Cactus ID help , please

If you have a cactus plant and need help identifying it, this is the place to post it.
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Nopaltzin
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Cactus ID help , please

Post by Nopaltzin »

Hello everyone ,
I'm a proud new owner of two new cacti after having been an admirer of this plant family for a long time (Lived a long time in the most biodiverse country for cacti so have enormous affection for them ) so its wonderful to find a forum dedicated to these incredible plants.

Nevertheless, I'm a total newby to cacti owning and my attempts to identify the species using the ID guide has been unsuccessful. I'm a student of conservation biology /ecology and having the plants on my desk yet not knowing the species is driving me mad ](*,) as I like to imagine the region they are from and to visualise the ecosystem and landscape.

I think one of them (the rotund one) is a mammillaria but I'm not 100% sure and I have no idea what species the other plant is.

I was wondering if anyone on the forum would be able to take a look at the photos and see if they know what species these are, any help in identification would be much appreciated ! :D
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ElieEstephane
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by ElieEstephane »

Left is polaskia chende and right is mammillaria. A photo in more lihht would help identify the species
There are more cacti in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
One of the few cactus lovers in Lebanon (zone 11a) :mrgreen:
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Nopaltzin
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Nopaltzin »

Thank you ever so much for this ElieEstephane :) , I really appreciate it. Its very cool to know that the polaskia is a Oaxaqueño. I will take a clearer picture of the mamillaria later and upload it. Once again thank you for your help.
Salazar
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Salazar »

The other one doesn't look like a Mammillaria; a Parodia perhaps.
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Nopaltzin
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Nopaltzin »

Salazar wrote: Wed Jan 17, 2018 1:31 pm The other one doesn't look like a Mammillaria; a Parodia perhaps.
Thank you Salazar , very interesting. I have taken another picture shot in better lighting conditions that may help with identification.


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ElieEstephane
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by ElieEstephane »

In more light it's definitely a parodia. Will look into which one...
Does that external pot have drainage holes? And did you change the soil?
There are more cacti in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
One of the few cactus lovers in Lebanon (zone 11a) :mrgreen:
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Nopaltzin
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Nopaltzin »

ElieEstephane wrote: Wed Jan 17, 2018 3:10 pm In more light it's definitely a parodia. Will look into which one...
Does that external pot have drainage holes? And did you change the soil?
I see , so its likely to be a South American species , very interesting :-k , for some reason I was expecting it to be a Mexican or Central American plant. In regards to the external pot , it doesn't have any drainage holes and I haven't changed the soil yet , what would you recommend I do with regards to those things and general care ?
Pompom
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Pompom »

Nopaltzin wrote: Wed Jan 17, 2018 3:16 pm In regards to the external pot , it doesn't have any drainage holes and I haven't changed the soil yet , what would you recommend I do with regards to those things and general care ?
I'm a beginner too, but for the cacti in general, you should use fast draining soil (there are rainforest cacti too, which are slightly different in care but yours are not one of those). You can buy cacti and succulent soil from stores or mix it by yourself. There are couple of topics about mixing the best soils for cacti. I'm lazy, so I just use cactus soil with some pumice mixed in to make the soil more airy. When you repot, make sure the soil is dry. Then try to remove as much soil as you can. You can use a chopstick or other tool to brake the root ball and old soil. You'll brake some roots in the process but it's fine. After you've changed the soil, wait a week or two when you give it water next time. The drainage holes in pot are good to have, so any excess water can go through.
I believe it wouldn't hurt the plants if you waited the growing season to start and then change the soil. Just keep them dry in winter. Give them as much light you can, but don't put them under bright sun. You should slowly introduce the sun to the plants, cause they can burn easily. Let the soil dry out completely between waterings. It's hard to kill cactus in thirst, but you'll easily kill it by watering too much.

