This is from Nickelodeon. It’s an old cactus bumper.
I really have nothing to say about this strange remnant video.
Instead, I’ll talk about my neighbor who we almost never see.
And then suddenly there were these news reports about a mummified corpse found in the house across the street. And the daughter is a suspect.
And in a totally unrelated case there’s Bob and Sue. We don’t hear from them very often, usually they send postcards when they’re traveling, but not much else. And then they suddenly got involved in a murder mystery involving their neighbor who died in a red house. I hear the police officer on the case was just arrested for the murder.
…that we can’t answer, so they supply their own answers!
Dear madam, sir,
Thank you for your wonderful website. I especially visited it while trying to identify a newly aquired plant. I think it is a type of euphorbia (it has milky sap) but I am not sure. This specimen is approximately 70 cm tall and 6cm thick. It has a mintgreen color and the blooming stalks are fuchsia colored. Unfortunately the flowers have whithered but they seem to have been pinkish. I have visited a lot of sites but haven’t been able to identify it. Could you help me with this problem?
Thanks in advance for your help,
Jan
Jan,
I am sad to have to admit I haven’t been able to identify your Euphorbia. It is an amazing looking plant and there is nothing like it in my books. At least with such large bloom stems… so you may have to check your local science library and see if they have a complete set of Euporbiacea Journals and slog through to see if you can find it. Of course it could be a cool hybrid and then it will be even harder to identify.
Good Luck,
Hap
And then the unthinkable happened. Jan found the answer without us!
Hap,
Thanks for your kind reply. I have used your suggestion and contacted the head of the national herbarium in Leiden. He knew the plant to be a monadenium spectabile (aka euphorbia spectabile).
If you don’t read Plants are the Strangest People, then you haven’t been following Mr. Subjunctive’s Toxic Houseplant series, and I recommend starting with Part 1.
Barcelona-based spirits company Destilerias Campeny has launched a ready-to-serve cocktail mix Agua del Desierto – dubbed “the first cactus cocktail mix in the world”….
“This wonderful ready-to-serve combination aims to be one of the leaders in the trendy cocktail sector… You can enjoy Agua del Desierto chilled, on the rocks or as a shot.”
That description is just so. Practically a self-parody. But I’m sure it’s delicious, so I wouldn’t worry.
And it’s an attractive bottle, so that counts, too.
Cactus leaves
(C)actus leaves, or “nopales,” are a versatile food, a good substitute for a bell pepper or a zucchini in all sorts of dishes, says produce manager Tim Pettingill at Macey’s in Ogden.
Flat and oval-shaped, the leaves from the prickly pear cactus usually come with the spines removed. But Pettingill says it’s best to cut the eyes out to make sure no spines remain beneath the surface.
Dice the leaves and steam them over boiling water, not in it, until they are tender. The mild-flavored leaves can get a bit slimy in texture, sort of like okra, he says.
Sure, sort of like okra, but that’s only if they’re overcooked. Keep them just right, maybe lightly sauteed in olive oil and garlic, and then you can prevent the slimys.
From Break.com comes this wonderful new contribution to the history of classical lines of architectural furniture construction. And plants. We’ll be getting right on the project of growing these from seed.
In flush times, the cactus drinks up a storm, its pleated exterior expanding like an accordion to accommodate heavy rainfall. In drought, it conserves moisture by growing slowly and transpiring little.
An interesting observation. I wonder why this particular catholic magazine made this observation? Well, there’s probably a spiritual reason behind it. Something along the lines of how we can all learn a lesson from the cactus.
The saguaro has evolved to embrace the rhythms of feasting and fasting that must govern any life lived in harmony with the cycles of the natural world.
Oregonian here with a growing cactus collection in a greenhouse. Some of my cacti flower regularly, mostly Mammillaria. I’ve always wondered when a cactus appears to be producing a flower, is there anything I should be doing to promote the flower’s growth? Take it outside, more light, less light, feed it, water it, don’t touch it, don’t move it…. you get the idea. I don’t get too many flowers, and I try to acknowledge their dormancy period during the winter to help the spring/summer flowering, but still have mixed results. Fortunately I have what appears to be an Echinopsis flower coming and I don’t want to screw it up?
Matt
Matt,
There are 2 different issues here:
1. How to get more flowers. We use fish bone meal as a bloom food in late March or early April (now is not too late.) Using a regular cactus fertilizer is also a good idea in the spring.
2. Once the bud is already there, nothing needs to be done to promote its growth. However, there are things you can avoid doing to prevent it from aborting. It’s best not to replant any plant that has started blooming, as the shock can cause the blooms to abort. It’s also best not to change it’s environment too radically, like bringing it from inside to full sun outside. To keep blooms longer, avoid high heat.
