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How does your cactus garden grow? (Cactus pic thread)

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I had a surprise today, assuming these are what I think they are. I have something that likes to tear open my lophophora seed pods when they are outside, which I haven't observed yet but kind of assumed ants. So I often end up collecting seeds with tweezers once I see the pod torn open which translates to seeds going rogue:

1512.jpg1513.jpg

I think I have some lophophora that sprouted from rogue seeds. Not 100% confident as I've yet to actually grown any of the seeds I've collected but seems likely.
 
I had a surprise today, assuming these are what I think they are. I have something that likes to tear open my lophophora seed pods when they are outside, which I haven't observed yet but kind of assumed ants. So I often end up collecting seeds with tweezers once I see the pod torn open which translates to seeds going rogue:

View attachment 110801View attachment 110802

I think I have some lophophora that sprouted from rogue seeds. Not 100% confident as I've yet to actually grown any of the seeds I've collected but seems likely.
Sure looks that way to me. Congratulations!
 
Taking suggestions for increasing the probabilities that some of these make it until they are old enough to move to another container.

I've not treated these specially by using a specific seed soil recipe or the use of a dome for supplemental humidity. I was kind of just leaning towards not modifying anything and hope for the best.

It does give me some motivation that I should start other seeds I've collected with those other supplemental factors added.

I have loved the photos shared on here of loph grafts so was thinking it may be a perfect time to do at least one. How much larger would you wait to initiate a graft?
 
They seem to be doing fine. I'd just let them be.

Do you have Pereskiopsis? If so the one on the left in the first pic is ready. You've got a ways to go before they're tricho graft ready.
 
I have a qaubentia zehreni plant that a friend was convinced would make a "better" grafting stock than pereskiopsis. I think I thoroughly convinced him otherwise though as pereskiopsis quadrupled in height versus it in the same time frame.

I've grown it previously but don't have any currently. I could acquire some. I've had issues with pereskiopsis in the past dropping all of its leaves which made me worry about a long term graft if that happened and the plants ability to photosynthesis. Probably happened during a stressful transition from outdoors to indoors which is usually a quite large temperature swing but can't confidently state I know the reason it happened.

I have plenty of trichocereus though which would be fine grafting stock. That was what I kind of figured I'd use as that is the only species I've grafted to thus far.

The pereskiopsis chat made me think of something I hadn't in quite a long time: lophophora / advanced X-HTTL ( loph invasion) by anne halonium. They were active on Mycotopia when I was circa ~2010 and now that I reviewed the photos again this evening they removed all the leaves on purpose, interesting.
 
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Pereskiopsis drops it's leaves but that's usually not a problem. Most of my drafts don't have a single leaf but they're doing fine.
How old is that graft? That is interesting to see the woody pereskiopsis stock with no leaves and a happy graftee. Seems my worry about pereskiopsis dropping leaves is something I shouldn't fret.

Eileen is a special cacti. I am interested to see how it returns potency wise. It is on my short list to quantify with CIELO. Of all the bridgesii in my garden eileen seems to pup the most. Pictured was what I trimmed late last October going into winter hibernation from two mothers in five gallon pots. Five of the largest columns came from one mother. I didn't weigh them fresh but they have been stressing since then.

eileen.jpg
These are their lengths and weights today when I cut them all up to dehydrate:
1.) 26" - 945g
2.) 27.25" - 952g
3.) 29.5" - 1077g
4.) 33.5" - 1093g
5.) 35.5" - 1342g
6.) 40" - 1563g
7.) 47" - 1508g
8.) 50" - 1866g
 
Pups, pups, pups, pups, pups…

This grafted loph just keeps spewing them out like crazy:
20260802_175245.jpg

A bridgesii has popped one out at the side - interestingly, where there's a scar from a winter rest - as well as three around the cut off top:
bridge pup side
bridge pup topside

This crusty little pup offset has finally popped some fresh growth after two years and a drenching of piss (while growing a root took at least a year on damp compost):
witchbitch pup

Basal and apical pupping on this cut stump too:
lowland headache pups

Ditto for this PC pach, my grafting stock 'factory' which should pair nicely with the 'yote factory:
PC1PC2

Finally, obligatory loph flower pic 😊
lophwer
 
How old is that graft? That is interesting to see the woody pereskiopsis stock with no leaves and a happy graftee. Seems my worry about pereskiopsis dropping leaves is something I shouldn't fret.
This one is about 3 years old. The biggest graft I have is 4 years old. They have grown really fast and are bigger than their 16 year old parent. I bought a 10-11 years old plant (according to the seller) 5 years ago, it has been producing seeds every year since then.
 
Pups, pups, pups, pups, pups…

This grafted loph just keeps spewing them out like crazy:
View attachment 111032
...

Basal and apical pupping on this cut stump too:
View attachment 111038
...


Finally, obligatory loph flower pic 😊
View attachment 111039
What makes the first loph such a dark color? Wasn't sure if that were a common growth characteristic in grafts. That one stump is throwing at least five pups if there aren't any that are hiding from the camera, always feels good when I get any more than two! Also, it's always wild to see how some lophophora are really hairy and others seemingly not. Mine are closer to the less hairy side of the spectrum. I wonder what mine will look like after another ten years as it matures more and more.
 
Received five 6-8" pereskiopsis spathulata cuttings in the mail today. Wanted to have some in the arsenal for grafting. To recover from the mail shock I just put them into a glass of water up to about 1.5" on their stems. The seller had already cut leaves off the stem about 2" from the base.

I had good success water propagating when I grew them last. I dug up a photo from last time I grew them which was 2022-2024:
pereskiopsis.jpg
 
What makes the first loph such a dark color?
Full sun exposure, I think - I keep my other specimens more shaded.
it's always wild to see how some lophophora are really hairy and others seemingly not.
I've seen variability in hair length on the same specimen depending on growing conditions, so I'd say it ties in with the morphological variability seen with trichs for similar reasons. Even this loph pupping behaviour seems to be triggered by the grafting as it certainly wasn't a var. caespitosa when it started out, even though they have a rather different growth habit.
 
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