It was the summer of our discontent... (7 pics)

I've been prevented from writing new posts by a wild animal that confiscated by laptop :D

Not really. She is being fantastic! :)

What really bothers me is this terrible weather we are having this year. We haven't had any spring and still no summer. It just rains all the time. My plants are lucky if they get one hour of sunlight a day. I'm being very careful with waterings but several lithops are stretching nevertheless. I wonder what makes them do that exactly. If it's dark and they've been watered shouldn't they all stretch?

In this L. schwantesii container you can see that one plant is growing too long while others stay flat.

In this L. lesliei v. hornii (C15) container, one head (!) of a plant is stretching while the other does not. What makes it do that?

L. karasmontana likes to stretch no matter what, no surprises there. It is quite small and the shape will correct itself next year.

What I find strange is that another L. karasmontana (v. aiaisensis C224) in a nearby pot is as flat as it can be.

So what triggers it really? Unlucky watering timing? Or is there something more to it?

In other news, my Frithia pulchra has grown flowers again this year. Unfortunately I still have not seen them fully open because, as I said, there is no sunlight. They open just a little without it, and then close again...

Catching Anacampseros flowers proves to be difficult as well. I keep missing them! It's so annoying. I've missed the biggest and prettiest ones so far.

I'm complaining a lot today XD

Ebracteola wilmaniae flowering

After several failed attempts last year my Ebracteola wilmaniae has finally opened a flower. On the first try, too! It's getting hot and sunny on the windowsill and this early summer will continue for a while. I hope no plants will burn but rather enjoy the sunlight.

New arrivals: Gibbaeum, Argyroderma and Ebracteola (4 pics)

I was able to free some room with magic (otherwise known as transplantation and clever tray placement) and could get myself more mesembs. I have several pots with seedlings that will need more room sometime soon but I'm going to ignore this fact for now ;)

The new guys are:

Ebracteola wilmaniae
It arrived with the rests of a flower. Nice light rose color and lovely see-through leaves.

Argyroderma fissum

I find it curious because if you think of an Argyroderma you think of a spheroid. This one has long leaves. A bit wrinkly but a week after this picture was taken it has shown a good growth. 

By the way, you can see a little clay jug (with a cat drown on it) to the right. This is what I use to water my plants from, i.e. to measure how much water they get per pot. The regular watering means half the jug for a pot just like on the picture below (ca 5x5x8,5 cm). I take a full jug if the plant is seriously thirsty.

Gibbaeum geminum

An old and beautifully bonsai-like plant. I actually got it under a name G. dispar but it is clearly not. It looks just like my younger G. geminum so I'm calling it that now.

My other Gibbaeum geminum are feeling fine sharing their pots with Conophytum, Adromischus and Neohenricia. :)