A small collection: 2015 and beyond

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Steve Johnson
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by Steve Johnson »

mikethecactusguy wrote: Thu Nov 26, 2020 3:03 pm So Steve, do you dive?
Hi Mike,

Even though I grew up watching Jacques Cousteau documentaries, I wasn't interested in learning how to scuba dive. The closest I ever got was reef snorkeling in Hawaii a few times when I was married many years ago.

My lifelong fascination with marine life in the intertidal zone was inspired by a man by the name of Ed Ricketts. A genuine pioneer in the field of marine ecology, he published a seminal book in 1939 called Between Pacific Tides, and when I read a first edition cover-to-cover in 1970 at my Junior High library, I was hooked. Oddly enough, it was at about the same time when I fell in love with cacti. Ricketts' life came to a sudden and tragic end, but his memory lives on in Monterey, and his work continues to inspire marine biologists.

As I reach "senior citizen" status, I reflect back on all of the wonderful people I've known in the two (and very different) worlds of cacti and marine life. While I spend time with my friends in the world of cacti here, I'm glad that I could share a glimpse of the other one with those of you who might be interested in exploring it further. If you are, meet Ed Ricketts and BPT:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayJ12a2Pf9c

https://vimeo.com/447972120
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My location: Los Angeles, CA (Zone 10b)
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Steve Johnson
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2019 End-of-summer review (Part 14)

Post by Steve Johnson »

I started this review way back in October 2019, and for those of you who missed the "preamble" in Part 1, here's the gist of it...

I covered a lot of my history in the hobby with the 2018 review, and my 2019 review is a continuation of the 2018 experience. If you'd like to get the detailed backstories on the plants you're seeing here, the links from 2018 will do just that. The "then and now" connection seems to be working well, so we'll keep it going as we're only a couple of installments away from wrapping this up.

In today's presentation, we'll review 5 cacti, 2 of which come...

From C and D Plants (December 2015)
  • Puna clavarioides and Cumulopuntia rossiana var. fuauxiana -- link from 2018 review Part 9
The Puna's first photo on 12/18/15:

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It took the plant over a year to root well enough for signs of activity above-ground -- new growth on 4/9, 5/29, and 10/8/17:

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Transplanted from its tiny 2" terracotta pot to a glazed ceramic pot in June 2018, here it is on 6/17 and 10/7/18, then showing another year of growth on 10/6/19:

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I was hoping that the Puna would grow a new stem or two from its base last year, so kinda disappointing to see the only new growth coming from the stems it sprouted in 2017. P. clavarioides wants a hot, dry climate -- maybe the rather humid Mediterranean-type climate in my part of L.A. is the reason why its growth is so slow. However, I'm not about to kick the plant out of the collection just for that, so I'll keep the Puna going as I show you the latest in my 2020 review.

No disappointment with the other cactus I got from C and D -- first photo on 12/18/15:

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Another tiny plant in a tiny 2" pot, but unlike the Puna, the Cumulopuntia rooted easily. Spanning a year of growth on 10/8/17 and 10/20/18:

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The plant grew well enough for the move to a bigger pot in July 2019, so you'll see that in the following 4-panel pic on 9/17/16 and 4/29/17, repotting day on 7/13/19, and 10/6/19:

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The view from above on 7/13 and 10/6/19:

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C. rossiana's flowers are huge compared to the plant -- although mine isn't mature enough yet, I'd love to see its first blooms. In 2021 perhaps?

Although eBay can be a minefield of badly overpriced (and sometimes poached) cacti, responsible and trusted sellers offering plants at fair prices are to be found there if you know who they are. One of them happens to be Kyle Williams, and coming out of his eBay storefront, we'll review a couple of cacti...

From Kyle's Plants First photo on 7/30/16:

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9/18/16, 9/23/17, 9/29/18, and 10/5/19:

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A bird's-eye view on 10/22/16 and 10/5/19:

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All of those spent flowers on the right came at the end of a wonderful summer, so here's the beginning -- nice crop of buds on 7/1/19, and the subterranea's first bloom of the year a day later:

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Same flower on 7/3, and another one on 7/16:

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1 flower on 8/24 turns into 2 on 8/25:

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And it appears that we have a monstrose bloom on 8/31:

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The plant is a reliable bloomer, and I have a new crop of subterranea flowers held in reserve which I'll post at a later date. First photo on 6/24/18:

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9/29/18, then for 2019 we have the end of normal winter stress and shriveling on 3/31, spring plumping after the denegrii's first good snootful of water on 4/7, and the end of its summer on 10/5:

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Hard to see the Obregonia's growth point from the side, so we'll do something about that with a "helicopter shot" on 9/29/18 and 10/5/19:

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Kyle is a talented grower, and I recommend Kyle's Plants highly to all of our US members.

