myco Posted February 9, 2013 (edited) hey guys i have some Blossfeldia Liliputana seed here im wondering if anyone has had any experience with germinating these and just growing in general from what i have read they can be a bit difficult people seem to say germinating is fairly easy its keeping them alive afterwards i have sown some already just using my normal method takeaway container, coarse sand, very small amount of organic matter so im just wanting to hear if anyone has had any experience with this particular species and if anyone has any tips i came across this while searching for some info (check the last pic out) very different way of doing things im not really sure how exactly everything stays in there http://tephroweb.ch/kuas/bloss.htm Edited February 9, 2013 by myco Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stillman Posted February 9, 2013 i'd like to grow them, but the seeds are so expensive. Awesome tiny cacti. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bigred Posted February 9, 2013 i reckon if you put them under a few compact fluro's just to give them that head start in life Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted February 9, 2013 i could probly spare a few seeds for ya stillman they're very very small i havent seen alot of different cacti seed but these are the smallest i've seen so far theyre on the heatpad under the flouro's hopefully i see some germinate soon they were only sown on thursday 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jox Posted February 9, 2013 I have put this spp down about 3 weeks ago, so probably don't know much more than you myco. They have germinated & are looking good but they are tiny & I'm not sure how long to leave them grow before I try a graft. I will take some photos tomorrow & put them here. I sowed them in 2/3 sifted seed raising mix & 1/3 sand & have them in a cupboard under 90watt MH light. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted February 9, 2013 awesome jox would love to see some pics lookin forward to seein some of mine start germinating Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jox Posted February 10, 2013 OK, just looked at the tag. I sowed these on the 7/1/13, the photo was taken today (10/2/13) so there 4 weeks & 3 days, I have placed a toothpick along side them to show you just how small they are. 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jox Posted November 7, 2013 Hey myco, I was just wondering how you are going with your seedlings? I watched mine slowly shrivel away . The good news is I just harvested around 100 fresh seeds from one of my grafted B. liliputana yesterday, so I can try my luck again. If you have had dramas with yours let me know & I will put some fresh seed aside for you . Cheers Jox Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stillman Posted November 7, 2013 (edited) Are they self fertile Jox someone gave me a grafted plant its doing well. I killed all my seedlings attempting to graft them and overwatering lol. Edited November 7, 2013 by Stillman Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jox Posted November 7, 2013 They certainly are self fertile, I helped spread the love a little with the brush but that was just moving the pollen around. I had two flowers this spring already, I got around 50 seeds from each. The trick is to leave the fruit on the plant until it has dried but you must keep a close eye on them as you don't want them to split out side as you would lose a the tiny seeds. Cheers Jox 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hellonasty Posted November 7, 2013 Yep Jox is correct they are definitely self fertile and usually produce seed without any interference by me. Very difficult species on their own roots but great when grafted. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GoOnThen Posted November 7, 2013 If my memory is correct the way to go with these is to keep them in humidity for about a year like you would Aztekium ritteri. This so they are a bit bigger when you take them out and they have more chance of surviving. Dont take this as true fact as I have been know to be wrong. Cheers Got Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dawnbeaver Posted November 7, 2013 (edited) Seeds sown... I put a mixture of seed raising mix 75% and sand/grit 25% + two pinches of ground limestone into this container, sprayed it with fungicide (Thiram) then nuked it in the microwave for 2 minutes before allowing to cool. Then added the seeds, simply sprinkled on top. Now it is on the back shelf in the greenhouse. To stop the moisture that forms on the inside of the containers lid from dripping down on the seeds and hopefully shortly, seedlings... I set it on a slight lean. I'll update when/if we see life within... Edited November 9, 2013 by dawnbeaver Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dawnbeaver Posted December 2, 2013 As at 2 Dec, the closest inspection reveals a single minute green dot. We have life... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted December 3, 2013 hey hadnt even noticed this thread had been brought back up my containers still have a couple in there there still so god damn tiny i dont know what the fuck to do with em i keep thinking i should try and graft some but like stillman i think i t would just fail due to how small they are i can barely even make them out in the soil mix i really wish i'd used a finer sand in there maybe theyd be a little bit easier to spot i've been opening the containers up a little bit lately in hopes they might get a bit bigger once they get used to less humidity they definately are not an easy one to grow i mean mine are close to a year old and still you can barely even spot them i really didnt think they would stay this small for this long i've still got plenty of seed left so i plan on trying some more soon Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted December 3, 2013 i think yours grew faster than mine at the beggining atleast jox its a shame they didnt make it nearly a year on and mine are still this tiny its insane i even plucked one out and it has virtually no root system at all on it check it out Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hostilis Posted December 3, 2013 I recently grafted some aztekium that were this small onto pereskiopsis. I put a tiny bit of vaseline VERY VERY carefully around the seam on the graft, put them in darkness for 3 days, then put them in humidity for 14 days and the grafts took. I'm guessing you could do the same with those myco. Here's a picture or reference. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted December 3, 2013 Thanks Hostilis That gives me little bit more hope that I may be able to succeed with grafting some of these I think I'll try a couple out tomorrow 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dawnbeaver Posted December 19, 2013 Seeds sown... I put a mixture of seed raising mix 75% and sand/grit 25% + two pinches of ground limestone into this container, sprayed it with fungicide (Thiram) then nuked it in the microwave for 2 minutes before allowing to cool. Then added the seeds, simply sprinkled on top. Now it is on the back shelf in the greenhouse. To stop the moisture that forms on the inside of the containers lid from dripping down on the seeds and hopefully shortly, seedlings... I set it on a slight lean. I'll update when/if we see life within... bos lil1.jpg A few weeks later and there are a lot of tiny green dots. They seem easy enough to germinate but are incredibly tiny. I'm trying to have the moisture level in the sealed container just moist enough to support life in the hope that they wont get root rot. I read somewhere that it was possible to grow them on a porous rock, pumice I assume. Anyone heard of that method? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hostilis Posted December 19, 2013 That aztekium graft grew like 6 areoles and then it ended up dying after the bug attack i suffered. Just though I'd update on it. Good luck with the blossfeldia dawnbeaver. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted December 20, 2013 Damn that sucks hostilis I Attempted 2 blossfeldia grafts they were both looking great after a week and a half then I thought id take them out of the humidity chamber and overnight they shriveled into nothing I think they definately need to be kept in a high humidity for alot longer than other grafts Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hostilis Posted December 20, 2013 That's for sure. I dusted all my plants with DE powder then after a week washed them off with water. I think that process sucked all the moisture out of the scion because overnight it turned into a tiny little aztekium raisin. But i'm going to plant some more seeds plus hintonii and will attempt it again. Never surrender! Lol. I am also thinking of trying blossfeldia when I start the aztekium. Put them in the same container so that i can just keep them all in high humidity for a long time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted December 20, 2013 I'm gonna sow a bunch more of these seeds to play around with i think i grafted a few more today see how we go this time gonna try and keep them in the humidity chamber as long as possible i'm thinking leave them in there until i start to see some decent growth on them is gonna be the key to success here wish me luck 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted January 7, 2014 (edited) So the 3 grafts I did (on the 20th of dec according to my last post I've really gotta start dating things) I Have kept them in the humidity chamber and they have taken well and are still lookin healthy enough no signs of growth yet so I'm gonna keep em in there at the moment But I'm still very pleased with the results so far I'll try and get some pics up later today Edited January 7, 2014 by myco 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
myco Posted February 26, 2014 finally snapped a couple of pics today of the lone survivor its still ridiculously small fingers crossed it survives there is one other grafted one but i really don't think he's gonna make it 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites