then. In about a month (with spring in the air) all of these plants were plumping up, firm to the touch, and obviously taking off. After a brief acclimation period, I staged them outdoors under 30% shadecloth at my town home and grew them in the same manner as my other cacti.

I had 100% success rooting those offsets -- all survived -- and thrived. I used the same cultivation techniques with them as I do with all my Melocactus -- minimum winter temperature of 45°F (approx. 7.25°C); mostly 2¾" (7cm) square plastic pots; Dan Bach's Cactus Nursery soil mix (no top dressing); copious water during our very warm growing season -- kept mostly dry with occasional misting during our winter resting season. I still use those parameters.

I also used essentially the above methodology to "rescue" Melocactus matanzanus plants that had lost their root system for one reason or another, except that I trimmed the surviving roots back until there were just stubs remaining -- then I dusted them with sulfer and put the plants aside to dry before potting up. I am still rescuing plants this way -- the project goes on. The following photos illustrate plants from the original project and some that were rescued just this past week. I have included cultivational information and observations in the photo captions.

Some project photos

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apically damaged plants produced offsets
some with cephaliums, others without

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damaged plant - one apical offset with cephalium, one without

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damaged plant - two apical offsets with cephaliums - two without

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mother plant with offsets removed.

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severed offsets set aside to dry the cut surfaces

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even very small cephalium bearing offsets were planted

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small cephalium bearing offset rooting in 7cm (2¾")
square plastic pot

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well rooted offset in 7cm (2¾") square plastic pot

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rooted offset with seedling that sprouted in pot

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re-established plant well rooted

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rooted offset in fruit -- 7cm (2¾") square plastic pot

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aberrant rooted offset with very large cephalium

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root system on potted-up offset after one year

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fully re-established plant in 7cm (2¾") square plastic pot
after about two years

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fully re-established plant after about two years

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fully re-established plant after three years

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re-established plant growing in full sun
in 7cm (2¾") square plastic pot

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Fully mature plant about seven years old
(next to above plant for comparison)

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the project never ends -- newly re-planted last week
now staged outdoors under 30% shade cloth

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My summer back patio outdoor staging set-up
30% shade cloth

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My winter front patio outdoor staging set-up
On roll-around casters -- 30% shade cloth
(plants come indoors on cold nights)

James
Last edited by jp29 on Tue Aug 02, 2016 1:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
James
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mmcavall
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by mmcavall »

very interesting, thanks for sharing!
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rsales3
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by rsales3 »

Well done on the experiment and providing the journal. I purchased my first matanzanus about 3 weeks ago and just re-potted it from a 4 inch plastic pot to a 5 inch clay pot. I plan on keeping the matanzanus in partial shade which reaches the high 90s F. during the day. I did leave the root ball fairly intact since the soil looked pretty healthy. I will mist it for a few more days before a good watering. I did notice a few brown scars at the top of some ribs presumably from a previous sunburn. I have to say that the matanzanus is quite a striking species.

Thanks again James for sharing.

Cheers
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jp29
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

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mmcavall wrote:very interesting, thanks for sharing!
Thank you mmcavall --you are most welcome.

James
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jp29
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by jp29 »

rsales3 wrote:Well done on the experiment and providing the journal. I purchased my first matanzanus about 3 weeks ago and just re-potted it from a 4 inch plastic pot to a 5 inch clay pot. I plan on keeping the matanzanus in partial shade which reaches the high 90s F. during the day. I did leave the root ball fairly intact since the soil looked pretty healthy. I will mist it for a few more days before a good watering. I did notice a few brown scars at the top of some ribs presumably from a previous sunburn. I have to say that the matanzanus is quite a striking species.

Thanks again James for sharing.

Cheers
Thank you rsales3 -- you are most welcome. It sounds like you are well set up to enjoy your matanzanus. I hope the scarring clears up for you -- if it is a result of previous sunburn it should not be too much of a problem.

James
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graffiti
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by graffiti »

heh. I randomly found a M. azureus at my local Lowes a couple months ago for like $5. Bought it and found it had a big rotten spot at the base when I bare rooted it. Potted it up just to see what will happen.

Thanks for the journal James.
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jp29
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by jp29 »

graffiti wrote:heh. I randomly found a M. azureus at my local Lowes a couple months ago for like $5. Bought it and found it had a big rotten spot at the base when I bare rooted it. Potted it up just to see what will happen.

Thanks for the journal James.
Thanks for the feedback graffiti -- great plant you got. I wish you success in saving it!

James
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jp29
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by jp29 »

Another cephalium endowed "offset" I discovered today on the back bench of a greenhouse:

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It will "go under the knife" as soon as the string of daily thunderstorms we are presently having in Tucson abate.

James
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george76904
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by george76904 »

Very nice post James! I have had bad luck with melocacti, but I think one was over watered and the other one may have been under watered oh well. Im going to keep trying because the plants are just so darn cool! Thanks for the post that was s very cool save! I especially like the aberrant one with the huge cephalium.
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jp29
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by jp29 »

george76904 wrote:Very nice post James! I have had bad luck with melocacti, but I think one was over watered and the other one may have been under watered oh well. Im going to keep trying because the plants are just so darn cool! Thanks for the post that was s very cool save! I especially like the aberrant one with the huge cephalium.
Thanks George. Just out of curiosity, what soil mix are you using for your Melo's?

James
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george76904
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by george76904 »

50% pearlite and 50% coir it drains pretty freely and doesn't stay wet for more than a couple days
Pushrestart
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by Pushrestart »

James fantastic story! It really made me smile, you saved this plant and it's rewarded you accordingly. This plant always catches my eye twice but I'm too nervous to buy one. Do they need a "warm" winter rest? Are they prone to any specific bugs in your experience ? Ty :)
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jp29
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

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george76904 wrote:50% pearlite and 50% coir it drains pretty freely and doesn't stay wet for more than a couple days
Thank you George. I have often said that I think I have tried just about every cactus & succulent soil mix that has been devised during the past seventy five years, but yours is a mix that I have not tried. I have used 50% pumice and 50% coir with reasonable success but yours is much lighter in weight due to the perlite -- and that is an important consideration for me these days -- I will give it a try.

James
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jp29
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by jp29 »

Pushrestart wrote:James fantastic story! It really made me smile, you saved this plant and it's rewarded you accordingly. This plant always catches my eye twice but I'm too nervous to buy one. Do they need a "warm" winter rest? Are they prone to any specific bugs in your experience ? Ty :)
Thank you Pushrestart. Plants of this genus can be a challenge and yes, warmth in winter is a requirement for successful growing and maintenance. A good introduction to these plants is at ..........

http://www.cactiguide.com/cactus/?genus=Melocactus" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

.......... links are provided to information relating to all of the most popular species in cultivation.

James
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Re: Saving Melocactus matanzanus

Post by jp29 »

Rescued plants now rooted and in flower:

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James
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