Growth rate of variegated seedlings

[Aloinopsis]

I just want to share this picture of Astrophytum myriostigma because it shows how much more slowly variegated plants can grow. All of these were planted in April but the variegated one is a third (or less) the size of its siblings.

[Dodi Russell]

Are you going to graft that one

[Aloinopsis]

Nope. These seeds were gifts and I hadn't planned to graft any, so I'm going to let them all grow on their own roots at least for a year. Astrophytum myriostigma does well on its own roots for me, it's just slow and made slower by being variegated.

[Hanazono]

I think the growth rate of variegated Astrophytum depends upon the degree and type of variegation.
The photo is my variegated asterias.

Type A: spread variegation evenly
Type B: concentrated variegation

Cacti have Less variegated area show high growth rate.
The growth rate of Type A is higher than Type B.

The pattern of variegation will change in future but your myriostigma seedling is Type B.
https://cactiguide.com/forum/download/f ... w&id=69454
https://cactiguide.com/forum/download/f ... w&id=69455

[Aloinopsis]

Thank you. I prefer the looks of Type A, but I won't reject Type B. If I had to choose I would have plants with only around 20% yellow tissue. I believe they look bad with too much variegation.

Your photographs are always so beautiful.

[Shane]

Interesting. Thanks for sharing

I've sometimes wondered if you took grafted an areole from the chlorophyll lacking part of a type B if it would grow into an entirely chlorophyll lacking plant. Not that anyone would want to cut up their variegated cacti for that experiment...