We'll end this installment with a genuine rarity coming...

From a private collector in West Hollywood, CA (January 2017) First photo on 1/29/17:

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The backstory on this plant is pretty amazing, so if you haven't seen it before, check out the link and read through the commentary I posted. Then after you see the photos below, I'll have a couple of comments following up on what I said in the 2018 review, and you may find them to be interesting.

A. ritteri is notorious for being the slowest-growing species in the cactus family, so with that in mind, look carefully at these shots from 9/27/17 and 10/13/19:

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At first blush, it doesn't look like the ritteri is growing at all. But if your powers of observation are keen, you'll see that it is in fact growing.

Yet another tiny plant in a tiny 2" pot -- no disrespect to the seller, but he didn't leave me much in the way of roots to work with. Now let's see if I did a good job of growing a better root system in my soil-less pumice and granite gravel mix -- a side view on 1/29/17 and 10/13/19:

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Guess I did, because the roots pushed the plant up above the black line on the right representing its "soil line". While the pot's diameter is still correct, the ritteri could use a deeper pot. I happen to have one, so I'll repot it accordingly when the new growing season begins. When I do, I'll post before-and-after photos so we can see what the roots look like these days.

I was pleasantly surprised to see my very first ritteri flower in the summer of 2017, and the bud you saw in the 9/27/17 shot led to the 3rd of 5 blooms that year -- not too shabby, huh? No flowers in 2018, but the ritteri made up for it the following summer -- from a bud on 7/27 and 7/28...

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...to a bloom on 7/29:

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A "twofer" of buds to blooms on 8/13 and 8/16:

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The best of the bunch with the ritteri's first "threefer" on 9/25/19:

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Going back to the 2018 review, I usually don't quote myself, but this time I have to:
Steve Johnson wrote: Sat Aug 03, 2019 5:11 pmIn the wild, Aztekium's native soil contains limestone or gypsum. Since Calcium is a natural growth inhibitor, the absence of a Calcium supplement in the seller's mix would explain the better growth rate of his Aztekiums, the ritteri included. And while his mix is nice and lean, there's nothing leaner than pumice and granite gravel, so my ritteri has been in clean mineral mix from the start. (Not even a hint of limestone added, by the way.)
MikeInOz recently corrected a serious factual error I made, and what I said turned out to be a myth that's been perpetuated by wrong-headed folks spreading it over the years. The plain fact is that Calcium is an important minor nutrient for all plants xeric and otherwise -- if you don't have it in your fertilizer regimen, you'll need to add some limestone to your mix as a source of Calcium for your plants. Either way, the grower who sold the ritteri to me was giving the plant enough Calcium, and I made a bad assumption about what I thought he was doing. Sheer dumb luck on my part -- it's still getting enough through the Dyna Gro All Pro 7-7-7 I've been using since 2012. A. ritteri typically grows at a rate of 1 mm. per year, and since we know that Calcium is not a growth inhibitor, the following quote from the response I got when I emailed the seller is of particular interest:

"Hi Steve, the 1 mm per year growth might be in habitat. My A. hintonii's grow around 2 cm a year, and I get 0.5-0.75 cm per year on A ritteri. (For A. valdezii, I only have grafted ones, so data is irrelevant). I grow in a heavy pumice mix (80%), with 20% compost (with no peat moss or pine park). I use 20-20-20 fertilizer, which I use full strength twice a month in spring, half strength weekly in summer."

Here in the US, "full strength" means 1 teaspoon of fertilizer diluted in a gallon of water. I fertilize all of my cacti with half-strength 7-7-7, so he was fertilizing a lot more than I am -- that would explain why my growth rate isn't matching his. Okay, the rate of 1 mm. per year is what I've been getting, but Mike taught me something really important that could make the plant grow a little bit faster without pushing it. I won't tell you what that something is yet, but I think it might be a good way to kick off the 2020 review. It won't be about just the ritteri either. In the meantime, the end of our 2019 journey awaits.
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2019 End-of-summer review (Conclusion)

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We're down to the last 4 species for my 2019 review (finally!), which brings us to the cacti coming...

