My flowering Cacti 2021

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Mrs.Green
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by Mrs.Green »

Beautiful photos and cacti but those redblooming Echinopsis...me want! =P~
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hegar
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Location: El Paso, Texas

Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
yesterday, shortly before 9 a.m. the Ferocactus hamatacanthus did open its flowers again and I was able to snap a few photos of the half-open blossoms. So, here they are:
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Also, my Mammillaria grahamii had its second attempt at flowering. I am not sure, if it will have a nice open flower this year while I am home to photograph it. :(
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Harald
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hegar
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
today a small and inconspicuous cactus produced a flower. The plant's stems are only slightly thicker than a ball point pen and the blossoms are not very large either. Perhaps it has flowered since then, but I do not have any images of this plant in bloom since 2017. The flower is born terminally on the stem. Once its end starts to swell, it will only take a couple of days and the flower will be present. This plant does tend to drop its stems, but there is new growth from the tuberous root. The name of the cactus is Pterocactus tuberosus.

Harald
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hegar
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
two more plants came into bloom this afternoon. While I heard cactus growers say, that Astrophytum asterias is the most difficult one of the genus to successfully cultivate, I can state from my own long-year experience, that at least the hybrid version is easy to grow. Perhaps that is because of what one of my university horticulture professors used to call "hybrid vigor". :)
Well, at least I have had two of these plants for many years in the ground and they are doing fine. They do produce flowers several times during the growing season. I have only been able to grow this hybrid and two plants of the capricorne species.

Harald
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hegar
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
I went outside this afternoon and found both of my Astrophytum capricorne in bloom. The A. capricorne var. senile had three blossoms, while the larger plant sported two. Thus far the "senile" variety produced smaller flowers and the plant does have a more scraggly look, with the spines being longer and not held as closely to the stem as is the case with the other plant. I guess, that both differences are only based on genetic variation and no valid distinguishing marks.

Harald
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hegar
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
during the last three days two genera of cacti did flower. First off, both of my larger Thelocactus bicolor were in bloom. One is of the more common variety schottii and the other a light-thorned version of the variety bolaensis or flavidispinus. Here are three images of these plants.
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The other cactus in bloom is another of our "local beauties", a Coryphantha macromeris. This is a very common cactus found growing in the vicinity of El Paso, TX and other parts of the Chihuahuan Desert.
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We did have a substantial amount of rain fall last Sunday and perhaps more of my cacti will respond by producing flowers. Unfortunately, my huge Echinopsis bruchii seems to have dropped all the flower buds. Perhaps it will form a few new ones and I will get to see it bloom for the very first time. Going by the size of over 6 inches in diameter, it does seem to be high time for some flowers to appear.

Harald
keith
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by keith »

I like that :D . I have bought a Thelocactus bicolor a year ago at Arizona cactus sales it has really nice flowers . My Echinocactus horizonthalonius hardly flowered this year ? Oh well, waiting now for Ariocarpus flowers in a few months. And Lithops .

Finally getting kinda hot here about 90F and 65F at night .
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hegar
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
@ Keith: Echinocactus horizonthalonius does flower repeatedly, if the weather conditions are right, i.e. after rains. Perhaps you will get some precipitation really soon. We are here in our "monsoon season" and I have not had to water my cacti for several weeks now. Most of them do look very large and healthy. I am only a bit worried about my Ariocarpus plants, but thus far they too look better than before the frequent rains started.

I am going to post another set of digital images of some of my plants in bloom. So, here they are:
First up is the native cactus (to the El Paso, Texas and New Mexico nearbly) Escobaria tuberculosa. This plant is a tough cactus. I believe, I have not ever killed one of them. :) As you can see, the plant's body is turgid and there are more flower buds on the way.
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Another repeat bloomer is the Astrophytum asterias hybrid. I have had two of these plants for at least 10 years and they are both thriving.
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The third plant in flower is yet another one that has grown rather well in my front yard. This cactus was purchased by me as a seedling in a
2 1/2 inch pot and its body is now almost 7 inches (17 cm) in diameter.
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The last cactus shown was also purchased as a small plant in a 2 1/2 inch pot several years ago. It is still not a lot larger, but this year it is flowering for the very first time. :)
The name of the plant is Neolloydia conoidea. In my opinion, this is also a cactus worth having. I hope, that it will survive in the ground for a good number of years.
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So, that is most likely all for a while. In addition to perhaps a few more repeat bloomers, I do not expect anything to flower that has not yet already bloomed. It seems like that huge Echinopsis bruchii will also postpone blooming for yet another year. It is over 9 inches in diameter and did produce a few flower buds, including this year. However, those were aborted and it may be too late in the season for it to flower this year.
Just as Keith already mentioned, the Ariocarpus spp. will be the last to bloom. I did have a large Echinocactus latispinus, which had flower buds on it in November and did bloom in December or January. It did require protection from the cold nights in the desert and only bloomed once every few years. Its biological clock was a bit misaligned for our climate. :(


