Dinteranthus vanzylii and Lithops differences

[Aloinopsis]

How does Dinteranthus vanzylii differ from Lithops taxonomically or anatomically?

The Llifle site is currently down, and I was hoping to read there. I think this fall I will sow some Dinteranthus vanzylii seeds. The first time I did this was several years ago and they all melted--I was an idiot and tried to treat them like cactus. This time, I'm going to keep them moist for a much shorter time period.

But in reading about them, I'm left with the question, how, exactly, do they differ from Lithops (they look very similar).

[C And D]

They are closely related, but there are differences in the flowers and seeds
The seeds are much smaller, and hence harder to grow.

The best sowing advice I can give is:
have a thin layer of small sized white or clear sand on top of the seeds
give them high heat and light, and water when dry
make sure that they don't get fungus or algae, use fungicides

They will die quickly if not watered enough
After about six months or so, they will turn white, and then can be watered less

[Aloinopsis]

They are closely related, but there are differences in the flowers and seeds
The seeds are much smaller, and hence harder to grow.

The best sowing advice I can give is:
have a thin layer of small sized white or clear sand on top of the seeds
give them high heat and light, and water when dry
make sure that they don't get fungus or algae, use fungicides

They will die quickly if not watered enough
After about six months or so, they will turn white, and then can be watered less

Thank you! I have seen the seeds in person, so I appreciate how tiny they are!

How are the flowers different? I'm probably not "trained" well enough but I don't immediately see major differences when I look at pictures.

How long should I leave them in the bag? I normally leave Lithops about 4-6 weeks, then take them out. This is opposed to cactus, which I sometimes leave for a year or even longer.

[C And D]

Treat them more like Lithops if you are using the bag method

[keith]

I had trouble with Dinteranthus vanzylii, first they took some time to germinate . I remember when I gave up and let the pot dry out only then did tiny green dots appeared. When I watered the tiny green dots they melted away. Dry out more appeared. Probably should bottom water I sprayed them from the top with a fine mist. They were in a baggie at first but later on no baggie. I have a few pictures on this site under seed growing they are very small at first. I mixed some lithops in but they didn't survive the extra dry conditions I used for Dinteranthus vanzylii. So I won't do that again.

I now have two Dinteranthus vanzylii adult looking plants still small but not fragile anymore. Different than cactus I think they need sunlight right away. I want to try again see if they really are this sensitive to water when tiny. The split between the two 'leafs" is wider than lithops.

[Aloinopsis]

Thank you. How are the flowers different, do you know?

[Aloinopsis]

Different than cactus I think they need sunlight right away.

Because of this detail, I am going to try sprouting them in a bag on my south-facing porch. It gets the most sun I can possibly offer, and in the middle of June it usually lasts all day long.

[keith]

Hi , If mine ever flower I will let you know if I can see any difference ? I am also sprouting Dinteranthus wilmotianus now and they are the same tiny seeds, same tiny green dots and the same didn't want to grow at first soak but after I gave up and planted Lithops in the pot a few tiny green dots showed up.

This time no over head spraying just bottom soak once it looks dry. The Lithops are doing good and so far only one Dinteranthus wilmotianus has vanished. I have 4 survivors in with a dozen or more Lithops werneri .

I think the trick is to start with thousands of seeds and work down from that

[Aloinopsis]

Hahaha! Maybe I should find thousands of seeds.

I've grown several species of Lithops from seed. The oldest are in their 3rd year. So I'm really hopeful I can get these Dinteranthus to do well. Honestly, if I grow 2 individual plants to flowering size I will consider it a success!

[Aloinopsis]

Well, I've planted them and got them outside on my porch in the brightest sunlight possible. Knock on wood!

[keith]

Dinteranthus vanzylii 2 years later the survivors. Hope to get seed from them someday and then try again.

[Aloinopsis]

Thank you. It's been 3 weeks and I still don't have a single seedling. Perhaps I got bad seeds. Womp, womp.