84 replies to this topic

[Neptunechild]

1. About 400 cacti at the age of 2 years to 85. 300+ seedlings under the age of 2 years. 1000's of seedlings that I gave away also...

2. About 2 on 2 meters. (Nearly all my cacti are small mexican specimen, don't need much space :D)

3. Astrophytum Caput-Medusae

4. Never took mescaline or ate a cacti yet.

Thank you for your blessings, I'm humbeld and try my best :) !

Greetings

Edited by Neptunechild, 25 May 2017 - 08:40 AM.

[meyer]

Thank you for indulging me, very interesting... I especially like the part about playing God on the Swiss alps, May your light forever shine bright.

[Neptunechild]

Namaste

 

We have a pretty awesome heat right now in the northern part of switzerland and my cacti enjoy it.

More and more cacti start to bloom, like these Turbinicarpus...

 

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These cuttings are the proof that sometimes you just have to be patient with your cacti.

Usually T. Bridgesii clones root within a few months, if you cut them in growth.

This is also true for the mutations from my experience.

But this time, I've been waiting already nearly 8 months for the cuttings to root....

They are not dehyrated and look healthy, so I'm gonna wait..Even if it takes 8 more months...

 

And my biggest Peyote treasure is blooming for the 5th time already this year..

Secretly...under the guardian shadow of a Papaver Somniferum and next to a couple of Ephedra Distochya var. Helvetica...

 

 

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By the way...

 

I move my cacti a lot..I know some breeders don't recommend this, but none of my cacti show to be disturbed by it.

Some of them react to the change with new growth and flowers...

 

Learning by doing!

 

Peace

[Skywatcher]

 

This is a real treasure Neptune, but you already know that.................

 

I also move my cactus around. Different light from the shift in sun position lets me use the natural broken shading from branchy plants grown among them, and in winter they go into a small greenhouse that faces east. This helps keep the rain off so I can contro; the water, and prevents any frost damage on the rare occasions I have frost.

I have never seen anything but appreciation from them. I do keep them oriented the same direction as much as I can if they have formed a distinct "face" that points toward the brightest light.

[Neptunechild]

Namaste

 

Yes it is indeed a real treasure and I got it from a very friendly couple that cultivated it for over 45 years.

I'm gonna get me more because they are planning to stop, after 55 years...

Edited by Neptunechild, 29 May 2017 - 09:12 AM.

[Neptunechild]

Namaste

Yesterday I checked my Peyote again and.... taaadaaa, tripple flowers again!

[bozefonce]

Beautiful!

#rootbraintheory

[Neptunechild]

Namaste

A lot has happend this year, especially in my private life and I could not manage to handle all the cacti and my other projects at the same time properly. Well all the cacti I've collected over the years are doing great actually, but I gave away ALL seedlings that I've documented in this thread. Everything from Peyote to Ariocarpus to Turbinicarpus. The only seedlings that I kept are the San Pedros that I repotted for the second time in their time today. The first repotting was done 7 months after germination. The second one, was made today 15 months and 4 days after germination. So the seedlings that you see right here are only 1 year and 3 months old. I did not water them as much as I did my other seedlings. These are actually hard grown, considering the fact that I gave them a 2 mont dry period just the day after I took them out of the humidity chamber (100% humidity, 28°C, regular misting).

Timeline:

 

January 31 2016 :

Sowing of 100's of San Pedro seeds.

February-September 2016 :

The seedlings were standing close together in a single pot inside my heated mini-greenhouse.
Humidity 80-100% for 18 hours a day, 50-75% 6 hours. Temp's: 28-31°C 18 hours a day, less than 22°C at nights.
I've opend the slots twice a day for fresh air exchange.
I've misted the greenouse 2-3 times per week the first 4 weeks.
Once per week from then until september. Sometimes 2 mistings per week if it was extra hot..

September 2016:

I've repotted the San Pedro seedlings into new pots, 100% minerals.

September'16 - February '17:

The Pots were kept outside of the greenhouse, but inside in my home at a south-facing window. They got watered 2 times per week from September to December.
January and February I kept them completely dry, not a drop of water. None of them died.

March '17 - June '17:

I've started to keep my San Pedro seedlings outside now in the direct sun. I've lost about 10% of the remaining seedlings because the sun burned them to a crisp, but the rest survived and looked great.

5th June 2017:

I'm happy with the surviving seedlings and I've potted them today in fresh substrate. 50% Minerals, 10% Perlite and 40% Compost/Wormcasings Soil mix.



They will get watered 2-3 times per week now and I don't know what's the plan for the winter. Maybe I will already start with the first winter dormancy, maybe I'll just cultivate them inside...Not decided yet.



And I did sow about 200 seeds more, I can't stop it....haha :). And I will keep them in the heated greenhouse for 7 months, same TEK I used the last year on the ones I already have. It was a great experience and I will continue this way.



I decided to reduce my ethnobotanical work and concentrate more on cacti in the future. I think there will be no more sowings for this year. But 2018 is gonna be spectacular!

Thank you everyone who's reading, especially the silent ones. I do feel sometimes that I'm talking to myself for most of the time, but I do know that what I do is appreciated by some. And I do this for myself mostly anyway :)

Love you all

Blessings


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Edited by Neptunechild, 05 June 2017 - 04:26 PM.

[Heirloom]

I very much enjoy seeing your work Neptune. How old is the Peyote that triple bloomed , it looks magnificient.

[Neptunechild]

I very much enjoy seeing your work Neptune. How old is the Peyote that triple bloomed , it looks magnificient.

The age of old cacti is extremely hard to tell and sounds sometimes very unrealistic when you compare them with other cacti of the same species. I had people that did not even belive that this cacti could be over 40 years old, because they saw bigger ones at half of the age (grown without fertilizers). And when you start to tell them that you cultivate it hard, they tell you some other stories as well. I met some people around the internet who told me that I got ripped off and whatever and that people would always tell you that the cacti are extremely old, even when they are not.

