How to remove the spines from nopales is an age old problem. So here’s one man’s hi-tech solution.

Henry Ramos demonstrates how his invention cleans the needles off a cactus, even along the edges. (STEVE R. FUJIMOTO)

Henry Ramos sells his cactus cleaner for $25.

Ramos says he stands by his product. After cleaning the plant, Ramos glides it against his face to prove it’s free of thorns.

Before I started this here cactusblog on the Ted Stevens Memorial Intertubes I never would have guessed how many cactus related products there are in the world. Now I know, and you too.

This article doesn’t have that much to say about succulents, and nothing about cactus! but I liked the headline, so what the heck. Nice picture too.

People who work in glasshouses… Escape the winter and visit Cambridge’s Botanic Gardens founded by Darwin’s mentor

The Drama of Diversity is divided into two landscaped beds separated by a path. On one side are succulents and other plants from South Africa, while opposite are specimens from Western Australia – and a bush with blackened branches to show how plants in this region are regenerated by fire.

Try this, and then let us know how it goes.

Digging It Series continues
Milton Garden Club is presenting the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs organized series of horticulture series of horticulture courses….

Each course is $20. There are no refunds or credits. Lunch will be served for a small fee. The times for each course is 10 to 12 noon, study and demonstration, with lunch from 12 to 1 p.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. a hands-on workshop. All courses will be held at the Milton Garden Center, 5256 Alabama St., Milton.

Course X – May 11 (Cacti & Succulents)….

At the Memphis Botanic Garden’s Annual Sale, of course. It must be that time of year again.

(T)he annual “Green Your Home” Winter Plant Sale… (is) scheduled for Feb. 6-8 this year….

Kalanchoes are succulent plants with brightly colored flowers. For buds to open or plants to rebloom, bright light is necessary.

Aloe, another succulent, has spiky leaves filled with a gel that heals burns and scrapes.

Cacti of many types are easy to grow indoors, if you can give them plenty of light….

A greenhouse at the botanic garden is filled with about dozen different rhizomatous begonias, plants prized for the shape, texture and color of their leaves.

It seems they have a large selection of cacti and succulents. That’s good news for you, if you live near there, that is. Plus, they have a nice feature that I haven’t seen at any of our local botanic garden sales:

Bring your own container to the sale, and the staff will fill it with artfully arranged plants.

The English will eat anything, even a cactus smoothie.

DETOX CACTUS SMOOTHIE

Fresh for the detox season we’ve been off to Mexico to harvest La Nopelea cactus. This amazing plant is packed full of goodness to get your year off on the right foot.

Our Crussh smoothie boffins have designed a drink that is as tasty as it is healthy for you with a sweet and zesty blend of pineapple, lime, banana, 98% fat free probiotic yoghurt and of course, organic la nopelea cactus.

And yet the picture is not a cactus, but an aloe. Well.

According to Cult Beauty Blog they cost £3.00 each. That’s one heck of a deal.

In San Francisco, but still, it seems like a good thing.

Gardening With Succulents

Ernesto Sandoval talks about aloes, agaves, cacti and other practical succulents. Some of the plants presented in the workshop will be available for sale. Preregistration required. 9 a.m. Sat. $55-$65. San Francisco Botanical Garden, Ninth Ave. and Lincoln Way, Golden Gate Park, S.F. (415) 661-1316, Ext. 400. www.sfbotanicalgarden.org.

Let me know if you go, and I’l make sure you get credit on your cactus doctorate you’ve been working on.

Well, actually they’re betting on the Superbowl.

Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs has thrown down a wager to Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl.

If the Arizona Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII on Feb. 1, a cactus must be planted outside Heinz Field to remind Pittsburgh fans of the desert underdog’s victory.

Interesting that the mayor of Glendale is offering the wager. I’ve been to Glendale, and it’s not that big. Phoenix may resent the Card’s name change, but still, Glendale? Of course, I’ve also been to Wasilla, AK and Glendale is certainly bigger than Wasilla. But then Larry Fitzgerald’s shoe size is bigger than Wasilla.

Cactus flavored ice-cream discovered by Canadian.

