Growing out side
Growing out side
I have a few Laphophra Williamsii,can they be moved outside?
Yes but with a few caveats. If you move them into full sun they may scorch, a bit like my arms today! They need acclimatising over a week or two. Although the weather's nice at the moment the risk of frost has not passed - keep an eye on the weather forecast for cold nights below 4 or 5C (just bring them indoors overnight). Ideally, you want them sheltered from rain - we get too much for them here in the UK. Even worse is hail!!
If your back garden is anything like mine, you may have trouble with slugs and, more especially, snails. Bear this in mind when you choose a site for them.
Are these the only cacti you are growing? Forgive me if I'm being presumptuous, but are you growing them with a view to eating them? Be aware that they produce negligible amounts of alkaloids when grown in the UK, even in the open air (according to common consent amongst UK growers).
Lophophora are best grown (whilst the law allows) for their external beauty.
If your back garden is anything like mine, you may have trouble with slugs and, more especially, snails. Bear this in mind when you choose a site for them.
Are these the only cacti you are growing? Forgive me if I'm being presumptuous, but are you growing them with a view to eating them? Be aware that they produce negligible amounts of alkaloids when grown in the UK, even in the open air (according to common consent amongst UK growers).
Lophophora are best grown (whilst the law allows) for their external beauty.
Lophophoras are not cold hardy. Very occasionally they may experience a brief freeze in habitat but such plants are likely to be dessicated and possibly even buried in winter. Expect death if you let them freeze, and damage even at temperatures a little above freezing. I haven't killed one by cold so I can't give you exact temperatures for this country 
Their typical habitat shows two rainy seasons spring and autumn, with a very dry and very hot late summer. Rainfall is higher than many cactus habitats, comparable to England although obviously more arid because of the strong sun and high temperatures. Habitat is shared with Astrophytum asterias and you can often see the two side by side. Lophophoras seem to prefer a little more shade from the scrubby bushes they live under. They can just about handle full sun in this country if properly adapted, but expect them to look a little wrinkled if you keep them in full sun in the hottest weather.
Their typical habitat shows two rainy seasons spring and autumn, with a very dry and very hot late summer. Rainfall is higher than many cactus habitats, comparable to England although obviously more arid because of the strong sun and high temperatures. Habitat is shared with Astrophytum asterias and you can often see the two side by side. Lophophoras seem to prefer a little more shade from the scrubby bushes they live under. They can just about handle full sun in this country if properly adapted, but expect them to look a little wrinkled if you keep them in full sun in the hottest weather.
--ian
Hi Ian- well, *some* Lophophoras are cold hardy. I've safely had several established adult L. williamsii to well below freezing. (min. temp showed 22F).
Perhaps it is a matter of dessication, low atmospheric humidity and the region where the seed was collected. These were from northern Chihuahua, collected at approx. 1200 meters.
peterb
Perhaps it is a matter of dessication, low atmospheric humidity and the region where the seed was collected. These were from northern Chihuahua, collected at approx. 1200 meters.
peterb
Sorry Peter, cross posted there. My message wasn't intended as a reply to yours, but to trimboh's 
However, hardy to 22F in New Mexico translates to "best with no frost" in England, maybe a couple of degrees below freezing for a short period. Even when cacti have been carefully left dry for several months, nearly every night of the winter drops to the dewpoint with inevitable condensation leading to minor skin damage, loss of roots, or rotting, as the whim takes each plant.
However, hardy to 22F in New Mexico translates to "best with no frost" in England, maybe a couple of degrees below freezing for a short period. Even when cacti have been carefully left dry for several months, nearly every night of the winter drops to the dewpoint with inevitable condensation leading to minor skin damage, loss of roots, or rotting, as the whim takes each plant.
--ian
Hello iann,
I know what peterb is talking about. You are both right in my opinion. I have lived in Northern Germany the first 20 years of my life and the weather is most likely not that much different from that in the U.K.. When your outside temperature drops to 30 degrees Fahrenheit for the low it most likely stays that way for many hours. The lows and highs in the winter/early spring are often not too different. On the other hand, here where Peter and I live we do experience low temperatures sometimes going into the teen range and lower in the Santa Fe, New Mexico area, but the air heats up quickly during the day. We do have temperatures that within a day can vary by almost 50 degrees F. In addition, our air and soil are drier, which also helps the cacti survive.
Harald
I know what peterb is talking about. You are both right in my opinion. I have lived in Northern Germany the first 20 years of my life and the weather is most likely not that much different from that in the U.K.. When your outside temperature drops to 30 degrees Fahrenheit for the low it most likely stays that way for many hours. The lows and highs in the winter/early spring are often not too different. On the other hand, here where Peter and I live we do experience low temperatures sometimes going into the teen range and lower in the Santa Fe, New Mexico area, but the air heats up quickly during the day. We do have temperatures that within a day can vary by almost 50 degrees F. In addition, our air and soil are drier, which also helps the cacti survive.
Harald