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Opuntia compressa

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Anyone know where to get the seeds in Australia?

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I dont know Phosphene - but a little off topic sorry

(Im having a Hell of a time getting opuntia/loph grafts to take!!!!!... if someone can tell me what Im doing wrong or has experience and can help me please PM me??)

Cheers

Charliewired

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Phos,

If you don't specifically want this variant but you want to graft, then I have a large-ish opuntia that is a great grafting stock. Super growth, long-ish and fat pads.....not to dis similar to what you want. PM me if interested.

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Has anyone else tried the hipocotyl (spelling may be off - CBF'ed checking) grafting that was on the link above? Was it really much good? I wouldnt mind giving it a shot - perhaps I'd better see if there is any opuntias around town that could be harvested for seed...

On that note - has anyone tried it with other opuntias? I might have to look into this one...

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Has anyone else tried the hipocotyl (spelling may be off - CBF'ed checking) grafting that was on the link above? Was it really much good? I wouldnt mind giving it a shot - perhaps I'd better see if there is any opuntias around town that could be harvested for seed...

On that note - has anyone tried it with other opuntias? I might have to look into this one...

I was reading that link posted the other night and decided I might try my hand at it as I am just about to germinate a whole bunch of lophs and have some other interesting slow growing cacti germinating too, see if this hipocotyl grafting is any good. If you beat me to it Ace, would love to hear some feedback or if I beat you to it I will share what I know. Anyone else tried it?

That link should help you charliewired, it is the link that inspired me to give it a go.

Bongchitis, definitely interested mate, will shoot you a PM.

Still after some seed from that species though if anyone has any spare or knows where to get?

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Mesa garden (New Mexico)has opuntia Compressa seed.

I belive they ship internationaly also.

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Thanks Osprey will check into that.

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pics of the seedling grafting to opuntia is in the grafting book, same deal as doing it to peres. Hypocotyle is the area below the cotyledons on a seedling, so i can assume this guy is just cutting below the cotyledons.

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Hi Phosphene, why are you interested in that particular Opuntia? Yesterday i planted some Opuntia phaeacantha seedlings in my garden. Really Spiny Bastards. bye Eg

Edited by Evil Genius

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I picked up some large Opuntia pads today - probably 45 cm long. if anyone want them let me know. I'm still to figure out what species it is. Great old plants, They stood over 6 foot high with main 'trunks' about 5 inches in diameter. very few spines. they had fruit too that were just starting to turn from green to a red colour. Odd because I thought they would fruit in the warmer months.

:)

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I want to try some hypocotyle grafting EG and these are the recommended stock.

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Hi Phosphene, it surpises me that this species seems to be more rare than others as seed. I can get them as plants in germany but not as seeds. Mesa Garden is a great source. They have very cool stuff and i´ll probably order some Opuntia compressa seeds too. You made me interested in the plant. Do you know if it can stand frost? bye Eg

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Not sure if it tolerates frost? Will try and find out. I can't seem to find the seeds on the Mesa Garden catalogue. Strange...

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mmmh, i cant´t find them in any of my catalogues and i have many. Maybe it´s a sterile hybrid? Kakteen Haage in Germay has plants! If we arent able to find out more i´ll ask them why they dont have the seed.

Edited by Evil Genius

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Many Oputias are very frost hardy in fact its one of the catus youll see in Canada sitting under a foot of snow - no problems!(and its one of the few species that grows native in Canada)

But I followed that grafting method you posted the link to.... and Im having a hell of a time gettin "ONE" to take after several attempts!!!

Perhaps the seedlings Im using are too old or something - but it just wont work!!

I have the exact same opuntia and everything - its a real bitch because appearantly its a fair graft stock and is fairly plentiful around here in garden centers and the like.

huh have to keep trying I guess,,,,

Cheers

Charliewired

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Thats a shame to hear about your lack of success with the opuntia/seedling grafts... as you can see in the photo in Teo's grafting book, I've been having success with grafting T.bridgesii seedlings to O.compressa but it does seem to be more difficult than the Pereskiopsis grafts...

