Cactus Blog 

Family stuff intruded at the end of 2011 so I am late with the Top Ten Lists. I threw in some old photos last week to pass the time, but now I’m buckling down and getting them set up. I may only do 2 of these, but then I may be lying to you too.

Up first, 10 Cactus, all of them Top Cactus, from last year.

10. Rebutia fabrisii
We always try to bring out different mini blooming barrel cactus every year, and this was the year for this one. A nice orange-red color to contrast with all the other rebutias with orange or red flowers. I wonder what we’ll have for you this year?

9. Parodia magnifica
Another small cactus but this one has yellow flowers! Our crop last year was really pretty. It’s a plant we’ve been growing for ever, but these had a little bit extra last year. (And no, I’m not talking about mealy bugs).

8. Echinopsis spachiana
We’ve carried a lot of Echinopsis hybrids, usually not named, but this one with the giant white flowers is a pretty nice species all on its own.

7. Echinopsis, unnamed cultivar
This was my favorite flower color from the Echinopsis hybrids of last year.

6. Tunilla erectoclada
We’ve had these incorrectly named for years. Now they’re fixed. These are some of the most dangerous of tiny little cacti. As the French would say, ne touche pas!

5. Denmoza rhodacantha
I love these barrel cacti with the weird tubular flowers, clearly indicating they’re related to the Cleistocacti and the Oreocereuses.

4. Mammillaria perbella
We always have a lot of different Mammillarias hanging around, some of which we still haven’t gotten around to identifying, but this is one of the most satisfying of the Mammillarias, so welcome to our Top Ten List!

3. Espostoa melanostele
We used to only have a few giant specimens of these yellow-spined plants from South America, but now we have more and smaller too. On the smaller plants the yellow spines kind of look fake. Nice!

2. Ferocactus emoryi
This is a reliable bloomer for us, reliably producing seed too. And yet, last year the blooms were just a little bit prettier, a little bit more special. The bees loved the too, so you know they’re good.

And the Top Cactus of 2011 is…

Wait for it…

(more…)

From Idaho, it’s Benjamin and nephew.

He’s still in Idaho with Hap; they will be back in the Bay Area by Sunday. And then he goes into surgery Tuesday. Poor dog is waiting to get back home and he doesn’t know what will be waiting for him.

That’s a nice color for a Delospermsa.

Bonnie sent Keith a bunch of photos to ID. Can you help with this one?

Hi Keith,

Last plant photo. What is the name of this plant?

Appreciate your assistance.

Bonnie

Bonnie,
This last one is a Gasteria. I’m not sure the species. I’ll post it to the blog tomorrow and see if we can get a response.
Keith

Crassula ovata.

Common, yes, but pretty too.

Hi –

Im hoping you can help.

I bought this cactus from you a few years ago. It doesnt seem to be doing very well….
What can I do to help it!

thanks
Roger

Roger,

It looks like it has caught an infection. It could be fungal or viral… it is hard to tell from the photos. The best treatment I can suggest is Neem Oil, which is a natural fungicide that you can spray on as well as douse the soil with. Spray the entire plant until coated and then retreat in a week to ten days. If two treatments stop the spread it is fungal, if not it is likely a virus and there are not any treatments that are “over the counter” for use. The option then is to feed the plant with Kelp and a low strength fertilizer to boost the plant’s defenses and then keep it warm and dry for the winter and hope it can fight it off.

If you want to bring it by the nursery we would be happy to look it over and see if we can give better advice in person. If you are not close to Berkeley Neem Oil should be available at any good nursery, we prefer the 100% or organic versions since some of the products marketed for use on roses have a solvent added that is rough on cacti and succulents when applied in full sun.

Take care,

Hap

Arctostaphylos “Austin Griffiths” is a really nice hybrid with gorgeous large leaves that gets 10 to 12 ft. tall – the perfect size for a Berkeley yard. Full bloom on these is a lot of flowers for a long time – 6 weeks or more. If you don’t like manzanitas in general, then this is not the plant for you. Hah! Everyone loves manzanitas!

Pachypodium geayi

This photo was taken before 2004. I know this because it has no date associated with the file. I would guess it is one of the very first pictures I took for Cactus Jungle which would mean 2001-2. You can see some elements of my current style in the old picture. I wish I had a larger version to share.

Mammillaria bocasana

Spiny AND bloomful – a double treat. I took this picture three years ago, so you know it’s a classic.

Coryphantha ottonis

We first brought out these adorable little spiny barrels in October of aught-nine. They’ve been in stock ever since. I guess that means it hasn’t been featured in our monthly email since then. That’s what happens when something is so successful it doesn’t go out of stock.

This Euphorbia horrida was photographed almost exactly one year ago. That’s very exciting!

Fouquieria splendens

This Ocotillo was leafed out this past fall. It bloomed too.

My, my… this Aeonium “Kiwi” picture was taken by me around 7 years ago. That’s a long time we’ve been carrying these little beauties. Sometimes we call them Aeonium “Tricolor” but I think they’re all the same plant.

This Pachyphytum longifolium is almost 2 years older now, as this picture was taken in February of ’10. I wonder how big it’s grown in that time? If you were the person who purchased this particular plant from us, send along a photo of its progress!

The Echeveria “Berkeley” crop really came out fine last winter and we’ve had a steady supply since then. Good job, propagators!

Aeonium simsii was also from June of this year. It must have been a very pretty month.

Sempervivum “Lavender and Old Lace” from June, back when we had them in both 3″ and 1 gallon sizes. They don’t last long, so we haven’t had any since then. Maybe by spring our next crop will be ready.

This Aloe ferox was in bloom last month, and is still in bloom right now if you come by and check it out.

And thus concludes my rerun day. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!

Another pretty Kalanchoe. Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi was in bloom like this now 3 years ago. 3 years!! I wonder if it’s still in bloom?

A four-petaled Kalanchoe pumila. These are tiny flowers that bloom on and off throughout the year. This one was from March of 2011. That’s last year!

This Protea “Pink Ice” was blooming back in the Fall of 2009. It’s so pretty I use it for the title image on our Perennials page.

This native Abutilon palmeri was blooming in August of 2010. That was a very long time ago. I love these Indian Mallows. They’re one of my favorites.

This Echinopsis was blooming back in May. That was a long time ago. I practically had forgotten all about it.

I see the Cactus Grill at the Home Depot is not open yet.

Jaxx and Amica, relaxing by the fire in Santa Cruz on Christmas, while Benjamin and Jason were freezing their skinny whippet butts off in Idaho.

I’m going to be serious with you here; the blog is slow this week. But I think you should have a little fun time happy dance, so we here at the Cactus Blog present to you a You Tube Festival of Dancing Cacti.

Now I wouldn’t judge the rest of them by that one. Please, don’t judge them. Have a little bit of fun time happy dance.

See what I mean? There was no reason to judge that one from the first one. Now you get it! Some fun time happy dance for all!

Boy that’s a bit of very lazy blogging on my part. Try this one.

Happy Time! That was AAWWEESSOOMMEEEEE!!! (more…)

Some thick and colorful Aloe plicatilis buds.