Here are some pictures I took of the private collection of Miel Decoster (Decoster Cactussen, Veurne, Belgium). I took these last summer. Veurne is located in West-Flanders, Belgium close to De Panne. Observing his greenhouse, I imagine it was quite the enterprise at a certain point. At the moment he only uses 50% of the growing space and is heading towards retirement. Aside from his private collection, he is selling all the plants in the greenhouse. I think I will visit him one last time in April.
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Location
Antwerp, Belgium
temperate, maritime climate with mild winters and cool summers
hardiness zone 8a
You're reffering to R0000492.jpg? That is indeed E. schoenlandii. I have a specimen which I got from a veteran grower here in Antwerp. Not nearly as impressive as the one in the photo. They're quite slow growing, but it's nice to watch the new growth turn into these woody spikes.
Location
Antwerp, Belgium
temperate, maritime climate with mild winters and cool summers
hardiness zone 8a
riinel wrote: ↑Wed Dec 20, 2023 12:13 pm
Awesome!!
Is in the middle of R0000487.jpg Gymnocalycium spegazzini?
Correct. I don't know how old it is. I've only seen younger specimens. I bought a small one at ELK 2023, but gave it away because I promised a plant to a colleague. I noticed yesterday I sowed G. cardenasianum previous spring, which is a synonym for Gymnocalycium spegazzinii subs. cardenasianum. Hopefully I will have a grown plant in a few years. There are a few subspecies and varieties. I love how the spines seem to form a cloak over the plant body. Very dramatic.
Location
Antwerp, Belgium
temperate, maritime climate with mild winters and cool summers
hardiness zone 8a
ohugal wrote: ↑Wed Dec 20, 2023 7:54 am
You're reffering to R0000492.jpg? That is indeed E. schoenlandii. I have a specimen which I got from a veteran grower here in Antwerp. Not nearly as impressive as the one in the photo. They're quite slow growing, but it's nice to watch the new growth turn into these woody spikes.
Tom in Tucson wrote: ↑Wed Dec 20, 2023 9:52 pm
What is image # R0000512?
To be honest, I'm not sure. At first I thought it was a species of Cotyledon or Pachyphytum, because he had a lot of those for sale. At closer inspection and with the aid of Plantnet, I'm guessing it to be a cristate form of Echeveria setosa or pulvinata. I'm attaching some more detailed photos below:
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Location
Antwerp, Belgium
temperate, maritime climate with mild winters and cool summers
hardiness zone 8a
Tom in Tucson wrote: ↑Wed Dec 20, 2023 9:52 pm
What is image # R0000512?
To be honest, I'm not sure. At first I thought it was a species of Cotyledon or Pachyphytum, because he had a lot of those for sale. At closer inspection and with the aid of Plantnet, I'm guessing it to be a cristate form of Echeveria setosa or pulvinata. I'm attaching some more detailed photos below:
R0000512.jpgR0000512a.jpg
Your guess looks logical, but I'd still like to know the truth, if possible.
FredBW wrote: ↑Mon Dec 25, 2023 12:24 pm
Amazing! Everything looks healthy and thriving. Yet I see no real monsters trying to push out the roof.
True. He had some larger plants planted directly in the ground at the back of the greenhouse (see photo below). It's possible he sold or gave away larger specimens, because he intents to stop his commercial activities in one of the following years. I didn't take pictures of his house, which is located next to the greenhouse. Also there a lot is planted in the ground without any shelter, mostly hardy succulents. The man is in his late 70's. He was very generous with information and knew every plant name by memory. He waters his plants intermittently with rain and tap water. His soil mixture is peat based, which is very common here with growers of his generation. Among others, I bought a Stenocactus phyllacanthus with 3 heads for —I think— €10. Because of the peat, most plants I purchased lost their fine roots after repotting. I hope by spring they'll have grown new roots and will resume growth. Often when I get or purchase plants from veteran growers I feel 'extra' responsible to take good care of them.
Location
Antwerp, Belgium
temperate, maritime climate with mild winters and cool summers
hardiness zone 8a