Ive found that misting them lightly seems to help as the Opuntia dries out and shrinks much more than pereskiposis....

I think the other main thing to consider is that the vascular tissue you are trying to align is in a straight line as opposed to a small ring like in the pereskiopsis and I have been testing a theory that if you align the cotyledons on the seedling with the line in the opuntia it's more likely to take (its still early days yet so I have no proof of this)

My reason for trying this was that after cutting a few seedlings (they were astropytums) I noticed that instead of having a tiny vascular ring, they seemed to all have two little points, eg. this ( : ) instead of this ( o ).

The two points were in line with the cotyledons - so Im guessing that unlike a ring, which will intersect no matter where you place it (providing it is actually ON the vascular tissue of your root stock) you need to make sure that the line of the vascular "points" of the seedling a running in the same direction as the vascular "line" on the Opuntia.

Does this make any sense? If not, let me know and I'll do a diagram....

But yeah, like I said before, this is just a new found theory which I have yet to prove either way...

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philistine

I know exactly what you are talking about - Ill have to try that next time.. I think the two point section is more pronounce depending where you actually cut the scion, and also whether you let the scion etiolate somewhat in order to get a double graft scion and rootscion... thanks youve given me something to go on now at least..

cheers

charliewired

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Ive tried the double graft thing, but the root-halves always die on me.... I know some people have luck with it, but Ive given up on it all together... I got sick of seeing the shriveled up deadness :blush:

But yeah see how ya go, I'll try to get some pics up of a large batch of seedling/opuntia grafts Ive done recently... once they show some signs of growth.

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Here's some opuntia compressa grafts.

Some pictures right when they were grafted,and more pictures of the same grafts two months later.

Very plump,and already pupping on some.

I think it is a great stock for grafting.

The grafting process is simple, and the opuntia multiplies really fast.

cold hardy and long lasting

I like it.

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Very nice Pictures Osprey! Thanks for sharing! Did you buy yours from Mesa Garden? Last week i´ve planted some other Opuntia species in my garden. I hope that they grow fast as i need more grafting stocks soon. My seedlings take too long until they are big enough to graft. Now i´ll try out Opuntias. Have you lost some seedlings due to the grafting? bye Eg

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I just got a tiny cutting from them a few years ago and propigated it.

I never tried to graft tiny seedlings on to Opuntia

the smallest seedling so far,was about 3/16"diameter.

i've lost a couple,but mostly due to lack of experience

I think there's alot of potential here.The sap is very sticky.

keep trying charliewired,it's very easy once you get the hang of it

Another stock I really like lately,is egg sized T. Grandifloris.

They really make a nice low graft,and are just the right shape to re-graft larger offsets onto

Here's a picture of some 2 month old grafts on grandifloris? stock.

you can see,it's time to de- pup the stock.

the scions are all pupping very well.

Of course, any tricocereus between 2-6" makes a good stock for 1/4" and bigger scions

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Edited by Osprey

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Hi Osprey, have you ever tried small Echinopsis Pups? You readily get heaps of them with a few motherplants and therefore i sometimes use them. Echinopsis L400 produced more than 50 Pups in just one growing season! bye Eg

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Thats awesome Osprey!!!

Seeing pictures like that makes a guy think hell I can do that!

Im wondering if I have the right opuntia! Its more of a greygreen with purplish areas,,, I kind of have it out on the patio - mabye its in too much sun or not recieving the proper care?

Ill try and snap a photo and see if someone can tell me whats going on with it - if it is indeed O.compressa???

... Im excited to try and do some grafts on a couple of night blooming orchid cactus I have - appearantly they are very good also! anyone know about that?

Cheers

Charliewired

PS heres the photos

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this one is classed as a noxious weed in Oz, up here its classified as neat-o

Opuntia.elata/paraguayensis

Picture030-1.jpg

thanks for looking any ideas?

Edited by charliewired

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