9. Las Iguanas, Boca de Arenal, Costa Rica: “Unique flavours including cactus and tamarind.”

Well that’s kind of weird, because we didn’t find any cactus flavored ice cream in Arenal, but that’s what teh google is for.

It may be cold, but now is the time to visit the Bartlett Arboretum.

Kids Calendar Jan. 22-29

BARTLETT ARBORETUM GARDENS
Spiny Succulents and the Deserts They Live In
Investigation of deserts around the world and sand art projects for children ages 4-10. Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-noon. $20, $14 for members. 151 Brookdale Road, Stamford. 322-6971 or www.bartlettarboretum.org.

I’m cold just thinking about it.

I wonder if they let the kids touch the cacti, you know, hands-on and all.

Vintage Sahuara Cactus Umbrella Stand

Vintage Cactus Umbrella Stand, measures approx. 12 1/4 x 10 inches.

Now that is something to see there. A dead saguaro stump that’s been converted to umbrella-storage-usage. But not just any dead saguaro stump conversion, but a vintage dead saguaro stump conversion. Nice. And it’s for sale, if you like. Now I don’t personally have any use for this fine vintage product, but you might, so I thought I would share it with you.

It makes the news when a cactus in Singapore blooms, and well it should!

Madam Sharon Goh, director of Candy Floriculture, a nursery in Thomson Road, says: ‘Younger-generation customers are looking for something unique…’

To cater to this new demand, nurseries all over Singapore are also importing a plethora of unusual plants, such as pitcher plants and cacti, for Chinese New Year.

Both are not particularly auspicious, since the pitcher plant is carnivorous and some cacti have sharp spikes. But nurseries have put a new spin on them.

Mr Lee Meng Kwan, assistant general manager of World Farm, a nursery in Bah Soon Pah Road, says: ‘The pitchers hold water and water to the Chinese represents wealth.’

The cactus plants are topped with a flower that is the colour of Chinese New Year – red.

OK, so let me get this straight. The cactus are not blooming, but to make them more palatable to a chinese audience they’re gluing red paper blooms on top. It’s an outrage! I won’t stand for this sitting down!

We do actually get some people in the nursery telling us that cactus are not good feng shui, and I say to them, “pah.”

But then they buy the large Sansevieria cylindrica for good luck and all is forgiven.

Just in time for the inauguration. From the Chicago Sun-Times, we find out that there are a few hardy colorful succulents that can help to brighten up even a midwestern winter.

Let’s face it, the… dominant tones of Midwestern winters (are) the grays and browns of barks and branches, of decomposing leaves, and of organic mulch on frozen soil….

(One) option is a group of succulents known as hens-and-chicks (Sempervivum spp.). Hardy to Zone 3, when growing in full sun and very well-drained soil, plants form slowly-spreading colonies of evergreen plants.

Homeowners today can select from a wide variety of… ground covers that will add vital shades… shapes and textures to their winter landscapes.

This is true.

The Houston Chronicle tells us that 2009 will feature more cactus at all the finest restaurants.

Food trends 2009: A simply happy new year
As recession takes hold, look for comfort foods, less complicated cooking and a few sprightly innovations

…The new year also will see the rise of Asian noodles, Peruvian dishes and drinks, ginger, cactus, certified fish, affordable wines, garam masala flavors, smoked flavors, maple syrup, organ meats and the growing use of eggs.

JULIO CORTEZ: CHRONICLE
Say yes to nopal; look for cactus in food and drink.

I’ll believe it when I see it. But I am intrigued by this ginge, cactus dish idea.

ABC News fills us in on the latest consumer products you can buy to help keep the eonomy out of depression. However, what with the severe recession and all, this may be asking too much of you.

So first, let us tell you what you have won*

Who says you need a green thumb to make your garden grow? The Easy Bloom Plant Sensor takes the guesswork out of planning and maintaining a perfect garden.

The device, which looks like a tall, thin plastic flower, can also help diagnose why a plant is not doing well or how much water is needed in a certain area. So if… your Christmas cactus isn’t blooming in that kitchen window, you’ll soon find out why.

You plant the sensor anywhere in your yard where you would like to grow a plant, and let it soak up the environmental data — soil moisture, sunlight, drainage — over a 24-hour period. Then pull it apart and plug the USB end into your computer’s USB port (I’d probably clean it off first) where the sensor data is uploaded to the EasyBloom Web site.