Harald
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hegar
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
after a long pause I can show a few more digital images of flowering cacti. The rains we did have not too long ago, breathed new life into the plants, which in some cases responded by flowering again. Others would have bloomed anyway.
During the last 10 days Astrophytum asterias, Echinocereus reichenbachii, Echinopsis eyriesii, Ferocactus hamatacanthus, Mammillaria grahamii, and Thelocactus bicolor did bloom. I already posted images of these plants and will not show them once more.
One of the larger-bodied plants, of which I have more than a half dozen specimens, did flower again also. It sometimes blooms only one time, other times it flowers repeatedly, usually after a rainfall. It is the Chihuahua Desert native Echinocactus horizonthalonius, a common cactus found where I live.
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Another plant, which is encountered here in the wild is Escobaria tuberculosa. It too is a repeat bloomer.
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A cactus, which I have not shown thus far this year is my Obregonia denegrii. I purchased the plant a year ago from Miles-2-Go and it did survive the cold spell on Valentines Day, albeit in a pot. I did have one of these plants in the past, but it succumbed to cold and moist growing conditions, because it was planted in the ground in regular soil.
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Now I shall present a few Turbinicarpus species, which did flower this year. The first one is Turbinicarpus gielsdorfianus. Last year, I did post images of this plant also, but was not sure about the species name.
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The next Turbinicarpus is Turbinicarpus schmiedickeanus ssp. klinkerianus. This one did have either a second or third flowering spurt this year.
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The last one for now is the Turbinicarpus swobodae. I was not sure about the species name and e-mailed Mr. Miles Anderson. He gratiously identified the plant for me and told me, that it is the only species within that genus, which is self-fertile.
The plant produces the smallest of all the Turbinicarpus flowers that I have yet to see. It is easily overlooked. I needed to use the super macro setting on my camera, almost touching the flower, in order to obtain a halfway decent image.

Harald
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jerrytheplater
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by jerrytheplater »

Nice Harold. I appreciate you posting your flowering plants.
Jerry Smith
Bloomingdale, NJ
45 inches (114 cm) rain equivalent per year, approx. evenly spread per month
2012 USDA Hardiness Zone 6b: -5F to OF (-20C to -18C) min.
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hegar
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Location: El Paso, Texas

Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
now wth the month of September being here, the last group of my cacti is beginning to bloom. While I still do have a few flowers being produced by my Turbinicarpus plants - during the last three days Turbinicarpus gielsdorfianus and T. schmiedickeanus ssp. klinkerianus flowered -, I was pleased to see a large flower bud on one of my Ariocarpus fissuratus plants. That was on September 14th in the evening. So, the following day I went home two hours earlier, hoping to get a nice photo. Unfortunately, although it was slightly before 4:30 p.m., the flower had almost fully closed. I am attaching the images showing the flower bud on September 14th and the closed blossom on September 15th.
Well, not all is lost. I do after all have around a half dozen A. fissuratus plants of flowering size and will also have a good number of days off work in the very near future. So I should be able to photograph a blossom or two in prime condition
Also, several other species of Ariocarpus might be flowering this fall. Some of them have not bloomed since I purchased the plants more than six years ago. If one of these should produce a flower while I am supposed to be working, I shall quickly apply for a day of annual leave, so I will not miss the event! :)

Here are the first two images of the first Ariocarpus fissuratus. It may have opened its flower also today, but I had once again work until 6 p.m. and no photo was taken.


Harald
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hegar
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Re: My flowering Cacti 2021

Post by hegar »

Hello Cactus Friends,
today I was finally able to take some photos of one of my Ariocarpus fissuratus plants with a wide-open flower. Now two of the four plants in that pot have bloomed. The others will most likely follow suit. If one of the plants should produce a blossom of a different color hue or several flowers, I am going to post another image or two. I am also still waiting for the other Ariocarpus species to bloom. Some of them seem to have promising flower buds, but I have yet to see any of them in flower. So, hopefully, this month and perhaps the next will bring me the gift of a blossom or two by a first time bloomer.

Harald
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