Tag: Succulent plant blogs

Strombocactus disciformis, Strombocactus, rare cacti, rare cactus for sale, rare cacti for sale, rare cactus plants,

How To Grow Strombocactus disciformis – RARE CACTUS

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Hi Guys,

In this Article I will be talking about the wonderful and unique Strombocactus disciformis Cactus and how you can care for it.

I have made a special care video on Strombocactus disciformis for my Cactus and Succulent You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon and you can watch this video by clicking HERE

A little bit about Strombocactus disciformis 

Strombocactus disciformis is a unique and rare species of cactus that comes from Mexico, there is only one species in the Strombocactus genus and that is Strombocactus disciformis, but there are two sub species varieties of Strombocactus disciformis: Strombocactus disciformis that has cream coloured flowers and Strombocactus disciformis ssp. esperanzae that has deep pink coloured flowers.

Strombocactus has a turnip like taproot similar to Ariocarpus and Lophophora cacti, they are globular and have tubercle like ribs almost resembling a small pine cone in appearance, they are very small growing and due to this many are often sold grafted to help to speed up their growth, sadly in their natural habitats in Mexico Strombocactus are at threat to the illegal collection of rare cacti for the commercial plant trade.

HOW TO GROW STROMBOCACTUS

Strombocactus, Strombocactus disciformis, Strombocactus for sale, rare cacti for sale, rare cactus, rare cacti, rare cactus plants,
My Strombocactus disciformis, grown from seed. Strombocactus have tubercle like ribs almost resembling a little Pine cone in their appearance.

Light: 

Strombocactus like a sunny position and a south facing window indoors or sunny position in the greenhouse is ideal, avoid north facing windows or a position that doesn’t get much sun because these cacti need strong sunshine to thrive, if you only have a window or position that doesn’t get much sun during their active growing period ( Spring and Summer ) then a special full spectrum Plant LED Grow light can be used to replicate the full light spectrum these beauties need to grow and flower.

Grow Lights for plants
Full spectrum LED Grow Lights especially made for Plants can be used if more sunshine is needed.

Temperature: 

These cacti can take very high summer temperatures as long as they have plenty of ventilation, make sure windows and doors are open and cool fan/s are running during hot stuffy days.

In Winter keep these cacti at a minimum winter temperature of 5c / 41F with no water to be given to them at all over the winter period, if you live in an area where temperatures can fall lower than 5c /41F bring your Strombocactus indoors into a dry and bright window or location for the winter months.

Watering: 

Water sparingly from Spring to the end of Summer ( April to September )  and only water once the soil has totally dried out in their pots, these cacti can go a lot longer in between watering’s than many other types of cacti due to their large turnip like taproots, these cacti store water in their tuberous root and if the soil stays too damp for too long they can be very prone to rot, I give my Strombocactus a light watering about once a month from April until mid September when I stop watering completely until the following Spring.

These Cacti need a totally dry overwintering with no water to be given at all from mid Sept until April.

Fertilizing:

Fertilise Strombocactus with half the strength of Cactus feed in Spring and Summer, I usually give my Strombocactus a feed after the second watering in May and then again when I water in July, because these cacti are extremely slow growing feeding is not an absolute necessity, but it can help to encourage better growth and more chance of flowers, especially because these Cacti are often left to grow in the same pot for a good few years due to their slow growth.

Soil Mix: 

Strombocactus need an extremely well draining gritty cactus mix and are very prone to rotting if they are planted in a normal house plant soil, a good quality well draining cactus soil that drains freely and dries out fast is an absolute must, I use a mix of 3 equal parts of loam ( John innes number 2 ) grit and Horticultural sharp sand, but every grower has their own preferences for cactus soil, the most important thing is that it is very well draining and dries out fast within a day or two after watering.

If you want to know How I make my own Cactus soil and How you can too then check out the video I have made for my Cactus and Succulent You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on How To Make your own Cactus & Succulent Soil, and you can watch this video below:

Repotting: 

Repotting is always best done in the Spring and Summer months but avoid repotting when the cactus is coming into bud or bloom, repot into just the next size pot up and do not be tempted to pot up into a much bigger pot thinking your Strombocactus will grow faster and larger because these Cacti have their Turnip like taproots that are very sensitive to excess moisture that can hang around if these cacti are planted up into too large a pot, I am often being asked why I say to under rather than overpot a cactus when in their natural habitats Cacti are growing with plenty of space to grow their roots, but the difference is in their natural habitats cacti often grow in crevices and in very dry arid landscapes where any rainfall dries out within hours and so does the substrate they are growing in and the air humidity around them, but in cultivation its a very different story.