This seems like a lot of effort to find out that your christmas cactus needed more darkness 3 months ago to be able to bloom now. But remember, this is for the good of the economy.

*won the opportunity to spend money on, that is.

The Christian Science Monitor’s garden writer has a run in with an Agave, and lives to tell the tale.

Instinctively I knew that the repotting procedure would be a struggle. Impenetrable garden gloves were essential. I bought a pair that covered my hands and part of my forearms.

I used a hammer to smash the container that this masculine succulent had long ago outgrown. I tore strips of plastic away from Mr. Handsome’s roots.

“I know it’s torture now,” I apologized as I yanked his thorny spear-shaped leaves out of the jail that had formed in his snug pot, “but you’ll feel freer and much more alive soon.”

In reply, he stung the part of my arm that was unprotected.

We’ve all been there. Agaves are vicious and mean and poisonous too. Never reach down to pick up a nice gentle soft fuzzy friendly kalanchoe when it’s sitting next to an agave. Yow, those pointy tips can dig deep.

The Salina Journal wants you to know that you can grow houseplants in Kansas even though Christmas is over.

Indoor plants can be enjoyed past the holiday season…

The Christmas cactus… has no thorns and blooms during Christmas time with occasional water and fertilizer….

Miller said that it is important for people to read the instructions for their plants.

This is important information that this local paper is sharing with their readers, and now you too know the truth about indoor plants that the big nurseries don’t want you to know.

We’re still following the saga of the cactus art car in Austin. Is it art? Nuisance? Only a Judge has the cojones to decide.

More than a year after a judge deemed it junk, an old smashed-up Oldsmobile with cactus growing out of it is still in park outside a local novelty store….

Since November 2007… it was filled with dirt and cactus planted inside. Then, local artists decorated it with scenes reminiscent of San Marcos. But it wasn’t long before a city code officer saw the car and deemed it a public nuisance…

The car was again ruled a nuisance by U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks in March….

The case is now pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans.

It doesn’t look good for the cactus art car. The judges are all philistines, with no taste or respect for the traditions of art. Why, this is practically the test case for the country as to the very definition and future of the world of art in our world, today, and tomorrow, and yesterday too. I hope the judges change their mind and recognize the good thing that is art.

Lyn in Farragut, Tennessee got his Christmas Cactus to bloom on Christmas. And I know this because he writes for the Farragut Press and wrote an entire article about this.

Two years ago, I started letting my Christmas cactus spend its summers outside in a sunny location in front of the garage, giving it sort of a vacation.

Since then, it has grown more lush and, at least this year, bloomed in time for the holidays.

Good deal. Alas, no pictures.

Not much going on in the news. People are focused on other things this time of year. Maybe a christmas cactus or two, but that’s about it. Well, let’s look a little deeper and see if we can’t find something in news.

Well, now this is interesting. Giant Jeans Parlor has turned a breadpan into a succulent trough. I’ll bet they drilled holes in the bottom, and then you’ll never be able to use it for bread again. They do have instructions along with this nice picture I’m borrowing:

Now it looks like they have an Aloe, a Anacampseros, and a Fenestraria (aka Baby Toes) in there. I’d worry about the baby toes getting too much water, but with a little careful care, it should do well.

Apartment Therapy asks the question What are the “Best Plants to Give as Gifts?” and I think you know the answer.

The Cactus Garden in Sector 5, which is Asia’s biggest garden devoted to rare and endangered species of Indian succulents, was named after its founder Dr J S Sarkaria today.

The decision, which came a long time in coming, has been lauded by the Sarkaria family as they had been demanding the move since a long time. A Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) official said the garden has been renamed as Dr JS Sarkaria National Cactus and Succulent Botanical HUDA Garden and Research Centre.

At the Crucible’s Fire Arts Festival in Oakland.

Bizarro Saguaro by Robert “rigger” Kilpatrick via California Cowgirl’s flickr stream.

I told you it was going to get cold, and advised you to protect your succulents, and I hope you listened to me. But there’s still time, since it’s going to be near freezing again tonight.

