Mrs.Green windowsills-growing cacti against the odds (links on page 9)

[Mrs.Green]

These came today Schlumbergera lutea, a Lobivia of some sort and rooted Selenicereus chrysocardium cuttings . Not the best pics yet but I am pleased with my new cacti The seller had added an Aloe with the fern leaf cuttings, I am not planning on growing them together, if anyone wonders.

[Traveller]

Keep them happy and they should yield yoi some lovely flowers!
Only recently did I start getting back into growing epiphyte cacti again.
Alex

[Mrs.Green]

Keep them happy and they should yield yoi some lovely flowers!
Only recently did I start getting back into growing epiphyte cacti again.
Alex

Thank you Traveller I will try my best to keep them happy .Flowers would be great but for now I would be happy if they survive and grow . I am very fond of epiphyte cacti myself and I have a few hanging around in the house.

[Mrs.Green]

Everybody deserves a chance

I don’t know if anybody remembers these cacti, bought in a dishgarden? When taking them out of the pot, all of them had rot , some more than others.

Not willing to give up on them, I potted the ones who had the least damage to them. The others I placed on the balcony, barerooted. It was very hot and sunny for a period here and I made sure the rotted areas was exposed to the sun. Thinking that fresh air and sun heal wounds on mammals, so why not in cacti?

They lay bare rooted for a month or so, even getting a couple of hevy rainfalls on them.

Seeing that the cacti grew a little , bare rooted on the balcony , I desided to pot them and take them indoors. The root haven’t progressed as far as I can see nd the cacti is firm to the touch. I will not declare victory yet but there is hope

The ones in the photos here, are the ones who looked the worst when taking them out of the dishgarden.

[Mrs.Green]

The Parodia warasii (?) opened it’s first flower today The flower smelled nice too, a pleasant surprise

[Mrs.Green]

Two flowers... I find the flowers very appealing, they are so shiny and lmost transparent .

A better pic of the S.lutea. The pot is about 5 cm.

[Mrs.Green]

Some new additions... Why I bought another E.grusonii when I have three already , well I guess the spines are a magnet for me.

It will be interesting to see if the Euphorbia survives the ‘boiling’. It’s the first succulent I have given the ‘hot water with neemoil and soap’ treatment. I didn’t see any bugs on it but just to be on the safe side..

Btw; I can now confirm from my own ( very limited) experience that Lithops are in fact plants..They are not some sort of alien creatures who turns to mush, just by the sight of the watering can. I have both misted and watered them, and they are still firm and attached to the substrate

[Mrs.Green]

The Mamm look very elegant - so maybe elegans ? (Might also be pseudoperbella)

The Mamm in question is now pushing out a lot of seedcapsules.. I haven’t seen a single flower on it since I got it (1,5 months ago)
I couldn’t see any signs of dry flowers on it either, when I got it. So either the flowers are very small or the flowers falls off completely after flowering?

[anttisepp]

Berries usually develope 1-3 months later after blooming on mammillarias. Perbella may be also probable name.

[Mrs.Green]

Berries usually develope 1-3 months later after blooming on mammillarias. Perbella may be also probable name.

Thank you Anttisepp It must have flowered before I got it then . Interesting , now there are three possible Id’s on this Mammilaria

[greenknight]

Mammillaria flowers are produced in the axils (in between the tubercles), and they shrivel into little blobs, which you can see on the tips of those fruits. On densely spined species like this, the dried flowers are hidden under the spines - you have to look really hard to see them. When the fruits appear months later, it's as if they came out of nowhere.

[Mrs.Green]

Mammillaria flowers are produced in the axils (in between the tubercles), and they shrivel into little blobs, which you can see on the tips of those fruits. On densely spined species like this, the dried flowers are hidden under the spines - you have to look really hard to see them. When the fruits appear months later, it's as if they came out of nowhere.

Thank you Greenknight That must be the case, other Mammilarias I have ‘shows’ their dried flowers afterwards, unlike this one. The fruits looks tasty.. but since I don’t know if the plant was treated with insectisides before purchase, I would have tried one

How long are Mammilaria seeds viable? I am tempted to harvest some of the fruits and try sowing them next year.

[greenknight]

The seeds will certainly be fine next year, if well stored they should be good for several years.

Some Mammillarias have cryptocarpic fruits, they are retained within the body of the cactus for years. Seeds of those species need to be aged before they will germinate well if at all. So the answer to "How long are Mammilaria seeds viable?" is "it depends on the species" - but I don't think any of them are especially short-lived. This species is not cryptocarpic, so plant the seeds whenever you're ready.

[anttisepp]

Everybody deserves a chance <...> The ones in the photos here, are the ones who looked the worst when taking them out of the dishgarden.

I am completely agreed and fight for life till the end. But if you think that Mother Nature heals them itself it's wrong, she kills also So I'd cut and excavate all injured/sick tussues till green one and then heal wound with e.g. sulphur or coal powder etc. to prevent spreading of infection.

[Traveller]

With reguards to the cryptocarpic Mammillarias (Mamm theresae being a great example), the seeds and fruit are never naturally exposed while the parent plant is alive. The seeds only get dispersed once the parent plant has died and rotted open.
And when you go to plant seeds like that, sometimes you should expect not to see any germination at all. Don't throw away the seed tray. Just let it dry out, wait a few weeks and try again. I have had some seedlings wait until the 8th or 9th cycle to finally germinate.

Alex