The Rabiea albipuncta seedlings are now 4 months old and growing second pairs of true leaves. When the leaves first appeared they looked like thin blades. Now they are quite succulent.
My older plant is also doing well as far as I can tell. It dried off some older leaves (the ones that were damaged two years ago) showing woody branches and got me worried for a bit it doesn't look bad and all the new growth looks fat and healthy.
Btw, I'm puzzled at the name. Neither my old plant nor the seedlings show any sign of white dots of some sort. Maybe with some imagination...
Hi Rika! Your collection is quickly becoming a mesemb candy store! So nice. Yes, the albipuncta specific epithet is seems a little strange, but as the plants age, the leaf pimples becoming a bit more pronounced and when they catch the sunlight the reflection gives them a whitish appearance. But you are right, it's not very pronounced. Still, I won't blame the plant, Rabiea albipuncta was one of the first mesembs I every grew. (Lithops was the first.) I was hoping it would be a mesemb that would grow in my outdoor plantings. The rabbits decided it wouldn't.
ReplyDeleteI notice the seedlings in the top photo have a little red in their leaves. Do you think this is due to good light conditions in the days prior to taking the photo, or to genetics of the plants, or to the pumice being somewhat dry? All three are possible causes for red coloration of the leaf tips.
The nice thing about growing your plants in your windowsill is that they are always there, near you, for your inspection. You don't have to go outside to the greenhouse, or (in my case) to plastic covered boxes to visit them. That's nice. I do keep a small collection of succulents inside on a shelf so I can visit them easily and often, but that indoor space is very limited as YOU know. :)
Hello Bob :)
DeleteSorry for the late reply.
For me the dots appear to be rather dark. I think the epithet albipuncta fits Nananthus margaritifera much better (one of the plants I want to grow once in the new apartment).
No matter the name I really like this plant even though I could never make it flower. :)
And the kids are such cuties!
Yes, I noticed the red color. Especially one of them is showing deep red coloration on the new leaves that then goes into dark green with red tips as the leaves mature. I think this is mostly due to the strong sunlight we've had since some time already. They are probably just a bit tanned but we'll see.. I'll post a more recent pic of the new leaves over on twitter in a moment :)
I'm so happy for you because by now you could finally uncover those frames!! If I were you I'd spent my whole days for at least a week inspecting them from all possible sides! :)