Happy growing!
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Nopaltzin
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Nopaltzin »

Pompom wrote: Wed Jan 17, 2018 4:02 pm
Nopaltzin wrote: Wed Jan 17, 2018 3:16 pm In regards to the external pot , it doesn't have any drainage holes and I haven't changed the soil yet , what would you recommend I do with regards to those things and general care ?
I'm a beginner too, but for the cacti in general, you should use fast draining soil (there are rainforest cacti too, which are slightly different in care but yours are not one of those). You can buy cacti and succulent soil from stores or mix it by yourself. There are couple of topics about mixing the best soils for cacti. I'm lazy, so I just use cactus soil with some pumice mixed in to make the soil more airy. When you repot, make sure the soil is dry. Then try to remove as much soil as you can. You can use a chopstick or other tool to brake the root ball and old soil. You'll brake some roots in the process but it's fine. After you've changed the soil, wait a week or two when you give it water next time. The drainage holes in pot are good to have, so any excess water can go through.
I believe it wouldn't hurt the plants if you waited the growing season to start and then change the soil. Just keep them dry in winter. Give them as much light you can, but don't put them under bright sun. You should slowly introduce the sun to the plants, cause they can burn easily. Let the soil dry out completely between waterings. It's hard to kill cactus in thirst, but you'll easily kill it by watering too much.

Happy growing!
Hi Pompom ,

Thank you ever so much for the advice on cacti care , I really appreciate it and will be following the advice you've given, I currently have the cacti on my windowsill which receives some moderate sunlight at this time of the year. Looking forward to collecting a few more from other regions of the America's :D

Happy growing ! :D
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ElieEstephane
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by ElieEstephane »

That was some great advice! I have nothing to add
There are more cacti in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
One of the few cactus lovers in Lebanon (zone 11a) :mrgreen:
Pompom
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Pompom »

As for the species of parodia, I have a guess. As a beginner I need to rely on the pictures I find from the internet, so my guess can go really wrong. But could it be Parodia rutilans? It looks kinda same as the picture of llifles article.
And do I see correctly, does the plant have a flower bud growing close to the centre? If it flowers, it would be much easier to identify the species.
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Nopaltzin
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Nopaltzin »

Pompom wrote: Wed Jan 17, 2018 4:44 pm As for the species of parodia, I have a guess. As a beginner I need to rely on the pictures I find from the internet, so my guess can go really wrong. But could it be Parodia rutilans? It looks kinda same as the picture of llifles article.
And do I see correctly, does the plant have a flower bud growing close to the centre? If it flowers, it would be much easier to identify the species.
Hmmmm interesting guess Pompom , potentially a species from Uruguay , really cool. The parodia does indeed have a small flower bud growing in the centre , I'm really hoping it will bloom in spring/summer.
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WayneByerly
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by WayneByerly »

Cacti in general like a fast draining soil. Some have requirements for dryness that are stricter than others. Growers seem to favor a mixture of peat moss with some small percentage of perlite. And they seem to be fairly successful in growing their cactus. For the most part cacti are, in gereral, fairly forgiving about their soil mixture. Many Cactus will grow in a huge variety of soil mixtures, as long as they are fast-draining. The one thing they are most unforgiving about is excessive water. It has taken me years to discover this, but I think the general rule is that the soil should dry out completely between waterings. That is a general rule, and many cacti have their own specific rules. ... some that are stricter, and some that are more lenient. I have seen a considerable number of soil admixtures be extremely efficacious in growing Cactus, from peat moss with a very slight addition of perlite, right down to 100% pumice.

Again, this is a very generalized statement, but many cacti appear to benefit from a high-percentage-of-mineral-content-soil-mixture. Like about a 75% - 85% mineral content.

The one thing that I have discovered that is almost guaranteed to cause the death of a cactus, eventually, is not allowing it to dry out between waterings. I had the following explained to me just kind of recently, and while I was aware of it, I thought it very appropriate that I be reminded of it. Cactus have ... I'm going to use the word developed (this forum keeps replacing the word e-v-o-l-v-e-d with an error message that says "disallowed - see forum rules") ... to live in xeric conditions. The process by which they grow roots is like thi: Conditions dry out due to lack of rain, and the hair fine roots that a cactus possesses, the ones that draw up water, die off. When it rains again in the soil becomes damp, those hair fine roots that grow to absorb water reestablish themselves. This is the cycle by which Cactus Roots grow. Cactus want to live like this. They have ... I'm going to use the word developed (this forum keeps replacing the word e-v-o-l-v-e-d with an error message that says "disallowed - see forum rules") ... to live like this.

