Some random pics

[IanW]

Figured I'd just post some random pics over the last day or two:

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... ghouse.jpg[/img]
The greenhouse and the outdoor inhabitants that live around it!

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... d/burn.jpg[/img]
One of my outdoor T. terscheckii's that sits next to the greenhouse and scorched in an odd way the other week during the heatwave presumably something to do with reflection from the glass as the markings are on the opposite side to the sun. It looks variegated, but it only occured after the hottest of the hot days so certainly seems related to that. The skin hasn't died since, it still looks yellow as here in the picture although there's clearly some internal damage as the mainly hit rib is clearly shrivelled somewhat.

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... cantha.jpg[/img]
Opuntia polyacantha var. hystricina in flower this week although not caught it fully open yet!

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... /todo1.jpg[/img]
[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... /todo2.jpg[/img]
My todo list, plants/cuttings waiting to be potted or setup for rooting!

Q: What happens if you pollinate two N. warasii between each other and put one back in it's corner of the greenhouse and forget it for a couple of months?

A:
[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... rasii1.jpg[/img]
[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... rasii2.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... eloesc.jpg[/img]
Thelocactus bicolor, Escobaria dasyacantha v. chaffeyi showing their flowers.

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... epith1.jpg[/img]
[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... epith2.jpg[/img]
I've been trying for the last year to cross pollinate these Epithelantha polycephala as they do not seem to be self fertile - today, so near yet so far!

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... /humid.jpg[/img]
Not cactus, but still a feature in my greenhouse separated into their little humidity inducing box, Nepenthes, Dionaea, Pinguicula, Utricularia, Saraccenia, Drosera - carnivorous plants absolutely thriving in a semi-shaded cactus growing environment + humidity.

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... iensis.jpg[/img]
Brasiliopuntia brasiliensis more than doubling it's size in a year... again!

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... ed/bed.jpg[/img]
Bedded area, some seem to thrive here, some seem to do nothing. I find myself changing the plants in here fairly frequently as ones that have been in there over a year and fail to really do much I move back to normal pots and swap for other species to seed if the other species appreciate it more! I'm not sure if it's too free draining for some plants or what, it's about 70% gravel. Some seem to thrive though whilst others that thrived last year have done nothing this year in it and vice versa!

[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... eedbox.jpg[/img]
Dark, largely useless area under the staging at the back of your greenhouse? Convert it into a nice sized 2' x 4' seed box!!

Last but not least, my favourite corner of the greenhouse:
[img]http://www.xest-net.org/misc/ghouse/15- ... brazil.jpg[/img]
Mostly dominated by Brazilian cactus, Micranthocereus, Arrojadoa, Coleocephalocereus, Cipocereus, Uebelmannia, Melocactus! This area tends to get most my attention as it has those plants that I keep an eye on almost daily to make sure things are doing well - Very small Cipocereus crassisepalus seedlings, Arrojadoa (Pierrebraunia) bahiensis, Cipocereus bradei and all my other favourites

[Phil_SK]

How are you getting on with the Oak Dene freebies that you were considering butchering maybe 18 months ago?

[IanW]

Some I chucked, the worst ones that were beyond help. A few others are in the first photo, rooted down, potted up, living outside okay. A couple of other cuttings I took I never got round to rooting up, funnily enough they're still in a box at the back of the middle shelf staging - I looked the other day to find a fairly healthy looking pup growing vertically upwards from one of the cuttings! I have another that I never actually butchered and left in it's pot, it's not in the first pic, it's a bit further forward of the camera, but it's happy enough - I do keep meaning to repot it though!!

There's one that is still green, still plump, but in over a year hasn't kicked out roots despite being in cat litter - I guess I'll just leave him there until he changes his mind!

I've not had any flowers off them this year or anything though, but those that are potted up are healthy, they're pushing out new growth, and as outdoor cactus go don't even look too bad now!

[Phil_SK]

Good! I'm so glad you ignored calls to chuck 'em!

[Aloenut]

Ian,

Are your Brazilian cacti in a separate section of your greenhouse? what minumum do you keep them at in winter?

