Identification for fascinating succulents please? Solved

[Kerry]

Hello everybody,

I'm Kerry and I'm from West Sussex near Brighton. I have been given a few plants from my grandfather and I'm finding it impossible to identify (and therefore look after properly) sadly, he cannot remember what they are so I need your help!

Okay so the two of the velcro type isn't spiky at all but very sticky and holds on tight to those supports you can see in the photos, it appears (to me) to be perhaps where we got the idea from. They can just about stand upright most of the time but they are very 'floppy' and 'fall over' frequently. I'm very curious to learn how to look after these they're fascinating!

The other has what looks like white 'spiders' instead of spikes, they are very soft. This plant is so interesting! The tag only says "blue", but it's certainly not blue which makes me wonder if my grandmother has accidentally placed it in the wrong pot? It is incredibly delicate but if one part falls off, it will survive by just a touch of soil.

I'm excited to see your comments!

All the best,
Kerry

[Stuart]

Well!! they're alive and growing, probably all three are Mammillarias, at a guess the last one is Mamm Gracilis but it won't look like this if you Google it. Plants that people have given me mean much more than ones I've bought from nurseries and, for that reason, whilst you're unlikely to see plants like these in collections, I'd suggest you move them to somewhere that gets direct sun. Nearly all cacti like the same growing conditions, there's good growing advice on the BCSS website.
Stuart

[Phil_SK]

Specifically here: http://www.society.bcss.org.uk/index.ph ... uides.html

[Kerry]

Thanks to Stuart and Phil for a great help.

My grandmother did confess that they have been in a corner with little light so yes I am also surprised they're still alive and growing!

I very much doubt they will recover fully but I'll do my best.

Thanks again,
Kerry

[RICHAUD]

fascinating etiolated plants
You must put them more in the sun by doing it gradually to avoid burns

[DaveW]

No genetic material is ever lost. If you can get them to put out a normal offset in proper light you can then take that off and root it to get a normal plant again.