BCSS - Forum

OOh so sweet , I have never managed seed but have a few little plants from this years ELK so maybe when they get bigger I'll get seed, always good to have a challenge.

This luethyii different than i posted above, this one is around 1.5years old.

OOh ortegocactus, never managed seed of that either, must get my paint brushes out next year

Ortegocactus and M. luethyi seed is cryptocarpic. The fruit remains buried within the body of the plant. In Ortegocactus, the seeds become relatively exposed when the fruit is ripe and are even squeezed out of the body - some at least can be harvested without too much trouble. Not so with M. luethyi as you can probably imagine, little chance of getting seed without a lot of damage to the plant. Realistically you'd want to dissect it completely. Germination is also reported to be low and that's what I've found, but it probably has a very long life if that's any consolation. Ortegocactus seed germinates well, but can be tricky to grow on. I've found that it does well with lots of sun from quite a small size, doesn't do well with pampering.

iann wrote: ↑Sun Dec 02, 2018 8:07 pm .... Not so with M. luethyi as you can probably imagine, little chance of getting seed without a lot of damage to the plant. Realistically you'd want to dissect it completely. ....

Indeed, iann, just as with M. theresae. I have always found that seed recovered from a 'dead' plant always germinates more readily. Just a few weeks ago, I noticed that one of my small M. theresae plants had keeled over, and had rotted inside. Having carefully peeled back the outer 'skin' of the plant, this revealed 6 intact fruits (seed pods) in perfect condition attached to the inside of the 'skin'. I was able to harvest 80 seeds from these so am hopeful of some good germination when I sow them in the spring.

Tony R wrote: ↑Sun Dec 02, 2018 9:41 pm

iann wrote: ↑Sun Dec 02, 2018 8:07 pm .... Not so with M. luethyi as you can probably imagine, little chance of getting seed without a lot of damage to the plant. Realistically you'd want to dissect it completely. ....

Indeed, iann, just as with M. theresae. I have always found that seed recovered from a 'dead' plant always germinates more readily. Just a few weeks ago, I noticed that one of my small M. theresae plants had keeled over, and had rotted inside. Having carefully peeled back the outer 'skin' of the plant, this revealed 6 intact fruits (seed pods) in perfect condition attached to the inside of the 'skin'. I was able to harvest 80 seeds from these so am hopeful of some good germination when I sow them in the spring.

How about leaving the seeds inside the plant while it rots?
It might increase the germination rate ?

It might. But you should still be able to salvage the seeds. I don't know how easy that will be with the completely dried out hard remains of a dark brown plant. Try to find the seeds back again...