I forwarded this discussion to Roger Ferryman and this was his reply:- "I struggle a bit with Copiapoa, there are many overlaps and it’s easy to pick differences yet they are not always consistent. Regarding saxifraga it does not grow where Benjy suggests. The place is not well visited because ...

Hi All If you are as old as me collecting from the 1960's you may have obtained seed from New Mexico Cactus Research = Horst Kuenzler. You may still find material grown from their seed with HK numbers. They suddenly seemed to disappear and I found this article about it. At the end there are links to...

Don't know if this has been linked to before?

https://news.brown.edu/articles/2011/05/cacti

If you are growing hydroponically, semi-hydroponically or in a purely mineral compost you need a fertiliser that supplies all trace elements needed. Some general garden fertilisers rely on the plants extracting some nutrients or trace elements from the organic part of the soil. Therefore check the f...

Cacti like most plants can be grown hydroponically in one form or another, the nutrients supplied in solution rather than from organic matter in the soil.. https://gardeningwithallie.com/can-cactus-grow-hydroponically/#:~:text=Yes%2C%20cacti%20can%20be%20grown%20hydroponically.%20Cactus%20roots,it%2...

I went to Worfield Gardens in the 1960's on a Nottingham Branch trip. The "band" was called "Madam Bruce's Mexican Orchestra", a name I remembered as it was hardly a typical Mexican name! See also:- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38HQBsQAMXU If its hard to repot cut off or break...

"But back to the airport security checks, they are absolutely not meant to detect a few plants etc., unless flying to a country with very strict border control rules (and even then it's usually the arrival airport that is responsible for it). If you watch the Australian Border Control programm...

Looking for something else I was surprised to find this dated January 2023. Have regulations changed since January and was this correct at the time? https://www.necps.org/bring-your-cactus-with-you-on-your-trip-to-the-uk-everything-you-need-to-know-about-taking-a-cactus-on-an-airplane/ Seems more ap...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMXGhJHDpSA

I was sent a rooted cutting which grew into a good sized plant, but then rotted at the base. However all of the stems that seemed rot free simply refused to root and gradually withered away. Has anybody else has trouble rooting these cuttings?