Hope that helps
Peter
And as a bonus, enjoy a blooming cactus:
Rebutia perplexa
Notice all those flower buds all over the tiny cactus? That’s another secret to getting cactus blooms: Pick a cactus that produces lots of flowers, like a rebutia.
The cactus-and-sunset logo on the McKale Center floor will be eliminated. Because it didn’t conform to UA branding, it was given a special waiver more than 20 years ago.
Have you got any tips for potting a (large) E.Trigona? I just can’t get my head round how to do it.
How can you tell that a plant is underpotted? What should I look for?
Thanks,
Mike
Mike,
We generally like to see as much plant mass above the soil line as potential root mass below.
Repotting euphorbias is difficult. They have a caustic white sap (latex) that is very dangerous, and with all those branches banging against each other when you repot, the likelihood of getting it on you is high. So what we do is wear a lot of protective clothing, including goggles and gloves, and pack between the branches with bunched up newspaper to keep the branches from scarring each other.
Then you use a tool to separate the roots from the sides of the pot. Lay the whole thing flat on a tarp on the ground. With 2 to 3 people, gently ease the plant out of the pot. Generally you don’t want to disturb the roots too much for succulents, but if it is completely pot bound, then a small amount of root massage to redirect the root tips is recommended.
Place the plant into the new larger pot (we recommend terra cotta) with fresh fast-draining cactus soil so that the top of the soil line stays in the same place. Fill around with more soil, and you’re done. Don’t water for 2 weeks to let the roots heal, and the plant should begin to thrive again.
Good luck,
Peter
This was a follow-up to a previous question about an underpotted plant.
We’re getting an early heat wave in Northern Cal. We should be around 90 in Berkeley, and higher inland. So today would be a good day for a little extra watering.
You would think that they’re cactus and they can handle the 90s just peachy fine and all. And you would be correct! Ding ding ding! But that doesn’t mean they don’t want a little extra water. Wouldn’t you?
And most important of all, it’s cactus bloom season and we don’t want them all to abort. Because that would be bad. Then what would the bees pollinate?
Hi Hap and Peter
Attached are a couple pictures of the cactus. I was wondering if you could help me figure out what the problem is? I don’t know what kind they are. They get plenty of light. They are outdoors (obviously). They are wilted and a reddish-orange color.
Thanks
Jodi
Jodi,
They look like they are just in “winter mode”, some hardy prickly pear dump all their water, go limp and weird colors to concentrate their sugars, so they can survive freezing during the winter. They should perk up as spring progresses and they wake up for spring growth.
Hap
(Editor’s Note: I’ll bet you didn’t see that answer coming.)
Some green roofs can be far simpler to create than traditional roof gardens. Volunteers from Cook + Fox installed the New York City architectural firm’s roof themselves using Green Paks. The polyethylene bags, marketed by St. Louis-based Green Roof Blocks, contain low-maintenance plants and can be laid out with no preparation beyond rolling out a layer of waterproof material that controls drainage and blocks the intrusion of roots into roof structures.
See more photographs from the May 2009 feature story “Green Roofs.”
If you click through to the article to learn what plants are being used in New York, you learn nothing of the sort. Sure, they mention Sedums, and talk about going native, but the article is more about building in Vancouver. Whatever, it’s a nice picture to “borrow.”
Big shaggy leaves, but really it’s all about the blooms, as it is with all these aloe relatives. What sets this one apart is that the flowers are a fairly dense pyramid, unlike the regular red hot pokers you see everywhere. And they have both the yellow and the red together, in one fell swoop.
Also, they are from the East Cape unlike the red hots, which are not from the East Cape.
I wonder what East Cape it is they’re talking about? I’ve been to the east side of Cape Cod, but it’s not usually called the East Cape there, it’s usually called the Outer Cape, or the National Seashore. Really, they’re my favorite beaches in the whole world, those easterly beaches of Cape Cod, but then I’ve never seen any of these kniph’s over there, so it must be another East Cape they mean.
A good discussion of the topic. Here’s an extended quote, if nobody minds.
These succulents, some spiny, some smooth, in shades of silver, green, red and lavender, are arrayed on a lengthy, three-tiered light stand, each level equipped with four 48-inch, 40-watt full-spectrum bulbs purported to resemble natural light….
Most species I have tried (there are more than 1,000 cactus species) decline gradually over a period of 18 months to two years. A few, however, including species of Mammillaria, Melocactus, Echinocereus and Gymnocalycium, have thrived.
