Stephanelli's Collection

[stephanelli]

So I'm kinda new here and only have few cacti and succulents (compared to many of the collections I've seen on here) but I love them so wanted to share them with you. I've posted some pictures of these around the forum when I've asked for IDs or help for them, but I thought it would be nice to condense them into one nice small collection. I only wish I had the space for a larger collection! (Also just to say that none of these are photographed in their usual homes because of lighting issues in the photos!)

Pachycereus pringlei
Black marks have been questioned in a sick cacti thread.


Opuntia monacantha v. variegata
My "mother" plant

Two of her babies (I took stem cuttings because I was inexperienced when I took them and didn't realise I could have laid the pads down for new plants, but I think these babies look cute). I'm hoping that these plants will be given away as wedding favours as I'm keeping these for a friends wedding and then I plan to expand some new species into my collection.


Mammillaria backebergiana
I love the flowers on this cactus


Aloe aristata
Another "mother" plant

Her two pups.


Lithops


Sempervivum
Not looking totally healthy, I inherited these two bowls from my grandma's garden and haven't worked out what to do with them yet, I've never had these before and still doing research on them. The first is possibly a little overcrowded?



Seedlings
of unknown species, just over a year old (do let me know of any guesses, I am inexperienced in ID-ing tiny seedlings). Not in the best of soil mixes as I entrusted them to someone else and they tried to be helpful and potted them up while I was away, but it could have been far worse.


I've got two aloe veras which accidentally got severely frostbitten (I simple forgot to bring them in from the cold )so I'm not sure if they're going to survive or pup yet and some aloe seeds that I'm hoping for germination from (Aloe vera, Aloe parvibracteata and Aloe polyphylla), no photos of those just yet.

So yeah, that's my little collection. Not as exciting or fascinating as many here, but it does me nicely I do, of course, have a long wishlist of cacti I would like in my collection (Echinopsis, Ferocactus, maybe a Rebutia...)

[ElieEstephane]

Those sempervivums are very beautiful. Thanks for sharing!

[stephanelli]

Thanks Elie, unfortunately I've just taken a look at the roots of the sempvivum (on a whim because I was sure something was up with them) and sadly they have rootmealy bugs, quite severely. Saw a number of mature bugs in there (urgh). They are a beautiful variety so I'm definitely taking some cuttings (and keeping these in definite isolation until I can get rid of them).

[ElieEstephane]

I too have an infestation just starting
If it's infected badly just throw it away! No cuttings no nothing, even in isolation since ants and many other insects can transport them far away. I usually soak the whole thing in boiling water or just burn it.
I imagine in the uk sempervivums are quite common so hopefully you'll find some easily.
Best of luck!

[stephanelli]

Oh that's a shame, but thanks for the advice! They are quite easy to find (I've nosied at them many times in many places) so I guess its a chance to start afresh.

[Grimm]

I would be surprised if root mealies can get numerous enough to cause serious damage outdoors in the UK, as they like warm and dry conditions! I suspect that the soil/compost you have them in is what is making them really sickly, as it looks far too wet, and the mealies are just a minor side issue.

I would de-pot the Semps, give them a thorough clean, and then perhaps spray with pure Isopropyl alcohol (electrical circuit cleaner) although warm soapy water is probably enough to clean up sickly Semps as you won't have to worry about getting at a ton of fibrous roots (as they probably won't have many!) Then re-plant them with a soil mix made up of something like 2 parts gravel and 1 part John Innes #2 or #3.

Semps are tough plants, they should survive

[stephanelli]

My collection has grown again (but only by 3 plants!). While out Morris dancing, one of my fellow dancers and I were lucky enough to come upon a stall of cacti and succulents at Ely Eel Day being run by the lovely owners of cactiandsucculents.co.uk! We took the opportunity to buy a few plants - these are the ones I brought!

First off, I was drawn to this beautiful Gymnocalycium castellanosii. I love its spines!


The second plant I decided on was a Rebutia hybrid. I've been admiring all the Rebutias in the recent Cacti of the Month thread and saw a great opportunity to get one! This is Rebutia 'Orange Ice' and I've been told will produce beautiful orange flowers (note the little bud to the side!). I also love the soft spines on this little one!


Just when I thought I'd made my decision to only buy two plants I came upon the succulents and this beautiful Echeveria ramilette, complete with buds and flowers. I was in love. I love the echeveria genus but have never owned any of these plants so I was very excited to pick up one of these!


As a quick update on my sempervivums - in the end I decided to take the offshoots off and propagate them indoors, they are currently all growing very happily and putting out some nice roots I am pleased to say. The two large pots, I took the plants out and thoroughly cleaned up the pots, sorted through the plants. Some were beyond saving so I threw them out, while others looked like they might be okay so I pulled off the worst looking leaves and they were put to one side for a while. I then put the plants into a new compost mix and I'm pleased to say that most are now growing roots and generally seem to be quite happy and growing. A few decided that they didn't have the energy and died off but most are growing well. I'm keeping them in the greenhouse for the time being so I can carefully monitor how much water they are getting as I suspected that a large amount of rain combined with moisture retentive soil and no drainage holes was probably causing some rot alongside the root mealybug problem. (I inherited these pots from my grandma's garden last autumn so I suspect they had been a bit neglected along with the rest of the garden while she was ill). They are now in a compost mix of 1 part compost, 1 part vermiculite and 2 parts grit. This is the mix I've found works best for my growing conditions currently but I'm always monitoring the soil in my pots and checking if its working for the plant thats in it - so we'll see how it goes!
They get put outside into the sunshine when I know its going to be a nice day. Here are my two pots looking a lot happier (they don't look it, but they are some of the same plants!)



And while we're here, does anyone know what this sempervivum is doing? It appears to be producing offsets but in strange places!

[stephanelli]

Rebutia 'Orange Ice' in bloom - my first Rebutia flower

[ElieEstephane]

Beautiful additions! Love the spines on the gymno