Moses Posted July 4, 2010 o.k iv'e had these seedlings a couple of years now (sourced from S.A.B.)i started them inside under lights then outside since then, as you can see by the group pic they are with a lot of other lops which are under the same conditions yet not showing the same growth alot of them went reddish when put outside like norm from elevated light but these few (all the huizache form) not only are two fairly columnular but two also have this red through them. they have kept this colour for atleast 18 months now so i'm considering they are varigated. but what is with the columnular growth? have some of you more seasoned growers any answers? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kindness Posted July 4, 2010 can't shed much light on this for you, sorry. Nice looking plants though. It is bizzare that they are so tall! a couple of questions 1.)lighting conditions? How long do they get light... is this something they have done more in Winter or do they stay this way year round? 2.)What type of soil do you have them growing in? Is it the same as your other lovely lophs? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
naja naja Posted July 4, 2010 I have also had two seedlings etoliate, I thought due to lack of light, since increasing light conditions and grafting one of them they have become normal again. Can't comment on redness though, but lets hope it is vari. Peace Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
incognito Posted July 4, 2010 maybee not getting watered enough?? my young lophs seem to drink a bit, if i dont keep the water up to them they go dormant, then instead of continuing their growth they pup through the aereoles. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Moses Posted July 4, 2010 can't shed much light on this for you, sorry. Nice looking plants though. It is bizzare that they are so tall! a couple of questions 1.)lighting conditions? How long do they get light... is this something they have done more in Winter or do they stay this way year round? 2.)What type of soil do you have them growing in? Is it the same as your other lovely lophs? they sit in a shade house all year so full sun through beige shade cloth, the tray is on the lower level strange all the others arent affected if it's light. soil identical in all lops(sand/peat) the large tray pictured is flooded to bottom water all at once so all watering is identical. they have shown these strange traits since very young and as they are very slow growing cacti i put both height and colour down to seedling traits but it's getting past that point now so im startin to consider other causes(varigation/monstrosity) and being a local source of seed(S.A.B.) i wondered if others have noticed any strange seedlings. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
arnold500 Posted July 4, 2010 Hi Moses You might be right, re variegated and montrose. however to me they look 'soft grown' I think its quite common for small Mexican cacti to grow columated if the conditions are too good. i know the traditional wisdom is to water from the bottom, however with seedlings that size I tend to water more conventionally, that way you can control the amount of water. In nature it might only rain once a year. Also the size of pot compared to the loph will allow retention of water over a long period, I know this from experience digging up seedlings I thought were dry to find a clump of damp soil in the centre of the pot. Also peat retains moisture and is also nitrogen rich. Try a bit of tough love, 50:50 loam and grit, and a few mls of water once in a while. only my opinion... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mutant Posted July 4, 2010 Exciting! They sure look interesting, the coloured ones and the tallish tubercled one . Great job and effort put on those lophos, awesome work! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Moses Posted July 5, 2010 Hi Moses You might be right, re variegated and montrose. however to me they look 'soft grown' I think its quite common for small Mexican cacti to grow columated if the conditions are too good. i know the traditional wisdom is to water from the bottom, however with seedlings that size I tend to water more conventionally, that way you can control the amount of water. In nature it might only rain once a year. Also the size of pot compared to the loph will allow retention of water over a long period, I know this from experience digging up seedlings I thought were dry to find a clump of damp soil in the centre of the pot. Also peat retains moisture and is also nitrogen rich. Try a bit of tough love, 50:50 loam and grit, and a few mls of water once in a while. only my opinion... all the lops were started in river sand only then planted to sand/gravel and watered conventionally and these three started expressing these traits then. it is only in the last 12 months that they have all been in the peat/sand mix as it was suggested on here that good growth was gained by the peat(it's great for rooting lop pups).All have loved the soil and look healthy i'm just startin to wonder bout these three that's all. question is if it's the way i'm growing them then why is nothing else weird? is the huizache form more tempermental/fussy than others? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lophty_tricho Posted July 5, 2010 The pink ones are variegated- Theres some similar looking ones on the loph blog. I've got a caespitosa which grows tall- more tall than it is round. It's looking a bit mite bitten- I'll post a pic Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
