44 replies to this topic

[DocOct]

Here is a better picture of my tent

Edited by DocOct, 16 January 2023 - 01:49 PM.

[DocOct]

Here are some decipien seedlings.

This is the most commonly grown L.W in the EU. Supposedly it contains more alkaloids then texensis. It is a faster grower then texensis and is more likely to pup when it reaches maturity.

Its not my favorite lophophora but its relatively easy to get your hands on and it is much more vigorous then standard L.W.

If you get the chance to aquire a lophophora this is a great strain for sustainable mescaline production.

Its known as the decipien because its is very deceptive in its attributes, it looks more like a diffusa with more sectioned off tube like areolas as opposed to obvious rib structures, but it is a williamsii.

It produces a taller flower then texensis but it has the same color and style of flower.

The last photo is a tray that dried out before the seeds could germinate, i watered it and they started sprouting last week.

I plan the graft some of these seedlings to pereskiopsis once they have reached a suitable size.

[DocOct]

Here are some texensis seedlings, i germinated these 2 months ago and they are doing pretty good.

I did not soak these for 24 hours before i germinated them which i regret as i originally had 25 seeds and less then 50% sprouted.

I watered them recently and i have an additional seed that has germinated which i am thankfull for.

Im gonna let these get pretty big and then im going to graft them to trichocereus, hopefully they will have enough areolas left behind for them to sprout new heads after i graft the tops. That would double my viable specimen.

[DocOct]

These are my pentagona seedlings.

I havested these seeds off of my own cactus, i only had three seeds and so far only two have germinated. This is to be expected with self fertilization. I have another pentagona ariving soon so ill be able to cross pollinate which should improve my seed production.

I will definitely be grafting these. This is one of my favorite lophophora varieties, very pretty with the five ribs all the way up to maturity. Very unique.

Edited by DocOct, 16 January 2023 - 03:43 PM.

[DocOct]

Im not sure what this is, i know its a lophophora and im certain its active because i havested off the mother plant and had a strong trip when combined with some trichocereus, pretty much boosted my dose past a sub psychedelic level.

This is a graft that was pulled off the main plant once it pupped, the harvested mother plant produced a significant amount of pups for me(9) so that was pretty cool.

Still i wont know for sure if this is a williamsii until it flowers, so far the graft is trying to produce two pups which isnt really normal for how small it is.

Before harvest the mother plant had no pups and was at maturity.

I got this plant from a friend in europe who had no idea what species or variety it was. I didnt let if flower before i harvested it so i dont really know. It looked like a texensis though. Dark blue with obvious rib formation.

I have a couple lophs that i dont really know what they are, the flowers are kind of off too. Either way they all look nice to me.

[DocOct]

I friend from mexico sent me a couple pups from a huizache loph so i grafted both to a peruvianus. Sadly one died and dried out so im left with one pup. It hasnt shown signs if growth but has been grafted since the end of summer. Hopefully it shows signs of growth soon, its very firm so im hopeful. These lophs are beautiful when full grown. I hope to get plenty of seeds from this plant.

[DocOct]

I plan to repot alot of my trichocereus this summer which will leave me needing two tents this next winter. My trichocereus skills are kind of shit. Im really just starting to get a hang of them and am having much better success with them. I have over 10 years of experience with lophs but only 4 with trichos, any advice would be appreciated.

I recently started amending the top soil once a year in each pot with dr earths flower girl and have had alot of success, they also seem to love earthworm castings which should have been a no brainer.

[DocOct]

The loph on the left is the mystery graft that i harvested, and the second picture is the harvested loph with the trichocereus that i harvested for a trip. I had taken a similar dose before with light effects sub psychedelic.

All the trichocereus was homegrown in favorable conditions and the cuttings werent very thick, i dont think they had alot of mescaline in them. I really feel like the peyote head pushed them to the next level.

[DocOct]

Ok im currently planting some lophophora williamsii seeds. Im not sure what variety they are they are from a friend in europe. I get them fairly cheap and they produce good healthy seedlings everytime. Here is a picture of the mother plant.



These seeds have soaked for 24 hours.



Recently ive had little supplies for germinating cacti but have had a good amount of support financially so i was able to procure supplies. I typically use 33% coco coir, 33% earthworm castings, 33% coarse river sand in a mini loaf tin with a plastic covering. Currently i am using 33% cactus mix with extra perlite, 33% earthworm castings, 33% silica sand in a mini loaf tin. The extra 1% is up to the viewers imagination.



I mix up the three substrates in a separate nonmetallic vesel and hydrate, then i microwave for 3 minutes. This seems to be enough to sanitize the soil. Afterwards i return the mixed substraight to the mini loaf tin and let it cool down till its cool to the touch.



Once the trays are cool i will plant the seeds. I try to stick to 20-25 seeds per tray. I never sow large amounts together unless i have unlimited seed supply,... which i never do. If you sow all your seeds in one tray and the tray goes to mold you might as well just start eating time and money. Ive had perfectly sterile trays go to mold bassed purely in bad luck. It only takes one spore from the offending mold to destroy a tray, and trust me the fungus doesnt waste time running across a whole tray consuming seedlings.

