Cactus Blog 

Parodia ottonis has been a reliable bloomer for us over the years. Hardy yellow flowers on a small globular base.

Found throughout South America, it is generally solitary when young and when it starts to branch it can become a nice clump. The purplish color comes in winter and can stick around through the summer if given enough sun. If you prefer the green color you can give it some afternoon shade and that should green it up nicely.

These used to be called Notocactus but the DNA research is in and…. Parodia! Anderson supports the Parodia designation, but many cactus nurseries are still using Notocactus, so I guess the final jury is still out on this terrible question.

Here, have some flowers.

OK, so those flowers aren’t exactly “pretty” but they are called Baja Fairy Duster.

Calliandra californica will get 6 ft. x 6 ft. in an open, vase-shaped shrub. The red puffball flowersare pollinated by hummingbirds and butterflies too. But not today. They’re all hiding from the rain.

Gail in Mill Valley sends along a recent photo of their succulent wall we planted for them a few months ago.

Lewisia longipetalas are all still in crazy bloom. They are going for months. Who wants to bet they keep blooming into August?

Boophone disticha

Wikipedia says it’s used in South African traditional medicine by the Zulus to induce hallucinations for divinatory purposes, and also as a medicine to treat mental illness.

Hallucinations or mental illness. Hmmmm…. let me think about that choice for a bit.

It also gets very interesting red flowers. Check it out someday if you get the chance.

Anigozanthos, 3 varieties.

Echinopsis pachanoi

Rebutia mentosa

Hi there,

I am hoping you can help me identify what is going wrong with my boyfriend’s cactus….

I accidentally knocked it over and it snapped half. My boyfriend really loved this cactus and it was quite a situation as he has owned it for 8 years. After reading online that I could plant the top I did so. I potted it into cactus/succulent mix dipping the broken end in rooting hormone and planted it about an inch and a half in the soil. This was over a month ago and Ive been watching the little guy and things aren’t looking good. Today it was tipped over in the pot and i could see the end. I picked up the little guy and it looks like it has been decomposing slowly. there was a hollow hole with just the external layer going up about 2 inches. I’ve replanted it again but I don’t know what to do! It would be really great if this little guy did not die. Do you have any recommendations? Attached is a pic so you know what kind Im talking about 🙂 It used to be very tall and is now a nub.

Thanks!

Jennifer

Jennifer,

Some types of cactus are harder to root from cuttings than others. This Cleistocactus is one of those that is harder to root. What you need to do is take it out of the soil, cut off the parts that are rotting so that you get all the way to clean tissue, and then spray with hydrogen peroxide to help the cut end heal. Let it heal for about 1 week. Dip in rooting hormone and then plant it dry into dry cactus soil. The plant will need bottom heat if it is to root, so you will need to get a source of heat below the pot. We use an under-tank heater. Wait 2 more weeks before watering.

Then hope it takes, but the truth is that these are difficult and even under the best of circumstances the percentages aren’t with you.

Peter

Jaxx is visiting, which means we have three whippets here. And when I went to get a cup of coffee I noticed that all three dogs are staking out separate rooms for themselves.

I see Jaxx is in the dog bed in the living room.

Benjamin is in the guest bedroom, as if we had a whippet guest over, which we do.

And Jason has staked out Jaxx’ dog bed in the master bedroom.

Whippets for everyone!

Last time I blogged this plant I called it a Gymnocalycium, which it resembles, but I was wrong. It’s a Parodia. Parodia crassigibba to be precise. To be fair, though, all our Parodia crassigibbas had bloomed yellow in the past, and it wasn’t until I went searching for this exact shade of pink that I found out that this Parodia can bloom in yellow or pink! Remarkable. Also it can bloom in white or purple, according to Anderson.

The first Plumeria blooms are open.

Why we have no customers this morning! Who would try and get past all that?

A few more Echinopsis flowers. Always, a few more. They never seem to end around here.

Echinopsis marsoneri

And here are 2 more unnamed Echinopsises.

Such astonishing colors.

Well I’m embarrassed. This plant has been mislabeled all along at the nursery.

We’ll be calling this Cotyledon orbiculata v. oblonga from now on.

On top of tiny tomato plants growing through the cracks there are new giant bamboo shoots shooting up around the pond.

Now look here, a tomato plant growing through the pavers? Ridiculous! Now I have to water the cement.

From: <5626075469@***>

Spoke 2 u today about this plant. Can u help me save it? It keeps getting smaller and less green. What am I doing wrong?

Dear Sir,

You have a Haworthia limifolia. We find these grow better indoor with bright light. They do tend to get darker colored in full sun and lose lots of bottom leaves. Water only every 2 weeks and don’t let them sit in water.

Peter

The fledging flew for the first time from the nest in the Yucca and landed on our steps. It had to pause for energy before trying to fly again. The parents were watching the whole time as I sat and cheered the baby bird on.

Achillea “Paprika”

Do you want to see all the different yarrows currently in bloom all at once, or should I space them out so you can enjoy their colorful blooms for weeks to come?

I have jury duty today. Hopefully that will be it. But blogging may slow down a bit. Of course, I could always do jury-pool-blogging for you.

Sisyrinchium bellum in the iris family. In person it always seems more blue than in the photos.

Today there was a rabbit talking to a cactus.

I wonder what the cactus responded with? Caption Contest!

I’ll start it off with,

More sun, please.

I didn’t say they had to be funny.

The little cluster of mini Echinopsis stems? Not one plant, as it happens.

The cactus blooms continue.

Echinopsis huascha

Hanging out on Lake Leelanau, Michigan for your summer vacation? Try this today.

Saturday, June 18; “Living Wreaths and Spheres.” Participants will create their own sphagnum wreaths or spheres with hardy succulents and sedums. This workshop is set for 10 a.m.

Later the same day, at 2 p.m. a variety of winter hardy succulents will be combined to create animal topiaries.

This seems to be a bit too specific for this blog. How many readers do we have on Lake Leelanau, Michigan? Probably none. Not even one. Makes me sad just to think about it.

Ah well, maybe next year.

Dudleya attenuata

From 2004, when the whippet Benjamin was but a puppy.