Anacampseros seedlings (2 pics)

I've sent out all the envelops with fresh Anacampseros seeds to you guys. Make sure to sow them soon :)

The bunch of seeds I've hatched myself have turned into 9 tough seedlings and now, as they are one whole month old, they are showing their first hairs. Cute, huh? At first I thought those were mealy bugs, which is far less cute XD

Kakteen- und Sukkulentenmarkt in Essen 5.7-6.7

I think I have some readers from Germany here so this is basically for you! If you live near Essen make sure you don't miss this!

Sa 5.7. bis So 6.7.2014

Kakteen- und Sukkulentenmarkt 
Ausstellung, Beratung, Verkauf
rund um die Orangerie im Grugapark, 10 bis 18 Uhr

http://www.grugapark.de/2014/kakteenmarkt.html

I'm seriously thinking of going there on Saturday, July 5th, even though it's a long trip for me ;)

Glottiphyllum pygmaeum question mark

I got the seeds as Glottiphyllum pygmaeum (actually some fancy red-leaf form but whatever). Now they are 7 months old and I really don't know whether they are really what they were supposed to be. Do they look like Glottiphyllum pygmaeum to you? Shouldn't they have more rounded, sideways growing leaves? Are they supposed to be this poisonous green? I can't even take a proper picture because of the floppiness amd glossiness. Also, they've been growing huge long leaves before but now they're growing these short round blobs :D

Rabiea and Frithia seedlings (2 pics)

Time to update you on some of the seedlings. Rabiea albipuncta are now 6 months old and look much more mature than only 2 months ago. Glad to see that a couple of them still show the distinct red leaf tips.

They are currently having seven-month-old Frithia pulchra kids as neighbors. It is supposed to be a red (or redder) flowering variety but since Frithias never flower for me it's only theoretically different from the other Frithia pulchra plants I own.

PS: I really need to take some lithops pictures. I can't seem to be able to take any good ones lately...

Anacampseros seeds give-away!

UPDATE: All seeds are gone! I will let you know when I have more (probably on twitter) :)

Dear readers and plants enthusiasts, are you interested in getting Anacampseros filamentosa ssp. namaquensis for free from me? My plant is still flowering like crazy and several of the flowers developed seeds. I've already sown some and the germination rate is 9 out of 10 at the moment with the seedlings looking really strong. I know that it's like this because the seeds are very fresh so if you'd like to sow them right away I can send you some. Just drop me a line. You will find my email address in my user profile :)

Lithops dorotheae (3 pics)

I wanted to take many more Lithops pictures today but in the bright sun most of the photos looked sort of overexposed. The best ones were those of Lithops dorotheae so here are this year's portraits. The one on the first pic has grown quite fat, which is rare for my plants, but has regenerated just fine. A strong plant. I have the others since 4 years already and I hope to be growing them for many more years.

Aloinopsis flowers (3 pics)

Both flowers have opened this weekend and I'm especially glad to see that the Aloinopsis rubrolineata has found the strength to develop its flower on the first try this year. 

The Aloinopsis rosulata is relatively new on the windowsill but seems to have accepted the new conditions. It needs more light but since it is so big I can not put it in the middle of the windowsill. It has to make do with the morning sun only. Seems to be enough for flowering though.

Prepodesma orpenii blooming

The flower is so kind to still be open every day when I come home from work :)

I'm not sure if the flowers on my other Prepodesma plant will ever fully develop and open but I've swept the pollen from this one and put the brush in the fridge for now. No idea if it'll work. 

Cheiridopsis pillansii seedlings (3 pics)

To continue the Cheiridopsis theme, on April 20th I've sown some of the Cheiridopsis pillansii seeds I got from Mesa Garden this year. Almost all of them germinated on the second day and now they are growing their first true leaves already. The pics are very large but make sure to click on them to see the new tiny hairy leaves in all detail :)

Cute kids, huh? :)

Happy Cheiridopsis

I must be doing something right with these Cheiridopsis denticulata kids even though I have no idea what. They're just happy and grow like crazy (for mesemb standards). They've grown a second pair of those big and beautifully sculptured leaves and almost all of them have developed side shoots. One is even growing two new side branches now, going from one to four within a year. I hope they will keep this up and flower one day. They seem to find the condictions I can offer them not only acceptable but very enjoyable. :)

Today's flower buds (3 pics)

The newest flower buds have developed to a considerable size by now and should hopefully open soon. Flowering is not very frequent occurrence for me so to have so many potential flowers this season is pretty exciting! Unless they drop... I saw it happen a lot, so... For now, fingers crossed.

Aloinopsis rubrolineata looks like its flower will make it on the first try this year. Should they actually flower in summer? I always thought they did it in the fall and winter but okay. The Titanopsis Group book says the flowering is in winter and spring. Last year this plant was growing and drying up flowers in summer until it finally bloomed in late November.

This Aloinopsis rosulata is relatively new on the windowsil, I got it in March. The acclimation is going very well so far, a lot of new growth and always good reaction to water. It needs a sunnier spot but it is unfortunatelly too big to stand in the middle.

And finally Prepodesma orpenii! My other plant is growing flowers too but they are way too small and it is uncertain they will ever develop fully. In case they do I'll try to gather and store pollen from this one when it opens.

Titanopsis primosii seedlings

These Titanopsis primosii seedlings are one year old now and one of them is starting to develop side shoots. I'll have to repot them soon. In fact, all of the last year's mesemb seedlings are in need of transplantation... 

Argyroderma crateriforme (update)

A little update on the Argyroderma with the "brutally washed" roots. I've planted it into pumice as soon as I could see the first hint of new white water absorbing roots. Fortunately it has been doing well and nicely reacting to water ever since. Now it stays wrinkle-less even in full sun. But we have to remember that like with most of the mesembs bought as adults it must stay alive and well for at least a year to be able to say it's out of the woods.