Jump to content
The Corroboree
Jox

Ariocarpus germination??

Recommended Posts

Hi all,

Just looking for some advise & am hoping there are some members out there that that grow these awesome cacti from seed.

I have had a far bit of success germinating cactus seed (so far ), I use a sifted & sterilized seed raising mix placed in chinese containers, I fill the containers 3/4 full with mix & then top with about 5mm of propagation sand & make sure it gets a good soaking. Then I will place the seeds on top or press them in a little depending on the size, These containers are put into a mini green house (38l x 24w x 18h) that is covered with shade cloth that lets 50% light through, I have a 150w MH light 40cms above. This is setup in a cupboard & the 150w light at that distance keeps them warm & I haven't had to worry about any other kind of heating.

This method has worked well for other Mexican minis like Turbinicarpus, Epithelantha & others

Now I would like to try my hand at Ariocarpus & would appreciate any advise.

Will this method be ok?

I have a variety of Ario seed ( A.agavoides, A.bravoanus, A.confusus, A.fissuratus, A.furfuraceus, A.kotschoubeyanus, A.lloydii, A.retusus, A.scapharostrus & A.trigonus ) & would like to know if I treat them all the same ( as far as germ goes )?

Like I said your help & advise is greatly appreciated.

Cheers

jox

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Jox, yeah that setups works for Ariocarpi as well. But make sure to get very fresh seeds. Ariocarpus seed is a little bit more shortlived than other seed. If you get bad results, try cold treatment.

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ive had 40-50% with the takeaway tek. German seeds ...

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

germinating arios is easy, but the question for me is, how to you make the seedling grow??

all my seedling arios refuse to get bigger, and i have no idea why.

the lophs in the same seedlings tray are already 6mm in diametre, but all arios stayed, almost the the same size as the emerged.

i don't think it's lack of nutes or temperature, but maybe they need far more water than lophs to grow.

i say this because i believe, that jox's setup, might produce good growth, if the seedlings stay in the containers, enjoying the enormous ammounts of moisture....

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Planthelper, arios grow very slow compared to other cacti. Fastest way to grow them is grafting. Not really sure if they need more water than others because my seedlings usually withstand very long drought periods. Would probably pump them with water and nutrients if they dont grow. Not the healthiest way to raise cacti but it helps to get em big in a short time.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

As EG says, arios grow extremely slowly & the best way to kill them is over watering. Even more slowly than lophs. If you want to accelerate their growth, they must be grafted, first to pereskiopsis or O compressa and then to something more substantial as they get older.

I have a few large old arios and fresh seed every year. Own rooted plants as small as 3-4 cms can flower & produce viable seeds.

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks for your feed back so far,

I have two children & this has taught me patience & made me realize just how fast time goes by.

I much prefer cacti all natural & on there own roots but my plan is to grow about five of each kind & graft two & let the other three grow on there own roots.

From what I have read it seems different spp of Arios grow & flower faster than others, anyway I will need patience as I am also going to try to grow Aztekium ritteri.

Like I said thanks for the feed back,

keep it coming.

Cheers

jox

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

hi!

hmm, how to say that fast?

there are many variables in horticulture, and when we talk about it, it's impossible, to always mention and to include descriptions of all the variables involved...

for example one person say's, "i water my loph's every 3 day's in the summer", but us the readers don't know anything about the soil involved. every 3 day's could kill, if the soil is waterholding, but could be too little if, it's waterholding capacity is low.

so people please give more info about the variables (your climat, soil, setup, etc.)

what works in qld, might not work in england, and so on....

anyway, my ario retusus seedlings are in hydrophopic soil, i watered them more often now, and it seemed to have increased the virgor.

pic's of retusus of exactly the same age, seedlings and grafted specimen, side by side:

post-70-0-04950200-1343966657_thumb.jpg

close up of retusus seedling:

post-70-0-96632500-1343966709_thumb.jpg

close up of grafted retusus (same focus as previous pic!) i love this "alien look" about it.

post-70-0-90459000-1343966769_thumb.jpg

and yes, different arios, have different growth rates, and aswell will grow to different sizes (in short some are just small by nature). i guess, i got my ario seeds, of you zelly, not sure though.

Ariocarpus_retusus_own_roots_vs_graft.JPG

Ariocarpus_retusus_seedling.JPG

Ariocarpus_retusus_peres_graft.JPG

Ariocarpus_retusus_own_roots_vs_graft.JPG

Ariocarpus_retusus_seedling.JPG

Ariocarpus_retusus_peres_graft.JPG

Edited by planthelper
  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

@ EG, cheers you are always a good source of info mate, can you please explain cold treatment? Has this got something to do with freezing your seeds before planting?

@ zelly thanks for your comments mate, what kind of Arios do you keep?

@ ph, I understand want your saying about watering/growing medium, with my mini & slow growing cacti that are prone to rot, I have them in a 50/50 cactus mix/perlite & can give them a fair bit of water but this 50/50 ratio drys to quick for my columnar cacti, tricos etc.

Your little retusus looks cool,I have seeds here for six different forms of retusus & cant wait to see how they go.

The main reason for me making this post is to make sure I can get the best germination results as I would hate to waste these great seeds.

Cheers

jox

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Cold Treatment or stratification is a way to improve the germination rate of difficult seed because many of them tend to have some kind of built-in protection against germinating at a time when they wouldnt survive the climate. Many plants in nature germinate in spring so all you need to do is simulate a winter to your seeds. Make sure the seeds or the soil you keep the seeds in are moist and store them in the fridge or a freezer for 1-2 months. Then just start germinating them like before. You could also try a little bit of direct sunlight a day to wake the older seeds up. But depending on how old the seed is, you might need a lot of patience. Ariocarpus seed is a type of seed that stays viable for a very long time and i´ve heard of cases where even 80 year old seed still produced some seedlings.

Edited by Evil Genius
  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

@ jox, most of the arios I grow can be seen in pics in post # 22 & 23 in this thread:

http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=21478

@ph- I water my grafted arios on the average 1x monthly, and arios on their own roots even less frequently. For own root plants I try to maintain a pot size no bigger than plant diameter + 5 to 6 cm. Arios get front row seating in the gh, as close to the glazing as possible & maximum heat & light from the sun. I have some in hanging baskets hanging from the rafters of the gh.

A real hard thing for us humans is we want plants to grow on our time schedules, we want big plants right now. We dont usually have the time to invest 30-40 years into growing a plant from seedling to full maturity, we want meaningful results much faster. So we graft, pump full of nutes & water and more or less force the plant into a much more robust growth profile than what nature intended.

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

@ zelly, they are beautiful looking plants mate.

You are obviously the man to ask about Arios :)

I like that agavoides x hintonii, I have a few A.bravoanus x A.agavoides seeds & it will be interesting to see how these turn out.

I was just wondering is A. hintonii also know as A.bravoanus var hintonii? I'm asking because I have received A.bravoanus & A.bravoanus var hintonii seeds.

@EG, thanks for the info on the cold treatment, hopefully I wont need to do this but its always good to be learning (love this place).

Cheers

jox

Edited by Jox

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×