From Desert Creations (Northridge CA, May 2016 and June 2018) First photo on 5/8/16:

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There's quite a story behind what you see, and if you follow the link, you'll read all about it.

Unless you live in the tropics, keeping adult Melos alive during fall and winter is a challenge that requires 2 really important things. First, you'll need to protect them from cold outdoor weather -- accomplished by a heated greenhouse or bringing them indoors. And second, light watering every 3 weeks so that their roots don't die off to the point of no return. If you did a good job, you'll know it in spring when they get back the water they lost over the winter as the roots grow and take it up with deep watering. Healthy roots mean robust new cephalium growth in the early spring, and you'll see both signs of success in operation here on 9/17/16, 10/21/18, 3/24/19, and 10/13/19:

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I've been shuttling the matanzanus between the plant bench and the bedroom of my apartment (AKA "hotel winter"), although it's spending most of its time indoors close to a space heater I fire up at night. After putting on a year of marvelous growth in 2020, I hope to see more of it next year as I get the plant through another winter. Did I do a good job again? We'll have to find out in 2021!

Truth be told, tiny matanzanus flowers aren't much to look at, but it's fun to watch the fruits slowly build into a crop. Here's one of many on 3/24/19:

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Progress on 9/24/16, 9/27/17, 10/20/18, and 10/6/19:

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In this view from above, we'll skip a couple of years and go straight from 9/24/16 to 10/6/19:

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At the end of its wonderful summertime flower display on 10/16/19:

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Image The Sulco heinzii's first photo on 6/17/18:

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At the end of its first summer under my care on 10/21/18, and the end of another on 10/6/19:

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Wowza! Kinda funny how the new pups are climbing up the parent stem as they "squeeze" it like a toothpaste tube. Where have I seen that before? Oh yeah, my Mammillaria deherdtiana. Anyway, the plant is mature enough to flower, but I was surprised to see nary a sign of buds last spring. Not that I'm complaining, but it would be awfully nice to see a passel of heinzii blooms next spring.

And now for the Gymno stellatum's first photo on 6/17/18:

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A year of growth spanning 9/29/18 and 10/13/19:

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What the heinzii couldn't provide, my stellatum certainly could -- a nice set of buds growing on 8/10 and 8/20/19:

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A bud going into bloom on 8/25:

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Gymno stellatum and friends on 8/31:

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Let's investigate those flowers:

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3 wide-open blooms on 9/2/19:

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The clever little thing also decided to start offsetting in the summer of 2020. And I have the photos to prove it -- coming up as I compile the early installments for my 2020 review. I may have a few things to post before then, so we'll keep the party going one way or another. In the meantime...

My very best wishes to all of you for a happy, health, and safe New Year!

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Steve Johnson
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Old year/new year buds and blooms

Post by Steve Johnson »

Here in SoCal, it's not unusual to experience "indian summer" when hot, dry conditions throughout November last well into December. Such was the case for the last 2 months of 2020, and the heat brought out a few marvelous flowers.

Turbinicarpus valdezianus going from bud to bloom well ahead of schedule on 11/28 and 12/1:

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12/1 and 12/8:

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Turb valdezianus flower anatomy on 12/8:

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(Note to self: Get a macro lens!)

Also on 12/1, Astrophytum myriostigma:

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Christmas cactus of a different sort -- Copiapoa tenuissima on 12/26:

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C. tenuissima is self-fertile, and the green arrow points to a seed that got away and sprouted. You'll see it again in this view from above:

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And now for a look at tenuissima flower anatomy:

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I keep my Copiapoas totally dry during fall/winter dormancy, so I don't know if the seedling will survive. All I can do is put a few occasional squirts of water around it and hope for the best -- if it does survive, I'll have a strong little grower that'll stay in the pot until it's big enough for a tiny pot of its own.

