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How Common Is It For A Cactus Seedling To Pup


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I have a Trichocereus Pachanoi seedling that is about 5cm tall and about 12 months old.

 

It is interesting because it is showing some interesting morphology with an unstable rib count and spiraling growth.

 

However recently it grew a pup. An analogy is a 2 year old human give birth to a baby of its own.

 

My question is how common is pupping with seedlings?

 

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A small seedling, decimated by a snail, will throw pups. (Spontaneous pupping, not common at all). 

If it threw a flower, that'd be closer to your analogy (sexual maturity). 

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6 hours ago, fyzygy said:

A small seedling, decimated by a snail, will throw pups. (Spontaneous pupping, not common at all). 

If it threw a flower, that'd be closer to your analogy (sexual maturity). 

 

Well its spontaneous with no damage. So its rare.

 

I am hoping I have a little freak on my hands.

 

Interestingly three other seedling in the same pot were badly eaten by a green worm (see background cactus in first photo) but it did not touch this freaky seedling.

 

 

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you would have to have a look, if it's real pup and connected with the mother plant. but maybe you don't want to remove the soil and have a look.

it's very common for seeds to germinate much later at the base of an earlier emerging seedling.

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Well I can confirm that it is not another seedling.

 

Today I noticed that 5 other seedlings also have developed pups.

 

As I said before the seedlings are showing some very unusual growth and I think this juvenile pupping behavior is just another example.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
Posted (edited)

@Trip the soil is about 75% inorganic & 25% organic - During spring and summer when the temp was above 20c - they would be feed a regular amount of urine mixed with water, I also feed a regular fertilizer almost every week.

 

However with winter here I have stopped feeding them and they are not getting much water either.

 

Could it be to much nutrients?

 

 

Edited by Ishmael Fleishman
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I have formed the belief that urine encourages pupping. But this is purely hearsay I know of a few growers that would agree but I could not tell you the scientific reason for this and why it would work. Cactus usually don't like excess nitrogen yet anecdotally they seem to pup.

 

On a side note It would be worth reading up on what Israeli farmers do, they have a fertilising regime that keeps them fruiting all year. Could help to provide clues.

Edited by Trip
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Well from what I have seen - I would also wager the urine also increases pupping when I started growing cactus about fours years ago I used just Seasol and water to feed them and had zero pups this last 1.5 years I have been feeding them all urine weekly. 

 

I collect all my days urine in a bucket about 1.5 liters on average then I pour in 8 liters of water to fill the bucket and then I ration out the solution so that at least once a week each cactus gets a dose of urine.

 

Every cactus I have has produced 1 or two pups and the two largest samples I have gave 3 and 6 pups each.

 

This last growing season I have had nearly 30 pups.

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I spent all winter feeding one of my peruvianus straight piss by spring it pupped 13 pups, they were so densely packed that it self terminated 7 of them to make room for the others, one by one they rotted as if they had an infection. Yet the infection never spread and the pups just rotted off to make room for the others. Literally only the pups that were competing rotted. Never seen it since on any of my other cacti.

Edited by Trip
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