Auxin Posted March 31, 2007 Has anyone attempted to graft a seedling scion to a seedling hypocotyl stock? In trying to find a use for some Opuntia sp. seed I came across I found out folks are using this technique with Opuntia compressa to increase the growth rate of high-desert cacti and lessen chances of root rot on highly susceptible species. In the first photo Here a Strombocactus disciformis is shown which was hypocotyl grafted to O. compressa, its not distorted and you cant even tell it was grafted. And Here they show a the exposed roots of Ariocarpus hypocotyl grafted on O. compressa and Cereus peruvianus, with the O. compressa being superior. I believe the seed I got is Opuntia ficus-indica which reportedly grows to 5 meters tall, I figure that beast might have too much vigor for little high-desert cacti (hense the use of O. compressa) but perhaps not... and if nothing else maby O. ficus-indica could be used to speed up growth of things like Echinopsis terscheckii? I only have 5 E. terscheckii seedlings so I'm a bit nervous over the thought of trying it Maby first I'll try it with a pack of mixed cactus seed I have, only problem is not knowing if it will end up a hedgehog or a saguaro Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
strangebrew Posted April 1, 2007 (edited) That's really neat. Edited April 1, 2007 by strangebrew Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kadakuda Posted April 1, 2007 looks cool. opuntia sp. seem to take a little longer to germ, so i would plant em now. might take a month. i have not grafted that way, but i have grafted some pachanoi seedlings to opuntia sp. i am still waiting to see how good it is though... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mulch Posted April 3, 2007 hey auxin. what a great post. i love it. i've grafted lophs, epithelantha and ariocarpus this way onto opuntia, echinopsis and myrtillocactus sprouts, with the aim being the provision of a reliable root system for the desired species. the increase in growth rate was reasonable, not stunning, but my goal was for reliable specimens true to form, which the technique certainly provides for. in my limited experience the opuntia is preferable. The terscheckii will wanna grow up to 6 metres or so on it own roots. Your opuntia could do the same. they're both pretty hardy (depending on your location). i see no real benefit grafting the seedling terschekii to the seedling ficus-indica. if i was trying to find a use for the opuntia seed, i'd stick to grafting the globular dry climate cactii. i'd put the terschekii seedlings onto an established echinopsis spp. stock. WHHOOOSH! however, i think you should give it a go with 1 or 2. and i'd love to see some pictures of the results. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Auxin Posted April 3, 2007 Ah, good to hear someone here has done this successfully Yeah I reconsidered the terscheckii thing, ficus-indica would obliterate its cold hardiness in my zone (-11°C winters here) and while a more cold hardy species might give it a bit more growth in its first year I doubt it would be enough to justify the added risk of not having it on its own roots. If I try anything with one of those it'll be giving one a year on a E. pachanoi. I dug out a (several year old) packet of mixed cactus seed and planted a few today to try my hand on a couple before attempting it with any non-expendable seed. Tho I dont know which seeds were which and have no clue what I would do with a saguaro or a cardon if one were to sprout Assuming these seed are still viable I'll keep photos all the way Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