When repotted keep the cactus dry with no water for at least 2 weeks to allow any roots to heal and for the cactus to settle into its new soil and pot.

Flowering :

Strombocactus disciformis produces cream flowers from spring to summer, and Strombocactus disciformis ssp esperansae produces bright pink flowers from spring to summer, the flowers are about 3-4 cm in width and grow from the apex of the Cactus. Sorry I don’t have any photos to show you of their flowers as I am still waiting for my Strombocactus to flower and I can’t use others photos online, but do have a little ‘google’ at ‘Stombocactus Flowers’ online and you will see how beautiful Strombocactus flowers can be.

Propagation:

Strombocactus is propagated from seeds in early Spring and although very rewarding to do, a lot of patience is needed as they are extremely slow growing, these cacti will often flower from 10 years old when grown from seed.

If you would like to grow Strombocactus or any other Cactus from seed then I have made a special video for my Cactus and Succulent You Tube Channel  called Desert Plants of Avalon on How To Grow Cacti from Seed’ and you can watch this video below:

Pests & Diseases:

Like all Cacti Strombocactus can be prone to Mealy Bugs and Spider mites, both these pesky beasts can be treated with rubbing / Isopropyl alcohol by dabbing any beasts and their woolly nests with a small brush like an Artists paint brush dipped in rubbing/Isopropyl alcohol, Spider mites can be treated by spraying the cactus with with rubbing / Isopropyl alcohol in a hand held mist sprayer, Horticultural Neem oil mixed with Horticultural soap is also very effective both as a preventative and as a treatment for beasts on cacti, both rubbing alcohol and Neem oil treatments need to be repeated a number of times over a couple of weeks to completely eliminate all traces of beasts and their eggs, its also very important to treat all cacti and succulents and other plants you have in your collection at the same time.

Mealy bugs, mealybugs, mealybug on cactus, mealybugs on cactus, cactus mealybug, how to get rid of mealybug on cactus,
A Mealybug infestation on a Cactus. Mealybug is a very common Pest for every type of cactus, Horticultural Neem oil or Rubbing /Isopropyl alcohol helps to keep these beasts under control.

The most common form of disease with Strombocactus is root or base rot, these Cacti need a very well draining gritty cactus mix due to their turnip tuberous roots, very careful watering in spring and summer and a totally dry overwintering should prevent any chances of rot.

I have made a special care video on Strombocactus disciformis for my Cactus and Succulent You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon and you can watch this video below:

Thanks so much for reading and Happy Growing to you all.

 

 

 

Crassula muscosa, Crassula lycopodioides, Crassula pseudolycopodioides, Watch Chain Plant

How to Grow & Care for Crassula muscosa, aka The Watch Chain Plant – Crassula muscosa, Crassula lycopodioides, Crassula pseudolycopodioides

Posted on by admin

Hi Plant Lovers 😀

In this Blog / Article I will be talking about the very wonderful Crassula muscosa Succulent Plant aka Crassula muscosa, Crassula lycopodioides, Crassula pseudolycopodioides, and more commonly The Watch Chain Plant.

Crassula muscosa, Crassula lycopodioides, Crassula pseudolycopodioides, Watch Chain Plant
Crassula muscosa, Crassula lycopodioides, Crassula pseudolycopodioides, The Watch Chain Plant.

I have made a special video on my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on How to Care for and Grow Crassula muscosa and you can watch this video below: 

ABOUT:

Crassula muscosa grows in its natural habitats in South Africa in the Winter & Summer rainfall areas of the Western and Eastern Cape growing in well draining rocky quartz fields.

Crassula muscosa is a spreading growing Succulent Plant that can grow fast during the growing period, as the plant grows larger its common for stem segments to drop off and root readily where they land, and you can often see the stem segments that has dropped off growing in nearby plant pots or nearby places in your yard and garden.

Commonly called the Watch Chain Plant because of its tiny tight rosette leaf arrangements resembling the links of a jewellery chain and a watch chain, the word muscosa is Latin for ‘mossy’ due to this plants moss like appearance.

This plant is commonly sold and seen for sale as part of a plant and succulent bowl garden arrangement.

My Crassula muscosa plant ( pictured above) was also part of a plant arrangement that my friend gave to me over 12 years ago.

LIGHT:

Grows best in full sun or in very bright light, a sunny window or patio or other sunny and bright position is ideal, but if grown in intense midday sun in the Summer plenty of ventilation should be given, too little sun or too much intense sun without ventilation can cause leaf segments to go brown and hard and woody and they will drop off more readily, these plants grow well under full spectrum LED plant grow lights if you don’t have a sunny window or position to place them in.