This is a terribly generalized scenario, and one that I hope I have not simplified too greatly, or just gotten completely wrong. Please keep in mind that I am myself a beginner at this. I've only been growing/collecting cacti and succulents for the last 8 years. That makes me a newbie. And I very much hope that my little bit of input here is worth something and that it helps someone to keep their cacti alive and thriving.
Make the moral choice & always do what's right. Be a good example. Be part of the solution & make a contribution to society, or be part of the problem & end your life with nothing but regrets. Live a life you can be proud of! Zone 7a
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Nopaltzin
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by Nopaltzin »

WayneByerly wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2018 2:00 am Cacti in general like a fast draining soil. Some have requirements for dryness that are stricter than others. Growers seem to favor a mixture of peat moss with some small percentage of perlite. And they seem to be fairly successful in growing their cactus. For the most part cacti are, in gereral, fairly forgiving about their soil mixture. Many Cactus will grow in a huge variety of soil mixtures, as long as they are fast-draining. The one thing they are most unforgiving about is excessive water. It has taken me years to discover this, but I think the general rule is that the soil should dry out completely between waterings. That is a general rule, and many cacti have their own specific rules. ... some that are stricter, and some that are more lenient. I have seen a considerable number of soil admixtures be extremely efficacious in growing Cactus, from peat moss with a very slight addition of perlite, right down to 100% pumice.

Again, this is a very generalized statement, but many cacti appear to benefit from a high-percentage-of-mineral-content-soil-mixture. Like about a 75% - 85% mineral content.

The one thing that I have discovered that is almost guaranteed to cause the death of a cactus, eventually, is not allowing it to dry out between waterings. I had the following explained to me just kind of recently, and while I was aware of it, I thought it very appropriate that I be reminded of it. Cactus have ... I'm going to use the word developed (this forum keeps replacing the word e-v-o-l-v-e-d with an error message that says "disallowed - see forum rules") ... to live in xeric conditions. The process by which they grow roots is like thi: Conditions dry out due to lack of rain, and the hair fine roots that a cactus possesses, the ones that draw up water, die off. When it rains again in the soil becomes damp, those hair fine roots that grow to absorb water reestablish themselves. This is the cycle by which Cactus Roots grow. Cactus want to live like this. They have ... I'm going to use the word developed (this forum keeps replacing the word e-v-o-l-v-e-d with an error message that says "disallowed - see forum rules") ... to live like this.

This is a terribly generalized scenario, and one that I hope I have not simplified too greatly, or just gotten completely wrong. Please keep in mind that I am myself a beginner at this. I've only been growing/collecting cacti and succulents for the last 8 years. That makes me a newbie. And I very much hope that my little bit of input here is worth something and that it helps someone to keep their cacti alive and thriving.
Hi Wayne,

Apologies for my late reply and thank you for all the information you have shared with me , I am going to be referring to it a lot and I know its definitely going to be useful in caring for these amazing plants. A question , do you have any ideas on what the Parodia species in the pictures I posted above is ? I am still as of yet kind of unsure on the species , although I think Pompom is definitely onto something with his guess.
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WayneByerly
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Re: Cactus ID help , please

Post by WayneByerly »

Nopaltzin wrote: Mon Jan 22, 2018 1:29 am... thank you for all the information you have shared with me, I am going to be referring to it a lot and I know its definitely going to be useful in caring for these amazing plants.
Please, please, please... Keep in mind that I am myself a novice at this. I have only been doing this for about eight years which makes me a complete newbie. A lot of what I have said has just been parroted from information given to me by other people here on this forum... People that I condider experts.

All that I have said here is the most beginning of information on how to grow your cacti... warnings about waterings. What I'm saying here is it you should not rely completely upon me for information about how to grow your Cactus. And while I am perfectly willing to disseminate what little information I do have that I do believe is reliable, there are many people here on this forum that are much more informed and much greater experts than I am and I'm very inclined to tell you that you should listen to them before you listen to me.

This forum is a veritable treasure trove of information, and I have found the people here to be the most pleasant, the most giving, the most willing to help, of any people I have ever run across. You are really going to be astounded at the information you'll be able to get, and at how great the people here are. I promise.

Nopaltzin wrote: Mon Jan 22, 2018 1:29 am... do you have any ideas on what the Parodia species in the pictures I posted above is?
No. Sorry. I am completeluy unfamiliar with the cactus you are talking about. After all, there are only about two thousand different species of cactus. :shock:
Make the moral choice & always do what's right. Be a good example. Be part of the solution & make a contribution to society, or be part of the problem & end your life with nothing but regrets. Live a life you can be proud of! Zone 7a
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