Thanks
Aloenut

[IanW]

I try to keep the whole greenhouse (it's only a 6' x 8') at a minimum of 10c at the edges, but on the very coldest of days (i.e. when it got to -8c this winter just gone) it dropped to a low of about 5.5c. In the centre of the greenhouse which is the area where the Brazilian species are tended towards then the temperatures tended to be much higher to keep the edges at 10c - around 20c in the centre due to the proximity of the heater. Really though with the heater keeping things around that temperature overnight it meant that during the days the sun was out temperatures got as high as 30c on the odd day with the sun shining in strongly so realistically the temperatures probably weren't much lower than the plants would expect in habitat. I'm not sure if the heat given off by the lights in the lightbox underneath a lot of the Melocactus helped act as bottom heat as well or not, but even those without it didn't suffer.

I didn't lose a single Brazilian cactus though over the winter inside the greenhouse itself (although I lost one that was sent me in the post and a cutting rotted in my room - possibly because of the cut though). I got a tiny bit of marking on the base of my Melocactus caesius but little enough to be covered by gravel. I didn't get any markings on Ferocactus latispinus either at those temps which is also supposedly prone to marking. Oddly, despite my Trichocereus terscheckii outside doing great, my inside one got marked horribly by what I think must've been a mould attack, but it was only that plant affected, very odd! I'm wondering if I could probably get away with dropping the temperatures at all seeing as I didn't seem to have any problems from temperature this year. Perhaps a degree or two wouldn't hurt - the cost saving would be nice, but I don't want to cross a tipping point where I lose my favourite plants or even particularly want to risk scarring them!!

For what it's worth, in George Thomson's new Melocactus book he suggests around 15c minimum also for Melocactus at least.

[lenbell]

Hi Ian

A very interesting series of photos. A few years ago, when I was still suffering the delights of commuting, I put my Feros outside in June, and we got a sudden spell of very strong sunlight. Some of them got patches of scorch, and with Feros that takes a long time to grow out, or down, the plants, spoiling the look for a good while. I don't know if it affected the growth but I think if I could have got more vigorous growth things would have improved faster than they did.

I loved your carnivourous corner. When I had a conseratory I had several of the easier to get plants in a large damp tray and they seem quite happy with their little micro-climate, but fizzeled out when I moved.

[IanW]

Regarding the carnivorous plants it's only the Sarracennia that could probably use a little more light as whilst the pitchers are healthy they're showing no red markings in there like they have in past years in full sun.

The butterworts used to be just one butterwort, now there's 4 of them, they seem to like splitting!

I like the bladderworts too, they're such dainty little things but they effectively just vanish over the winter and every year I think, oh they're gone for good then then around June every year they spurt up and show off again. I've found them more "hardy" than I expected in terms of drought tolerance, there's a couple of times the box has dried out for a few weeks when I've forgotten about them yet they've still survived. I had some Drosera capensis seedlings in pots (they're like weeds when they flower the amount of seeds they throw out) and forgot about them in my utility room and they were completely dried out for weeks too but perked up with water.

I believe butterworts at least are semi-succulent though anyway? Relative to most plants they have very thick leaves.

Amusingly the Hylocereus have been trying for a year to get inside the humidity box, they keep climbing their way around it looking for a way in.

[Herts Mike]

I recognise some of those plants Ian..............

Mike.

[IanW]

Hehe yes, you can see now what I mean by them filling up the last of the spare staging

Well, I could probably squeeze some small 1 inch pots at the edge, or possibly 2 inch ones precariously balanced on the edge but they certainly filled up the last space!

I was quite content with having managed to fit everything in just right until I noticed last week that Kakteen haage had missed 2 Melocactus from my order which they've sent on separately - now I have to find room for them, doh!

There's still a bit more room I can make though - the good old switching pots from round to square trick still seems to squeeze a good few more plants space in, particularly if they're different sized round pots as some of them are! I can't resort to kicking much more outside though as I think just about all cold hardy stuff has already been kicked out!