PleaSE help me ID this CacTuS

[lowjackal]

I'm fairly sure it's a pedro or maybe I'm dead wrong.

Heres another of the same column.

And another from a different angle.

Here is the mother plant that this one came from. I'm not experienced enough at looking for the defining characteristics to call it. Thats where the forum members can shine a light on this puppy for me. Is it? or is it not? Is you is,or,is you aint my baby?

I know from reading alot of the threads here that someone will be able to shoot me an ID.

Thanks and keep it cool, or at least keep it a lil' bit chilly.

[Philocacti]

Yup looks like a PC pachanoi to me ;)

[Halcyon Daze]

FYI PC stands for Pretty Crappy. It's really common.

Edited February 12, 2014 by Halcyon Daze

[zelly]

FYI PC stands for Pretty Crappy

trust me, when ya got 50-60 flowers of this plant, all open at once & filling your garden, yard, & neighborhood with their exquisite fragrance.........you wont care what its called...

[Philocacti]

"Pretty crappy" is in the eye of the beholder ;)

I'm receiving a PC cutting soon and I'm very excited about it, cuz PC pachanoi is not a predominant cultivator where I live

[lowjackal]

good Replies. So what makes it a PC pedro as opposed top a top notch pachanoi???

Like what attributes does a non-PC pachanoi exhibit?

Is it in the spines, the ribs?

Seeing as how you cared enough to reply, please explain or better yet if you gots a link, dat would do. But I've read about everything I can google on the pachanoi.

EDITED BY MODERATOR! NO DISCUSSION OF POTENCY AND ALKALOIDS HERE!

Edited February 12, 2014 by Evil Genius

[Evil Genius]

Hi Lowjackal, you´ll have to google some more to get an answer to your question! Discussion of potency and alkaloid content is not allowed here!

[lowjackal]

No problem. Thank you for the edit. I like it the way you edited it better, and I'll be sure to keep that in mind when posting from now on. I didnt really want to know about that subject anyway. It was really kind of me being a smart ass without overtly coming out and being rude. My bad!

So Philo, PC pachanoi? whenever you got time I'd like to hear how you determined it to be of lower value.

I'm just stoked that it isnt absolutely worthless to a collecter of entheogens.

It isnt worthless as well as crappy is it?

Edited February 12, 2014 by lowjackal

[Philocacti]

Nothing's worthless

You know what they say "one mans trash is another ones treasure"

Here's a link that'll get you started

http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=19992

Find some key words and google them and you'll find all what you need ;)

[2XB]

Pc is great for making your garden look rad. Its attractive and fast growing. Also good grafting stock.

[Quixote]

I think people just poo-poo the PC because it's very common. For a collector, it's maybe not very interesting, but I like mine.

[DiscoStu]

maybe it's riomizquensis

[M S Smith]

I think people just poo-poo the PC because it's very common. For a collector, it's maybe not very interesting, but I like mine.

Yeah, common for sure, but I think the feelings about it also have to do with the fact that in many cases it was the first Trichocereus most of us ever got, and therefore it's sort of old hat.

~Michael~

[double_action]

Yeah, common for sure, but I think the feelings about it also have to do with the fact that in many cases it was the first Trichocereus most of us ever got, and therefore it's sort of old hat.

~Michael~

That was my first.......

[hostilis]

I think people mostly talk crap about the PC because of it's alkaloidal reputation. I really like it for grafting stock and the way it looks.

Edited February 13, 2014 by hostilis

[zelly]

lowjackal-

A lot of cactus growers concern themselves with just one aspect of a particular species, and they really arent interested in growing anything other if a plant doesnt have that particular aspect. Those people arent hard to spot, and their collections reflect that.

On the other hand, other cacti growers may grow anything & everything they can get their hands on, not caring in the least what alkaloids it may or may not contain.

Notice that PC stands for predominant cultivar, & NOT predominant clone.

Its entirely possible for the PC in MS Smiths collection to contain a certain number & kind of alkaloids and the PC in someone else's collection to contain a different kind & quantity of alkaloids. Being predominant does not mean exclusively.

Dont get caught up in a name, or whether someone else's opinion agrees with yours. Let first hand experience be your best teacher.

For years & years & years my PC plants flowered like all get out, all year long. Try as I might, they never set fruit.

This year, something changed. I hand pollinated many flowers, and was rewarded with dozens of PC crossed fruits. Then later in the year (Oct-Nov), 50-60 PC flowers all opened at once, along with a single flower for two other species. By then I was sick & tired of fruits, so I did nothing. I didnt have to, the bees did it for me. In no time at all I had 30+ fruits on my PC pachanoi's and a single fruit on the other two species.

Do you have any idea how tasty those fruits are?

The naysayers of PC pachanoi don't know either, & they never will.

[Halcyon Daze]

Sorry to sound cynical, I was just making a sarcastic quip. PC is a grand variety for the gardener and grafter too. I think they're quite beautiful.

