thistime Posted August 29, 2012 hi all, some lophs from seed at day 14. i used 2/3 course sand 1/3 perlite and well nuked. i dont have a heat mat so have them under a 15 watt aquarium light, temp stays between 22-28c. they're 3-5 mm high and from day 10 started showing feathers from the tops. 52 of 100 came up but on day 3 i opened the lids ( thought they needed a misting, der ) and killed about half and the rest have either stopped or gone dormant. big leason there. so, a few questions if any1 would be good enough to advise. how long should i leave them in the tubs, is it best to go by age or size? would an adition of organic matter like sifted potting mix have been a good idea? what is a good light/dark cycle? and when should i start feeding them? appolagies for pic quality, still trying to figure out my cam. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Evil Genius Posted August 29, 2012 Hi Times, where are they? Just kidding but my eyes are seriously fucked. Organic material is NOT a very good idea for Lophs. It causes them to rot and promotes Fungal infections. I like your soil type so all is good. You might get a bit of algae though so keep an eye on that. When they get bigger, you can cover the fine soil with small 1-2mm quartz stones. This keeps algae and lichens away. You can keep the lid up for a few months. Maybe 3 or so. But thats not a general rule. If you see that anything goes wrong, you have to adapt. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sallubrious Posted August 29, 2012 How long did you have the lid off when you misted them ? I've misted Lophs around that age without problems, I had cobweb mould so I sprayed them with a mild H202 solution. You say they have stopped growing, are they getting 24 hrs light to keep them warm. If so that could be impeding growth as cactus are CAM plants that need a dark period to transpire, so their stomata is closed through the photo period. To grow properly they need a dark period to allow their stomata to open and let them exchange gasses etc. Without a dark period they will run out of C02 and not be able to feed themselves. http://www.cssnz.org...-succulents.php They really don't need any more than about 16 hrs of light but there are varying opinions on photoperiod, as long as they get a good dark period they should be fine. If you can give them a few more watts of light, 15 watts is only just enough. An aquarium tube probably isn't the best spectrum either, a cool white CFL would probably be better. A mix of cool white and warm white would be excellent. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theuserformallyknownasd00d Posted August 29, 2012 Wow i didn't know that sallyd, I've had mine under 24hr lights since seedlings 8mths ago... Lately they haven't been looking good even under optimum light strength soils etc... Light now on 16/8! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thistime Posted August 30, 2012 thanx evry1. @ sallyD, i do have the light on 24hrs so will do as suggested now. thanx for the link too. @ Evil Genius, thanx for the heads up with soil mix and quartz. i was a bit sus about some of the things i'd read suggesting sifted potting mix mostly due to me being a noob but it's good to know it's generaly not a good idea. oh and they are north end of living island Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thistime Posted August 8, 2013 Hi all, haven't been here for a while. These lophs are 1 year from seed and the media has dried over winter. I've learnt a bit and lost a few, o.k. i lost a lot. I am wondering if i need to wait for them to show signs of wilting before watering at this age or any age or should i just go back to the same care as last growing season? Also i tried grafting a few onto some hylocereus but just ended up with orange mush after about a week. They seemed fine, nice and plump on the graft but turned mushy overnight. Could this be a hygeine issue, poor choice of grafting stock or both? Thanx for any advice people, take it ezy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
