cactuswatcher (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
cactuswatcher) wrote2008-02-23 01:28 pm
cactuswatcher) wrote2008-02-23 01:28 pm
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Here's what I found yesterday morning
My tallest cactus had broken during a very mild rain storm. In fact all of the tall stems of this group have broken since last spring except the one in the back leaning against the wall. Nothing mysterious or sinister just the tops getting too heavy for the stems. Much of the blame goes to nurseries that force grow cacti to make more money. Fertilizer and cacti really don't mix well. Fortunately this particular kind branches freely and as long as the roots are good they will keep growing. The stems which have grown up from ground from scratch since I planted this group including the big fat one in front are all sturdier and should get taller than the originals without bending and breaking. (The stem was about 2 meters tall before it broke. The dark shadow is from a saguaro that's about 1 meter tall.)
Echinopsis Pechanoi (the group in the center) Echinocactus grusonii (the big barrel with the yellow spines) Agave macroacantha (Which in better light looks like a skinny leafed version of the agave in my icon)
As long as I'm showing pictures of my weeds here is a shot along a piece of the back wall. The big bush is an Australian native called a Senna. It absolutely loves the climate here. It seems to grow whether it rains or not. Last year the bush was mostly finished blooming by this time in February. With the colder weather this year the bloom has just started. Just started and the plant already looks lopsided from the weight of the blooms!
My tallest cactus had broken during a very mild rain storm. In fact all of the tall stems of this group have broken since last spring except the one in the back leaning against the wall. Nothing mysterious or sinister just the tops getting too heavy for the stems. Much of the blame goes to nurseries that force grow cacti to make more money. Fertilizer and cacti really don't mix well. Fortunately this particular kind branches freely and as long as the roots are good they will keep growing. The stems which have grown up from ground from scratch since I planted this group including the big fat one in front are all sturdier and should get taller than the originals without bending and breaking. (The stem was about 2 meters tall before it broke. The dark shadow is from a saguaro that's about 1 meter tall.)
Echinopsis Pechanoi (the group in the center) Echinocactus grusonii (the big barrel with the yellow spines) Agave macroacantha (Which in better light looks like a skinny leafed version of the agave in my icon)
As long as I'm showing pictures of my weeds here is a shot along a piece of the back wall. The big bush is an Australian native called a Senna. It absolutely loves the climate here. It seems to grow whether it rains or not. Last year the bush was mostly finished blooming by this time in February. With the colder weather this year the bloom has just started. Just started and the plant already looks lopsided from the weight of the blooms!