Buds and blooms to ring in the new year on 1/21/21 -- first up, Mammillaria spinossissima in flower:

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Here come the buds -- Turb valdezianus now on schedule:

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A highly recumbent Mamm perezdelarosae:

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Eriosyce senilis -- if you're not familiar with the species, you might be surprised to see how tall they can get with age:

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Let's take a closer look at those buds:

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My senilis is always good about producing a spectacular flush every year. Last year's 10-flower flush was the biggest, although the plant is on its way to breaking that record -- if your powers of observation are keen, you'll spot 14 buds. It's the star of my wintertime shows, so with the perezdelarosae and valdezianus acting as our "supporting cast", I expect to give you quite an eyeful when the ensemble goes from buds to blooms soon.
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Vegetable Don
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Re: Old year/new year buds and blooms

Post by Vegetable Don »

Steve Johnson wrote: Mon Feb 15, 2021 4:26 am
A highly recumbent Mamm perezdelarosae:

Very nice plants! No offshoots yet on the perezdelarosae?
vegetable_don on instagram.
growlist>>>https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing lots of carnivorous plants too. :D
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Re: Old year/new year buds and blooms

Post by Steve Johnson »

Vegetable Don wrote: Thu Feb 25, 2021 8:12 amVery nice plants! No offshoots yet on the perezdelarosae?
Thanks, Don! Mamm perezdelarosae offsets at a young age, and growing mine in a soil-less mineral mix ever since I got the plant 7 years ago might be the reason why it didn't. Then again, it could give me pleasant surprise in that regard, so I'll keep an eye out.
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Eriosyce senilis and friends (Part 1)

Post by Steve Johnson »

As promised, my E. senilis put on a spectacular display in February, but for today's presentation, we'll look at a few of the friends that went into bloom. First up, Gymnocactus ysabelae on 2/3/21:

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A "threefer" in flower on 2/19 and 2/21:

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A close-up on 2/21, such pretty colors:

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Ramping up to February, a nice "helicopter shot" of this highly recumbent Mammillaria perezdelarosae on 1/21:

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The flush in progress on 2/21:

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The Eriosyce duripulpa on the right set its first and only bud of the year. Did it bloom? It sure did, although I'm saving the photos for a later post. Now back to Mr. perezdelarosae (AKA "the limbo king")...

2/18 and 2/21:

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On 2/22 -- about as wide open as the perezdelarosae's flowers will get, and here's one letting it all hang out:

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A side view of my Turbinicarpus valdezianus going from buds to blooms on 1/21, 2/14, 2/19, 2/21, and 2/22:

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The view from above:

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2/22 close-up with some Turb valdezianus flower anatomy:

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In my next post, it'll be time for the E. senilis show.
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abhikjha
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by abhikjha »

wow! What a thread!! Your description, commentary along with photos, you may want to turn it into a book :D

I recently got few mature melos with red and white caps..a couple of them have very small root balls, so I will follow your approach on sip and dry method and graduate towards soak and dry method over a course of few months. However, there are couple with better root system like this in pic here. How do you suggest I water them? I am tempting to trim the roots and use sip and dry method as soaking it on a couple of occasions didn't do much. I am worried if I soak it and it couldn't take up the water, it will lead to rot..
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madkactus
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by madkactus »

The cactus would probably accept the root trim well enough because it's a young cactus. Give it plenty of time to recover from the trauma of trimming the roots. Perhaps others with vast experience can chime in.
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by abhikjha »

Thanks @madkactus for echoing my views! Let's wait for few others to say before I pick up knife 😃

Just received one mature M. Bahiensis.. it's impressive plant..below are the pics.. I checked with seller (he became sort of friend now) and two more (one smaller and one even bigger) are on way :mrgreen:, what he mentioned about his growing method, I was taken aback: he said he uses river sand, stone chips(gravel) and cow dung compost for potting media, water it when mix becomes excess dry and keep it under full sun with some protection in afternoon. While sun part we discussed over another thread and it's more or less same, but soil media and watering schedule are completely different and quite opposite to what I learner it here so far..he has been growing loads of Melocactus and for number of years so he can't be so wrong in my view..

Here are the pics:
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madkactus
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by madkactus »

abhikjha wrote: Mon May 10, 2021 12:35 pm Thanks @madkactus for echoing my views! Let's wait for few others to say before I pick up knife 😃

Just received one mature M. Bahiensis.. it's impressive plant..below are the pics.. I checked with seller (he became sort of friend now) and two more (one smaller and one even bigger) are on way :mrgreen:, what he mentioned about his growing method, I was taken aback: he said he uses river sand, stone chips(gravel) and cow dung compost for potting media, water it when mix becomes excess dry and keep it under full sun with some protection in afternoon. While sun part we discussed over another thread and it's more or less same, but soil media and watering schedule are completely different and quite opposite to what I learner it here so far..he has been growing loads of Melocactus and for number of years so he can't be so wrong in my view..

