Cactus lovers/growers?

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Amanda, sounds like you are really expanding your succulent collection! It's so nice to see your pictures. It's a great idea to have a little 'companion garden' on your desk at work. I find that cactii and succulents really seem to have a personality and a 'spirit' somehow.

Well I am STILL waiting for those flowers buds to bloom that I pictured a few posts ago. I can't believe how long they are taking! The buds are still growing larger. Gotta be any day now!

In a couple more weeks I'll be able to move ALL my cactii and succulents out on our porch for the summer. That's when they really thrive, and then the window sills and tables inside the house are suddenly all nice and spacious and zen-like for the summer. The collection really looks beautiful out on the porch in clusters.

I'm in the middle of planning a big new vegetable garden in our back yard.
I currently have a tiny 5' x 18' tomato patch garden strip on one side of our shed.
Now I'm thinking of a big 18' x 30' veggie garden in the middle of the back yard. Very ambitious. We will have to have it back-hoed and loads of top soil brought in, since the soil is so gravelly and poor under the lawn there. Gotta find out if indeed the landscaper can back hoe at all there, or if it's solid shale we might need to build raised beds- a bigger expense for sure.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

The 5 flower buds on my gymnocalysium (sp?) are way larger now and the first one is trying to open! It will bloom tomorrow morning for the first time and I'll post a picture here!! I was right about it likely being a pale pink flower- seems pretty obviously pale peachy/pink even though it has not quite opened yet.
I'm very excited!

[Aggie_Ama]

They take so long to open! I have new buds on two cacti and have been trying not to water hoping to promote the blooming. The prickly pear in west Texas were blooming like crazy this weekend, gorgeous yellow blooms. I hope one of my photos came out.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

It FINALLY BLOOMED!!!!!! YAY!!!!
I posted some pictures on my blog here:
http://strumelia.blogspot.com/2009/0...ly-blooms.html

[Aggie_Ama]

Beautiful! One of mine is blooming.

[Aggie_Ama]

I have become a total cacti/succulent lover! And living in the southwest I get a bonaza of wild specimens to look at to.

Wild something in Eldorado:



Blooming prickly pear in Eldorado (note the bee if you can see him):




And now my own guys:

Weeping agave pup from DH's boss:


Blooming Astro cacti (I love purples!):




The tiny grapto coming up, my aunt loves plants and purple so it may become a gift for her:



And the fuzzy spots on this Fero is how it blooms:

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Wonderful pix, Amanda!

That Astro is incredible! Looks like you have the magic touch.

[Reesha]

I love succulents! They always look so fantastic potted together in adorable little arrangements-- plus they're fairly low maintenance. Ever since my grandfather would take some of the 'chicks' from his Hens and Chicks in his garden and pot them for my room, I've loved them.

I don't keep cacti because I'm afraid for my cat... I figure she'd poke herself somehow and get infected My brother got this little cactus when he was in elementary school and it's gone absolutely crazy over the last 18 years or so. My mom keeps cutting the 'babies' and gifting them to friends.

I'll post pictures once I get my camera back from work!

[Aggie_Ama]

Lisa- Either the magic touch or I just live in a great climate for them!

Reesha- That astro is so soft, I can touch it bare handed. It does not have traditional spines of a cactus. And the one a posted a bit back that is on my desk only the thorny one has spines. Around here a lot of people use Prickly Pear in landscaping and have the landscapers cut of the spines. That wouldn't be too difficult on a small specimen.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I don't keep cacti because I'm afraid for my cat... I figure she'd poke herself somehow and get infected

Hi Reesha,
That's ironic- i got cactus and succulents purposely BECAUSE we have indoor cats!
I must have about 25 various types of cactus and succulents. they spend all winter inside the house with our cats. The cats sniff at them occasionally, but never try to chew them or touch them. I myself have gotten way more spiny little stabs than my cats ever get!
The cats used to chew other types of houseplants, and i got rid of them and wanted indoor plants that were much lower maintenance and that would not attract the cats. My cats leave all my cactus and succulents well alone.
I put the pots outside on my porch all summer- it's a pretty large collection.

My suggestion is to go ahead and get yourself some cactus!

[Reesha]

Ahhh pictures:



This is my first succulent arrangement and it's been developing nicely since last fall. The other one that I made I left with my former roommate as a parting gift because she liked it so much!


As you can see, Monkey the Cat enjoys gnawing on this one.


This one is being attacked by my chives

[Fredwina]

My other mammalria is blooming (will try and get a better pic