Among the non-cactus succulents that flourish under fluorescents are species and hybrids of Haworthia, Aloe, Edithcolea, Adromischus, Agave, Aeonium, Crassula, Sedum, Echeveria, Euphorbia, Gasteria, Graptopetalum, Kalanchoe and Sansevieria. Others, such as Stapelia and Senecio species, do well if given occasional R&R on an east-facing windowsill.
More species listed at the article, if you click through. We also suggest to people in offices to make sure their full spectrum bulbs are within 12″ of the plant, because the UV from them dissipates quickly.
I noted in my post about the LA Times article on agave sweeteners that they had incorrectly identified the agave as a cactus, and now they’ve issued a correction. Do you think they read this blog?
For the record
Agave sweeteners: A March 30 article on agave sweeteners said the agave plant is a cactus. Agaves are not cactuses; they are related to lilies and amaryllises.
Well, maybe I didn’t actually write about their article on agave sweeteners, and maybe I didn’t actually correct them, so maybe they don’t actually read this blog. But it could have happened, and that’s LA for you.
Leucadendron discolor ‘Pom Pom’ is native to South Africa.
This evergreen shrub can take lower light levels than most of the leucadendrons and proteas, even as low as part shade. This one looks a lot like the proteas, getting aroung 6 ft. tall with these lovely yellow cone flowers, sometimes with some red. I recommend cutting these little beauties off and creating a flametipped arrangement for your dining room table that will last for weeks.
If not, then you better be out in your garden enjoying them, because they won’t last forever, and that’s a shame.
You can click through for the whole article if you want to find out how a nasty cactus with millions of tiny glochids can relieve pain, but I’m satisfied with the headline alone.
Rainy summers in Florida can be a problem for you and your cactus and succulent garden, if you live in Florida. From TCPalm.com
Photo Credit: Carol Cloud Bailey
Beautiful Agave stricta also known as the hedgehog or globe agave is native to Mexico and very cold and drought tolerant. However, it does not grow well in wet locations or areas with lots of rain. It could be a great addition to succulent or cactus gardens in our area if water is controlled during the rainy summers. Place hedgehog agave carefully, its tidy round leaves are tipped with spines sharp enough to pierce leather gloves.
I was a big dingus and left my super cool cactus buddy in the rain. 🙁 He looks sort of light green now with some yellow places. Did I kill it or can this be fixed? He’s inside right now, draining.
Bean
Bean,
Let him dry out, keep him warm and watch the yellow patches. Yellow is s sign of stress as well as a the start of an infection. Don’t water for 3 or 4 weeks. You might want to treat with Neem Oil in a 1% solution after it has dried out. Either use “ready to use’ or mix about a tsp of neem in a quart of warm water with a few drops of hand soap or glyserine to help emmusify, shake well and then spray all the plant and let the runnoff soak in to the soil. Keep away from the sun for a day or two. Neem is effective, natural and in the “chemical warfare class” so it is something you can use without needing a spacesuit to apply.
‘Today there is much focus on our rights,” Justice Thomas said…. “Shouldn’t there at least be equal time for our Bill of Obligations and our Bill of Responsibilities?”
Funny, I don’t remember there being a “Bill of Obligations” or a “Bill of Responsibilities” in the Constitution of the United States of America. But since Thomas is an originalist who interprets the Constitution the way the founders intended, I suppose it must be in there somewhere.
Our first cone flower of the year. Some of the other leacadendrons and the proteas are all getting close. Any day now. Stay tuned. Although, sometimes they sell just before they bloom, and then I don’t get to take pictures. So maybe you shouldn’t stay tuned. Nahhh, go ahead, stay tuned…
Hiking off the main trails on Catalina Island can be a rewarding experience, so the LA Times discovers.
Blazing a new trail in Catalina
A sign marks the Trans-Catalina Island Trail, built to show off Catalina’s dramatic changes in elevation, which make for a surprising variety of ecosystems and landscapes: muscular peaks, scalloped beaches, lush ravines and grasslands enlivened by an array of spring flowers. (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)
I see cactus. Wait, here’s some more.
A butterfly perches gingerly on a cactus along the trail, which climbs, dips and winds through backcountry largely unknown to the public and essentially unchanged since Tongva Indians roamed the island. (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)
I wonder if the photographer minds my borrowing his beautiful photos? Well, a simple google search should lead him here, where he’ll see we gave credit and links. Oh well, the contours of fair use and all…
Dozens of tiny pink flowers on penstemons dance in the breeze, while neighboring hybrid claret cup cactuses put on their best show in bright red flowers. Bunches of desert marigolds and bright yellow and orange gazanias are sprinkled among other cactuses, including strawberry cactus, which bears fruit that has a strawberry aroma and flavor.