Here are the pics:
Hi abhikjha. That's an impressive root ball on that melo. :-"
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by abhikjha »

Thanks a lot @madkactus and I was surprised that with the potting mix and watering schedule he followed for so many years, this is the root ball! Someone said it absolutely right that you can grow cactus in any soil provided watering is rightly done!

This bigger one will be delivered once lockdown is lifted, just can't wait to get it :lol:
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Steve Johnson
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by Steve Johnson »

abhikjha wrote: Mon May 10, 2021 7:47 amwow! What a thread!! Your description, commentary along with photos, you may want to turn it into a book :D
Thanks! I've been harboring ambitions of doing just that (probably an eboook), but it'll have to be a retirement project, and I'm still a few years away from being able to retire.
abhikjha wrote: Mon May 10, 2021 12:35 pmJust received one mature M. Bahiensis.. it's impressive plant..below are the pics.. I checked with seller (he became sort of friend now) and two more (one smaller and one even bigger) are on way :mrgreen:, what he mentioned about his growing method, I was taken aback: he said he uses river sand, stone chips(gravel) and cow dung compost for potting media, water it when mix becomes excess dry and keep it under full sun with some protection in afternoon. While sun part we discussed over another thread and it's more or less same, but soil media and watering schedule are completely different and quite opposite to what I learner it here so far..he has been growing loads of Melocactus and for number of years so he can't be so wrong in my view..
The only Melo species I have growing experience with is M. matanzanus, so I'm by no means an expert on Melos in general. Sounds like the seller is, so if what he's been doing over the years works well, I'm sure his growing method will work well for you too.
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by abhikjha »

Thanks Steve. I will stick to what I know best and since India is a vast country with lots of varied micro climates, I don't want to take any risk by simply adopting to his approach. I was just surprised with his method of using a completely different cultivation approach.

I would love to hear your views on this query.
abhikjha wrote: Mon May 10, 2021 7:47 am

I recently got few mature melos with red and white caps..a couple of them have very small root balls, so I will follow your approach on sip and dry method and graduate towards soak and dry method over a course of few months. However, there are couple with better root system like this in pic here. How do you suggest I water them? I am tempting to trim the roots and use sip and dry method as soaking it on a couple of occasions didn't do much. I am worried if I soak it and it couldn't take up the water, it will lead to rot..
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Steve Johnson
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Re: A small collection: 2015 and beyond

Post by Steve Johnson »

abhikjha wrote: Tue May 11, 2021 2:11 amThanks Steve. I will stick to what I know best and since India is a vast country with lots of varied micro climates, I don't want to take any risk by simply adopting to his approach. I was just surprised with his method of using a completely different cultivation approach.

I would love to hear your views on this query.
A few things come to mind. First, my considered opinion is that roots should be trimmed only if they're dead. The roots on your Melos look pretty alive to me, so I wouldn't recommend trimming. Second, I highly recommend soaking the roots in 1% Hydrogen peroxide for a half-hour -- good because it promotes faster healing after they're transplanted. The sip-and-dry method is fine for the Melos that don't have much of a root system yet. For the ones that have better roots, you may want to go with half-watering -- something between a sip and a soak. Using a spray bottle, squirt water around the base of the plant a little bit at a time, and let the water soak through on the first shot. Do it again, then check to see if any water is coming out of the drain hole. If you see just a few drops come out, you're set. If not, continue until you do. When I did the sip-and-dry method with my Melo matanzanus, I actually wrote down the number of times I "pulled the trigger" to determine what it took going from sips to half-watering. Watering frequency is the same, just a matter of watering the right amount. If I remember correctly, I think it was a month of sips, a month of half-watering, then the matanzanus was ready to accept soaks.

Melos have a notorious reputation for being "difficult", but I think this is experience coming from North American and European growers dealing with a climate that's not exactly conducive. M. matanzanus is the easiest, one of the reasons why it's the only species I grow. Your tropical climate gives you an advantage, so I have a feeling that your various Melo species won't be so difficult.
If you just want photos without all the blather, please visit my Flickr gallery.
My location: Los Angeles, CA (Zone 10b)
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