After i sow the seeds i put a millimeter or two of sand to just help retain moisture and keeps the seeds humid. I usually use course sand but right now im useing fireplace silica sand, im sure it will work just as fine as coarse sand. The first time i germinated lophophora i just used muddy soil and had great success so they arent to picky. I find the layer of sand helps alot though and really looks good too.



I then spray them, cover them, and label the covers. I dont put dates on the cover but this time i will so we can keep up with the seedlings.



I also have 100 decipien seeds that i will sow tomorrow but i wont be posting those, ill also date those so we can keep up with them.

I know alot of people use high mineral substrates,... but i dont. These guys are gonna be in here for at least a year and i want them to have everything they need. Ive never had an issue with over fertilization especially with worm castings. Ive only ever had an issue with the soil going dead and the plants turning light green and then dying. This is the way ive allways planted cactus seedlings and its worked out very well for me. Everyone does it different though, weve all come to our own conclusions about what these plants want and need.

Either way i hope this inspires some people to do some cacti germination this winter, feel free to post your lophophora/trichocereus projects here id love to see what everyone is up too.

Edited by DocOct, 16 January 2023 - 06:35 PM.

[Skywatcher]

Very nice Doc. I also prefer to use a better soil mix for germination, as I will usually be keeping them in that for the first few years. Most of my Lophs are hard grown anyway.

I have been keeping Trichs for over 40 years now. I have found them undemanding with the soil. I am in So. Cal, so I don't have to worry about freezing and they live outside all year. My one problem with big specimens is when it rains. They can handle most winter weather but do not like sitting in a puddle.

 

In mid summer it gets very hot and the sun is searing. I have found that placing my trichs with some other plants and semi under a lattice patio cover, keeps them looking their best coloration and prevents some of the sunburn issues.

I have given away seeds from my lophs as they now produce most of the year, and I like the idea of spreading their offspring.....

They all have individual "vibes" to them...............

[DocOct]

Yeah i live in the midewest with freezing winters so all my trichs have to stay in a pot so i can transport them inside for the winter.

The good news is im becoming very familiar with indoor lighting and different light cycles that the cacti respond to.

Ive had alot of success with germination which is something i used to struggle with even in summer.

Either way thanks for checking out my thread.

I plan to update regularly.

[DocOct]

Looks like i got some roots forming, took these guys 4 months to root but they eventually did. These are my trichocereus peruvianus that i grew from seed back in 2016. Second attempt at growing cacti from seed so im pretty happy to see that they are doing good.

For the sake of not needing another thread for trichs ill just use this thread for all of my psychoactive cacti.

At one point i had seven of these guys in one pot and it pretty much stunted all of them but the fastest growing one which took over the entire pot, i had alot of learning to do but im glad to see a fully expressive thick peruvianus seven years later.

Edited by DocOct, 17 January 2023 - 09:22 PM.

[Skywatcher]

Now that's a good looking Trich. I see the best blue patterning on the peruvians IMO.

[DocOct]

Yeah i definitely agree, personally its my favorite looking trichocereus.

They are pretty fast growing too, ive been useing them for grafting stock. Ive got a peruvianus crossed with a juuls giant that is super fast growing and ive been propigating it out so i could have as many subjects for grafting.

Either way i look forward to seeing them grow after the winter ends ive got a verified ikaros cactus with a bunch of matucana peruvianus seedlings which i beleave is code for ikaros since matucana is the region ikaro cacti is pulled from. But whos to say either way im sure they will look nice.

Here is a pick of my ikaro, i harvested a year ago for a mescaline brew and i wasnt disappointing, i mixed it with a peyote head and some bridgesii and som Sierra blue x huanacoenzis. It was a good time, best feeling trip ive ever had.

[DocOct]

100 decipiens sown tonight.

Labeled so i can chart the progress.

[YoshiTrainer]

Looking great Doc!

[DocOct]

Thanks yoshi, im starting to get a hang of these trichocereus. I used to think i could grow all of my cacti indoors but the san pedros really love real sunlight and its definitely shown on my plants since i started putting them outdoors in the summer.

However ive learned that they do pretty good under CMH lights in the winter too. LED not so much.

[DocOct]

Got a little girlfriend,... boyfriend,.... itfriend for my pentagona.

Im gonna polinate the shit out of them this upcoming summer.

These guys are gonna look pretty cool in 10 years.

[DocOct]

Here is my othere pentagona, im going to redo the pot so i can fit them both in here.

Theres definitely going to be some plant sex this summer.

[DocOct]

Found an old dried up seed pod on the new pentagona, it had 10 seeds.

Im not sure how viable these seeds are but im going to soak and plant them with the other pentagona seedlings.

Freebies are allways welcome.

Edited by DocOct, 19 January 2023 - 06:06 PM.