The only thing that does bug me is when I see a nice pachanoi cross for sale and never really being sure if it's just a lowly PC cross.

You know what I mean, you pack of PC converts.

Scops are pretty damn fly in my opinion too

Edited February 13, 2014 by Halcyon Daze

[Quixote]

Also, I think there must be some kind of reason that the "predominant cultivar" is in fact the predominant...

I like mine for its shape, the rough sawtooth-like profile and nice dark green colour (not as dark as "true" pachanoi perhaps).

Just repotted it to a 31-cm diameter terracotta pot, and looking very much forward to seeing if it will like the new experimental soil mix.

O the joys of an extremely nerdy hobby

I even kept the apartment cold the whole winter in the hope that it will help it flower! If not, then at least I saved on the central heating

Edited February 13, 2014 by Quixote

[prier]

There's definitely a reason it is the most common cultivar. It was originally planted at fields facing north, the other clone was planted facing south. It grew quicker and was therefore distributed more widely in Australia.

[Quixote]

There's definitely a reason it is the most common cultivar. It was originally planted at fields facing north, the other clone was planted facing south.

Not sure if you're referencing a joke or something here - a field facing north?

[lowjackal]

There's definitely a reason it is the most common cultivar. It was originally planted at fields facing north, the other clone was planted facing south. It grew quicker and was therefore distributed more widely in Australia.

Also is this the PC in Australia or in N.America? Or both? Also I'm guessing this isnt the best sacramentally coveted cacti around, but it's an entheogen none the less, correct? I dont mind if it is or isnt the most sought after peruvian or ecudorian strain of pachanoi. I just am stoked that after countless specimens that I've spotted, and then asked for a cutting of, this one is worthy of a spot amongst the other entheogens in my garden.

There are a few non-entheogen cacti that I think are awesome and would love to grow Ariocarpus has a whole host of different cacti I'd like to grow.

[prier]

Sorry, Field's Cactus Garden to be precise. The PC Pach is planted next to a shed facing north. The other Pachanoi clone (I call it Fields), was planted in among a bunch of trees facing South. This is where nearly all of the original PC pach material came from, even stuff you see in the states, correct me if i'm wrong trout. There were originally four gardens planted in the late 1920's early 1930s. Fields, Dawsons, Hall's and another in Essondon that is no longer around. These four blokes in Aus paid Ritter each 1000 pounds to go exploring, as long as he sent them heaps of goodies. Once the garden was established Field used to have a mail order list, sending plants all over the world.

[Quixote]

Sorry, Field's Cactus Garden to be precise. The PC Pach is planted next to a shed facing north. The other Pachanoi clone (I call it Fields), was planted in among a bunch of trees facing South. This is where nearly all of the original PC pach material came from, even stuff you see in the states, correct me if i'm wrong trout. There were originally four gardens planted in the late 1920's early 1930s. Fields, Dawsons, Hall's and another in Essondon that is no longer around. These four blokes in Aus paid Ritter each 1000 pounds to go exploring, as long as he sent them heaps of goodies. Once the garden was established Field used to have a mail order list, sending plants all over the world.

So the only reason the predominant cultivar became dominant was that it was randomly planted in a better location than the others, so that it seemed to grow faster? What happened to the other type then?

[Halcyon Daze]

PC is predominant for a number of reasons, some very obvious.

1 It has very short spines and won't put a kid's eye out. Most people can even grab it with their bare hands. It's safer in the garden just like scops are.

2 It's a prolific flowerer and when most people see a nice one in bloom they all of a sudden want one. Often they don't even want any cactus in their garden at all, but they will make an exception once they've seen this beauty in full bloom. The lack of spines also helps win them over.

3. It's early arrival into new places gives it a big head start. This has happened in most places before they restricted live imports of cuttings. Most new strains that followed came in as seeds, so PC had a huge head start. The fact that it grows big and fast also helps. Remember that many of Mr Field's other Trichos are really slow growers.

So in other words PC was out of the blocks early.

So yeah, a number of factors have contributed to it's success, and combined, those factors have placed this clone in gardens all around the world.

Most gardeners are not interested in anything other than aesthetics, making other factors irrelevant to it's early popularity and spread.

For more info see my 1200 page book entitled PC it's Domination and Success. (Third Edition.)

Cheers bigears

Edited February 15, 2014 by Halcyon Daze

[Quixote]

For more info see my 1200 page book entitled PC it's Domination and Success. (Third Edition.)

Ha ha, if you ever write that book, let me know and I'll be your first customer. Can't think of any better coffee table conversation starter

[prier]

Both the plants are still there, the garden is exceptionally interesting in regard to early cacti horticulture and distribution. It would be interesting to get the original mail order lists and see when the plants were available and where they may of ended up. A lot of the points Halycon Daze makes are mostly superfluous, there were at least four pachanoi clones that came over to aus from Ritters expedition, all of them spineless and fast growing.