Tassiescott

I make a no till type organic soil mix. It would be too rich for cactis but never needs added fertilisers and actually gets better with age so you get multiple grows from it. 1/3 Peat Moss (certified organic comes in aprox 30kg block for $30 from Agricultural supply stores) 1/3 perlite (available from same place, 100 litre bag for $30) 1/3 either quality organic compost or worm castings or combination of both To make a cubic foot add 1.5 cups of powdered organic fertilizer (available from bunnings) 1 cup of kelp meal (available from agricultural supply shops) 4 cups of rock dust ( available from bunnings but heaps cheaper at Agricultural supply stores or anyplace selling landscaping rocks and top soils) Mix up, keep damp. In 3 to 4 weeks it has finished cooking and will supercharge growing your veges or other nutrient loving plants. If you google the effects of the kelp and rockdust their inclusion is obvious. This mix is far better than anything you can buy. When the plants are finished, rip out the root ball, if you can't shake the soil off it, dryfor a couple of days them chop it up. Add 1/3 total root ball size of perlite, 1/4 to 1/3 cup of powered organic fertilizer, 1/4 cup of kelp meal and 1 part quality organic compost or worm castings ( or combination of both) to 4 parts old soil/root ball. You can keep using this mix for years by repeating this process.

Cool. Thanks heaps for the info guys.

Ok so the question i must now ask is, at what temps and sunlight hours do trichos enter their dormacy stage? Was going down to 3 degrees tonight, had pots over their tips, ended up putting them in the laundry overnight. Will chuck them outside again when the frost fucks off. Have a unused 1m x 1m x 3m grow tent plus 600w led array i use to boost my vegie seedlings before putting them outside in the early spring. Should i put the trichos in there inside?

Hi guys, going to pull the few potted trichos i have inside while they are dormant. My question is i have two spots to choose from, a relatively dark shed or into my fishing gear room where they will get a bit of light from a window? I assumed that the darker shed would be the better option as two of them suffered from a bit of etiolation from indirect light while rooting and or not enough enough direct sunlight when first rooted.

All good, killed it myself.

Hey waterboy, makes me sorry i posted this thread as no doubt the cunts will come out again. I am glad i have left it alone. I have just ordered some seeds as i want one of my own. Mods please delete thread.

Thanks mate, i had been admiring this plant for many years. It is nice to have a name for it. I will post some pics when it flowers, i visit it every couple of months.

Pretty much on point mate, the bush is the undeveloped, sparcely populated countryside be it temperate forests, scrubland, desert, or tropical rainforsests ect.

+1 for Stone, absolute Aussie classic.

Thanks guys

Hi mate, i will jump in on this since no one else has. To be honest, regarding Trich seeds no idea as i am a total cactus newb. I do however freeze all of my other seeds be they be my next season's vege seeds (i never buy these, have been collecting, freezing over winter and propagating the same ones for well over a decade). I immediately freeze my choof seeds i buy online as well as my wollemi pine seeds, just to name a few. Many seeds freeze over winter, start to thaw early spring and germinate when the temps are within range. Even seeds that this doesn't happen to in nature do not seem to suffer from doing this. I normally defrost in the fridge for a week to simulate the beginning of the spring thaw then germinate. I have had excellent germination rates on seeds which have been in the freezer for literally many years. I guess in my ignorance the quick freeze then defrost again may be a problem, i really don't know but am sure someone else with more knowledge can comment on this. Worse case scenerio, get a heat mat and germinate them now.

Hi everyone, thanks for the interest shown in my babies. I have confirmed with Aus Post today that the express postage service guarantee is not availlable at present and express post delivery times may be a minimum of 5 business days from Hobart to Sydney, Brisbane ect and even longer to regional areas. I don't want these plants to die during transportation as i send them in a sealed conduit tube in a postpack tube. I will pm interested parties hopefully in a couple of weeks when i can guarantee quick delivery

Hi mate, after seeing googling the pygmae dragon toes i think you are right. I am lucky to have six of these now due to it pupping. Keen to get a couple to full size. The ones in the Botanical gardens down here have them over 40cm high and wide. They look really cool.

Thanks mate, from looking online it had appeared most like a butterfly agave in my ignorance. It was given to me as a tiny pup. A mates kid had kicked it out of the ground while running around the botantical gardens down here. I have since noticed that the botantical gardens have a few large ones which do not have a name plate so had no idea what it was.