This time, I’ll let KGO-TV tell you what to do.

The next wave of bone-chilling weather will hit especially hard in the North and East Bay. The cold will be good for grapes; it will send the vines into dormancy, but it will not be as good for nurseries or plants in many people’s backyards….

“A jade plant, (even) if it’s been on Grandma’s front porch for 10 years, it can be three feet tall, in the morning, if it’s a hard freeze, it will just be deflated like a balloon,” Eckles said.

Eckles suggests using a protective spray or covering plants with a light-weight cloth propped up on stakes so it does not directly touch the plant.

Now they go on to suggest watering before the freeze, right after discussing succulents, which is all wrong. They didn’t say to water succulents before the freeze but they sure suggested it. Well don’t do it! Dry is better in the cold for ALL succulents.

Also, we use a frost blanket that is spun fabric and can be draped right onto the plant without tenting it first.

I’m working on a Cactus Year in Review post for the end of the year, which I understand is coming up soon, and I wanted your help in assembling the top cactus and succulent stories of the past year. Why am I asking for your help? Because I’m lazy.

Please put your suggestions in the comments, with appropriate links and extensive notes and documentation too, anything to help me not have to write too much.

PRIZE: And if I pick a winner for story of the year, the person who suggested it will get a free Cactus T-Shirt. Actually, that’s for real – I will give one away if I actually get some response to this stupid fantastic idea.

To get this thing started, there’s something about cactus wrens that was big in the news this year, I seem to recall. Oh yeah, and there was that cactus art car in Austin – that got a lot of attention in the local news in Austin. So get started, and win yourself a T-Shirt.

As the Bush era comes to a close, and new rules are promulgated at the last minute, the Denver Post tracks the consequences for endangered cactus for us.

LATE-TERM RULE CHANGES
Bush’s push to be felt across West

“There are at least a couple of examples right here in Colorado where species were overlooked in agency evaluations that Fish and Wildlife raise,” Erin Robertson, senior biologist for the Center for Native Ecosystems.

For example, in an oil-and- gas lease on South Shale Ridge, outside De Beque, the BLM failed to note the presence of the threatened Colorado hookless cactus.

Now in this case, the leases have been changed to keep protections for the cactus in place, so everything is still OK in the cactus world as the Bushes leave.

Looking back, Grant Cleveland admits that starting a business with just one product, a kit for growing cactus plants, didn’t seem like the most logical thing to do….

Six years ago, Cleveland launched DuneCraft Inc. with just the cactus kit, called the Odd Pod, and less than $100,000 he raised from suppliers and angel investors….

Today, DuneCraft… makes fun products, including Carnivorous Creations, a kit for growing meat-eating plants.

That’s just fantastic. I wonder what these so-called toys are? Shall I search the interwebs to find them for you in this happy holiday season?

Yes I shall. Come with me to see what I’ve found after the break… Read More…

King Kaufman at Salon can’t get his year-end peyote fix because of the economy and his year-end sports roundup is threatened because of it. I thought I would put it to our cactus readers to come up with some legal peyote for the King.

My usual method is to spend a week in the desert consuming peyote and writing down everything that happens in my visions. Beats taking notes all year and you’d be surprised how often my visions have happened to be similar to what actually happened in sports over the previous 12 months. Readers haven’t noticed anything amiss.

Alas, the recession has hit the peyote industry hard and my dealer was laid off last month.

So I’m turning to you.

It must get cold in Minnesota in winter. They recommend that gardeners should start thinking about houseplants. You think? From the Chisago County Press:

Now that we’ve had a few really hard frosts and our outdoor gardens begin their long winter rest, you may be inclined to turn your attention to a little indoor gardening.

That’s quite the suggestion for a newspaper in winter. Anything more specific?

Now there are endless choices of… succulents…. to brighten up our living spaces… (d)ue to the sun’s angle, winter light is less intense…. Garden Centers that are open year round will usually have a nice selection of… Christmas Cactus….

Well done. Now, can you share with us any favorites you may have? Any specific species?

My personal favorites are the many interesting succulents that can be grouped together.

Close enough.

I like having conversations with newspaper articles. It’s fun. I wonder if I could turn entire books into interview style blog posts?