I def. did not get ripped off, because I didn't really pay anything for this cacti. It's a collection that's getting dissolved and I will get even much more of these.
There are also different ways for hard cultivating cacti..when I tell people that I water some of my cacti only twice a year to keep them alive, they think that I'm crazy and ultra hardcore. But I got this TEK's from very experienced growers actually and it's knowledge which is getting forgotten by the younger generations (80% of the breeders are at least 50-60 years old).

I do know these kind of breeders that want to ripp you off. They sell you tennisballsized Peyote without ANY grey or blue notes only a very dark green colour, swollen up like a pumpkin and tell you that they are 30-40 years old, which is pure bullshit and overfeed/overbreed cacti and nothing else.....

However, I bought this cacti from a couple that took "care" of it for the past 40 years. But they neglected most of their Peyotes pretty damn rough and watered it mostly just 1-2-3 times per year. This cacti was actually flat and looked totally dehydrated when I got it, but was in full bloom. I decided to water it more however and that's where it started to swoll up again to double of it's size and show it's full size. They bought the cacti 40 years ago, from a guy who cultivated it himself for 30-35 years. The cacti is around 75-80 years old.

I have seen Peyote at the age of 15 years at the size of a golfball..
2cm wide Peyote at the age of 11 years are some I own myself!
But I also have Peyote at the size of tennisballs that are less than 12 years old.....

It's the way you cultivate it that makes up most of the size and not the genetics...

Sow a Peyote, cultivate it 1-2 years in a heated, humid greenhouse. Take it out, water it all 2 weeks from march to october and let it rest in winter. After 5 years, you have a Peyote at the size of a Golfball.

Sow a Peyote, cultivate it 3-4 months in a heated, humid greenhouse. Take it out, water it only once a month from march to october. Let it rest in winter. Start to harden it off the following years by letting it dry out also in summer for 5-6 weeks. Maybe don't water it for an entire year. And after 5 years, you have a 1-2cm wide Peyote....

Peace

 

Edited by Neptunechild, 06 June 2017 - 04:01 AM.

[meyer]

My first peyote (group of 3, 2 with double heads) I picked up were hard grown, they are now 16 years old and smaller than golf balls and have not flowered yet, so I know exactly what you are talking about. I continue to maintain similar conditions on these yotes as I see no reason to change and like the fact of having these tough lil guys in my collection.

Keep up the good work and keep the porn coming, it's an inspiration to all of us... I really think I may have to pick up an old yote for my collection, it's like owning a piece of artwork. I have a good connection, but the prices are not cheap, I have been debating this purchase for a while and am sure I will continue to until I finally pull the trigger. You guys will definitely be some of the first to know when this happens.

Edited by meyer, 08 June 2017 - 01:06 AM.

[Neptunechild]

If you buy it from netherlands, share some pictures with us first. They love to rip off people.

Don't buy Peyote from australia, the prices are freaking insane over there!

[Heirloom]

I'm coming back to see the pics later. I want to see how fast the scions grow.

good vibes Meyer

[meyer]

My guy is in the UK and only deals in LWs, he actually is retired and just deals with people he knows now, that is where I just got my latest 5 Lophs. I also just ordered a nice couple of bundles from the Netherlands knowing what I am getting into, but fine with it as I plan to use some for my next cacti adventure, knowing the alkaloid potency isn't there yet, but they are all flowering and were relatively inexpensive. I am going to start my own Loph thread to share my collection and thoughts so that beginners can learn and benefit from some of the mistakes I have made.... coming soon, prob after I get my new Loph's I ordered. Appreciate the offer for advice before I make that big purchase, I am sure others will be happy to weigh in as well.

I'll end this thought here as I hijacked enough of your thread my friend.

Edited by meyer, 08 June 2017 - 01:01 PM.

[skunk]

Dam Neptune, you have a stellar garden to be very proud of! Those cacti are luckily to have you as a cultivator! Just absolutely beautiful!

You are a cacti God my friend!

In this picture is that Ephedra I spy in the background?

[Arathu]

Not talking to yourself...........training others in reverent silence..................

 

I can't even come close to what you're doing............so I'm in awe............

 

 

 

My humble little grows that make me happy................

 

A

 

 

[Neptunechild]

Namaste and thank you

You have some great Trichs', the Bridgesii's look great!

Edit: Did you ever consider to grow them outside of the tent ?

Edited by Neptunechild, 09 June 2017 - 12:25 PM.

[Arathu]

Yes and thank you......they're waking up and acclimatizing to the sun again.......and will be out in full sunlight very shortly............

 

If I don't go slow they get sunburn................

 

But they grow like madness out in the fresh air and direct sunlight.................

 

Very soon.......

 

A

[Neptunechild]

Dam Neptune, you have a stellar garden to be very proud of! Those cacti are luckily to have you as a cultivator! Just absolutely beautiful!

You are a cacti God my friend!

In this picture is that Ephedra I spy in the background?

Namaste

Yep those are Ephedra Distochya var. Helvetiva and Ephedra Minima that you see there. I have 3 more plants...2 of them E. Helvetica aswell and one of them Ephedra Andina.

[Neptunechild]

Namaste

I have seriously lost track...but I think this ithe 8th or 9th set of flowers...and I have a feeling that it's not gotta be the last time.
Not grafted!



And my grafted Aztekium has also something to say!



And now 5 or 6 years after grafting, I finally have multiple heads showing :)!
Usually it takes only 2-3 years...but I water this grafted Aztekium only once a month which is unusual...no water in wintertime...



Peace, love and all the good stuff