Before we get to it, I wanted to remind everyone of what it means when I talk about lower P vs. higher P. Going by NPK ratio with N = 1 as the constant, P should be in the 0.25-0.35 range. The Dyna-Gro All-Pro 7-7-7 I used before 2023 comes in at 0.44 -- too high. The P in my new fert regimen is 0.29 -- perfect. After 9 years with almost no growth and no flowering at all, the Eriosyce napina glabrescens I received from CoronaCactus in July 2013 finally did this:
I saw what appeared to be a bud in mid-June, and sure enough it was. The dates on that photo go from 7/3 to 7/24. From bud on 7/26 to bloom a day later:
The view from above:
Give it another day:
The flower colors aren't quite was I expecting, but I have no complaints -- they're lovely! New growth on the plant is pretty darn good too.
A year before I got the glabrescens, CoronaCactus set me up with another Eriosyce. That'll be E. odieri. The plant started exhibiting monstrose behavior on the growth point in summer 2020, and we'll see more of it here, with buds around the normal growth on 5/2/21:
No flowers at all last year (no surprise either). The odieri did produce a bud this year, being "guarded" by a highly recumbent Mammillaria grahamii (7/15):
From bud to bloom on 7/18 and 19:
Give it another day:
Why did the odieri go monstrose? Was the plant finally complaining about higher P in the 7-7-7, or could it be something else? We may never know. I'm generally not a fan of monstrose cacti, but I'll make an exception -- I have a fondness for "oddballs", and this oddball is a keeper regardless of what happened.
The Mamm grahamii is in the core group of cacti I purchased at the California Cactus Center when I started my current collection in 2011. A reliable bloomer since 2012, although not much in the way of flowers last year. Now they're back thanks to lower P:
Compared to previous years, they seem to be bigger -- here's an example:
Now we'll zoom back and view the odieri's flower at its widest on 7/23:
Gymnocalycium baldianum (purchased at Sunset Nursery in L.A., July 2013):
Gymnos flowers aren't known for being colorful, but baldianum is a stunning exception. The plant is flowering more often as well, once again thanks to lower P.
6 years after I got the baldianum, I came back to Sunset Nursery for a few more cacti as I expanded the collection a little bit. Here's one -- Wigginsia vorwerkiana:
We'll end the July flower report with these 7/26 photos of a Parodia subterranea I received from Kyle's Plants in July 2016:
Of all the flower colors I see on my cacti, these may be the most unusually beautiful.