SOIL:

Like all succulents these plants need a very well draining soil so that the soil can drain easily and does not stay too wet for long, a good quality commercial cactus & succulent soil can be used, or you can make up your own using 3 equal parts of Loam, grit (or perlite) and horticultural sand. If you want to know how to make your own soil for cacti and succulents then check the video below I have made for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on How to make your own soil for cacti and succulents in 3 easy steps: 

WATER:

Spring and Summer and early Fall water every time the soil in the pot has dried out, in my experience these plants can take a lot more watering in Spring Summer and Fall, but ideally its best to allow the soil to dry in between waterings,

in late Fall and Winter its best to keep these plants more on the dry side and a good watering once a month is plenty, although this plant is Winter flowering it is not Winter growing and does not need to be watered as regularly, once a month is best, if you are growing these plants indoors on a sunny window and indoor house temperatures you may need to water them twice a month in Winter if they start to go limp or drop segments, but remember if in doubt its safer to under rather than over water.

FERTILISER:  

In Spring and Summer fertilise these plants once every 2-3 weeks with a good quality fertiliser especially for Cacti and Succulents, in Winter there is no need to fertilise even when these plants are in Winter flower, because although these plants are winter flowering they are not winter growing.

RE POTTING: 

Re pot in Spring and Summer or early Fall into a pot the next size up, plant into well draining cactus and succulent soil, after repotting its best to wait a few days before watering again to allow any roots to settle into the soil.

TEMPERATURE: 

In Spring and Summer a good temperature is around 70-75 Fahrenheit / 21-24 Celsius, they can take higher temperatures than this as long as long as plenty of ventilation can be given, open windows if growing on windowsills indoors on very hot summer days or install a circulating fan in hot greenhouses.

In Winter these plants can take very cold temperatures and is hardy to 20 Fahrenheit / -7 Celsius but ideally a temperature around 41 Fahrenheit / 5 Celsius is a safer minimum temperature for these plants in Winter.

HUMIDITY:

Like all succulent plants they don’t like high humidity as this can encourage fungus and rots, plenty of ventilation must always be given in very hot and wet weather, the ideal humidity for these plants is 50% or lower, but they can take much higher than this if the soil is allowed to dry out in between watering, and the soil is kept much drier in Winter.

FLOWERING: 

Crassula muscosa is a Winter flowering succulent, although it is not uncommon to see these plants flower in the Spring, Summer and Fall too.

Crassula muscosa, Crassula plants, Crassula muscosa flowers, Crassula muscosa, Crassula lycopodioides, Crassula pseudolycopodioides, Watch Chain Plant
Crassula muscosa, Crassula lycopodioides, Crassula pseudolycopodioides, Watch Chain Plant in flower.

The miniature flowers start off white and then turn brown as they age and are absolutely tiny, in fact most growers don’t even notice the extremely tiny blooms on these plants and the rather unusual strange scent of the blooms are often noticed before the flowers are seen.

The miniature blooms smell musty and soapy and the scent of these blooms is hard to compare to anything else, its a scent you either love or hate haha.

If you want to see what the blooms on Crassula muscosa look like up close then check out my video on my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon of my Crassula muscosa in Bloom, you can watch this video below:

PRUNING:

Crassula muscosa is best pruned every year in Spring to help prevent the stems from growing unruly and pruning this plant back also helps to prevent the stems from dropping off from the weight of the stems as they grow.

These plants can be easily re started again as cuttings if the stems start to look too dry and brown.

PROPAGATION: 

These plants are very easy to propagate especially when pruning the stems in spring, cuttings root very readily in water, its always best to root cuttings in Spring and summer, just place the cuttings into a cup of about an inch of water and they will send out roots within 2-6 weeks, you can also plant the cuttings directly into well draining soil. 

I have made a video on my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on How to take cuttings and Propagate Crassula muscosa and you can watch this video below: 

PESTS & DISEASES:

The most common insect pests you are likely to see are mealy bugs, thrips, scale insect and the like, If I spot pests on my plants I like to use Horticultural Neem oil mixed with Horticultural soap and spray the plant/s thoroughly once a week for 6 weeks until no signs of the pests remain.

Fungus and root rot are the most common types of diseases on succulent plants although thankfully not that common on Crassula muscosa, root rot is best corrected by taking cuttings and re starting the plant, but if fungus is a problem its best to treat the whole plant with Horticultural Neem oil mixed with Horticultural soap and spray the whole plant thoroughly every week for a month.

I have made a video on my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on How to use Neem oil to treat insect pests and diseases on Succulent plants and you can watch this video below: 

I hope you enjoyed this article on how to grow Crassula muscosa, and for lots more tips and tricks on how to care for and grow Cacti and Succulents please check out my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon.

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful plant powered day <3 

 

 

 

 

 

Uebelmannia pectinifera. Ubelmannia,

How to Care For & Grow Uebelmannia Cacti

Posted on by admin

Hi Guys 😀 In this Blog I will be talking about the Tropical Cactus Uebelmannia and How you can care for and grow this amazing and very unique looking cactus plant.

Uebelmannia pectinifera. Ubelmannia,
My Ubelmannia pectinifera Cactus Plant

I have made a special video for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on How to Care for & Grow Uebelmannia and you can watch this video by clicking HERE

ABOUT:

Uebelmannia Cacti are Tropical Cacti that are endemic to Brazil growing 650 -1,350 above sea level.

There are just 3 main species in the Uebelmannia Genus, 1, Uebelmannia pectinifera, 2, Uebelmannia gummifera , and 3, Uebelmannia buiningii, although more hybrids are slowly being introduced into the cactus market.

The most popular in cultivation is Uebelmannia pectinifera, and the rarest is Uebelmannia buiningii, U. buiningii is threatened by habitat loss in its natural environment, but is slowly becoming more poplar to grow in cultivation amongst cacti enthusiasts. 

Uebelmannia cacti have globular to cylindrical stems and have distinct ribs patterned with spines from their areoles . The colour of these cacti are bright green, green grey, or dark purple. 

They are slow growing cacti but can reach up to 3 feet over time growing from globular to more columnar.

These unique cacti were first introduced from South America in the mid 1960’s where it had a bit of a cult following.

Uebelmannia are still hard to find for sale and many that are for sale are often found grafted as they can be more difficult to grow on their own roots when young but when more mature will grow well on their own roots.

Because Uebelmannia are not the easiest to grow for beginners, its best to only grow these cacti when you are more experienced with growing cacti.

Uebelmannia pectinifera, Ubelmannia,
My Uebelmannia pectinifera Cactus Plant, these Cacti have have globular to cylindrical stems and have distinct ribs patterned with spines from their areoles . The colour of these cacti are bright green, green grey, or dark purple.

LIGHT REQUIREMENTS:

Uebelmannia like a very sunny position and a south facing position is ideal, these cacti love plenty of direct sunshine even in the Winter months.

SOIL:

These cacti need a VERY well draining soil and well aerated, I like to make my own soil mix up for these cacti that consits of 3 equal parts of loam, grit and horticultural sharp sand, they also prefer a soil pH on the lower side as high soil pH above 7.5 pH can damage their roots, however if you grow Uebelmannia that has been grafted they can take a soil that is higher in pH due to the rootstock that they have been grafted onto.

If you want to know How I make my own cactus soil for my Uebelmannia then here is a video I have made for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon and you can watch this video below:

REPOTTING:

Re Pot Uebelmannia in Spring and Summer, ideally in Spring at the start of their growing season. Only re pot when the cactus has outgrown its pot and re pot into a pot only slightly larger than the last one, as too much soil around their roots can encourage root rot. When re potted leave a week to 10 days until watering again to allow the roots to settle into the new pot and soil.

WATERING:

From Spring and Summer water well allowing the soil in the pot to dry out before watering again.

In Winter these cacti do not like to be kept totally dry for very long periods and I water my Uebelmannia once every 6 weeks.

Uebelmannia like a water with a lower pH ideally around the 5.5-7 pH, because of this clean unpolluted rain water is preferred over tap water, however if your Uebelmannia is grafted it will be able to take a higher pH water.

FERTILISING:

From Spring and Summer when they are actively growing Uebelmannia like to be fertilised once a month with a good quality cactus fertiliser that is diluted to half the strength that they recommend for desert cacti. 

Do not feed during the Winter months when their growth is slowed down and they are resting.

TEMPERATURE:

Because Uebelmannia are Tropical Cacti they can not tolerate any frost and need an absolute Winter minimum temperature of 12 Celsius / 55 Fahreneheit and ideally above 12 Celsius /60 Fahreneheit.

In Summer they can take very high temperatures as long as plenty of ventilation can be provided, open windows in greenhouses and doors in polytunnels on very hot sunny days in Summer. 

FLOWERING:

Uebelmannia produce tiny yellow flowers that form a cluster from the crown of the cactus, all Uebelmannia will flower when fully mature if given plenty of sunshine and the correct growing care.

PROPAGATION:

Propagation of Uebelmannia is from seeds but growing these cacti from seed is very hard unless you are an expert in growing Uebelmannia. Most young seedlings are often grafted onto other rootstock for their survival.

If you want to watch a video I have made for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on How to care for and Grow Uebelmannia cacti then you can watch this video below :

Thanks so much for reading Guys and Happy growing to you all <3