Sizzling Agaves

Oops...forgot pics of neighbor's plant. What is this and what's wrong with it?
Thanks,
Agavegirl

Hi folks :D
Hope everyone is having nice weekend.
Can anyone identify above plant? Neighbor needs help. It doesn't look well (dying?) Don't know what to tell her. If nobody knows what this is please let me know and I'll post it on the "What is it?" forum.
Thanks,
Agave

Sorry I can't help with that one.

Beautiful plant Baja. I am curious what you are protecting the plant from with the chicken wire? I don't think of agaves as being vulnerable to grazers, big or small. Maybe the flower stalk is tasty but only to a larger animal who wouldn't notice the wire. A rabbit would have trouble navigating the spines. Just wondering.

Hi Helen, Hi Baja!
Hope everyone had a nice weekend. Good looking plant there Baja. Is that A. ferox? Also thanks for letting me know about neighbor's plant. I'll ask the "What's it" forum. By the way that is good question about the wire.

Helen what are you up to and growing? Trying some new things? Have some pics for us? Would like to know.

As for me the Bubble Garden progresses nicely. Put some work into it since we last talked. To the Mammillaria fragillis and Mammillaria hahniana (Old Lady Cactus) I've added:
--Mammillaria nejapensis (sliver arrows cactus)
--Mammillaria mystax
--Mammillaria celesiana (golden pin cushion)
--Paraodia magnifica v. 'Yellow Spined' (ball cactus)
--Trichocereus grandiflorus hybrid (torch cactus)
--Trichocereus poco
(know there's no Trichocereus anymore. It's been absorbed by Echinopsis. That's just what was on the containers)

They're all really cute and little. The space is starting to look good. I took some photos and will have to post them. Just haven't downloaded them into computer yet. My little "Trixy" is doing great and growing! Looking good. I have a photo of that too. Maybe we can get a better idea of what he is by now?

That's the same ?ferox hybrid pictured above, just further along. I use the chicken wire to keep the bunnies at bay. This time of year they get real hungry and thirsty. They will nibble off any tips that poke through the wire but otherwise the solution works. Eventually when the plant is big enough I will remove the wire (it's held down around the edges by the ring of medium sized rocks around the perimeter).

As you can see in some of the pictures, that particular area is pretty devoid of vegetation, other than the annuals (mostly grass) which sprout in the fall and die by late spring. It used to be pasture, a little more rural. It's a feast or famine situation for the rodents. It's very different from what we have here by the house, which is more populated with plants, and (I suspect more importantly) policed by dogs and cats.

There's also a closed cylinder of chicken wire below ground (the size of the small circle of rocks at the center) to keep the gophers away. When you have a 5 or 6 month drought every year (summers always dry) the critters find succulents utterly delectable.

Agavegirl, that sounds like a good list. Be sure to allow lots of room for the Parodia, as those plants have the potential to get pretty big over time.

This message was edited Aug 2, 2015 9:23 AM

Your A. ferox is coming along beautifully. Grows fast!
Gardening in a more urban-suburban area it didn't occur to me to think about the hungry and thirsty critters looking for something green to nibble on. Our public landscaping and few local farms seems to meet their needs and they leave our yards alone for the most part.

At my former house which was much farther out towards the rural area I got a lot more interesting visitors. Here is a hawk that liked to visit frequently on my back wall. Here is the little ground squirrel that liked to pop up every now and then through a corner by my plant. Cute guy. One day the two met. It didn't work out so well for Mr. Squirrel. :0
Also had appearances from quail, a harmless snake of some sort, a variety of birds, hummingbirds, butterflies, and yes the occasional rabbit. My new place I don't see the "wildlife" so much. :( I miss it. It was entertaining.

Glad you guys like the plant selection so far for the "bubbles" :D Will keep eye on the Paraodia. I think it takes awhile to get big, correct?
I'm excited about the Torch Cactus. Just picked it and the others out randomly because they were tiny and were going to stay that way more or less and they looked really nice together. When I looked it up on plant files the bloom this plant gets is spectacular. I was thrilled. I'm hoping mine will bloom in time.
Baja, have you encountered this cactus and do you know much about it?

I'm still looking for some Gymnocalciums. Any other suggestions?

We think my neighbor's plant is something like a Spanish Bayonet. Problem is it isn't a tree like the Spanish Bayonet. It is close so it definitely is in the Yucca family.

I'm not sure what the torch cactus is... are you talking about the grandiflorus hybrid on your list? Those come in various colors and usually the only way to know is to wait until they flower. Should be a pretty tough plant. The flower is not long lasting.

Awesome hawk. We have birds of prey here (including owls at night) and recently got to see a baby hawk. They like to ride the thermals here along the coast and nest in a tree a mile or so from here. The owls make a hideous noise (you hear them before you see them). A friend of ours erected an owl house over her garden and not too long afterward she noticed little piles of bones below it.

This message was edited Aug 2, 2015 7:07 PM

Red Tail Hawks raise babies in my neighborhood each year. There is lots of calling now between parents and fledged chicks as they gain independence. My friend has a very small dog and a hawk actually attacked her pet recently in her backyard. It had the dog pinned down under its large wings. If my friend hadn't been in the yard to chase off the bird I suspect her pup would be history. I am sure the hawks help keep the squirrels and other rodents under control, along with help from the coyotes and owls, which is good but puts our small pets at risk.
Plants are doing well here for the most part. Its hot and require very regular watering. I have gotten a few stray blossoms lately but the cereus is making a nice show each night the past few days. Here are some pictures.

PS. still working on the rotated pictures. :-

Hi guys! :D

Baja, yes I did mean the grandiflorus hybrid. I used the common name. I'm not sure what color the blooms will be either. I'm just excited about the possibility of it. For however long it lasts it should be exciting. The only cactus I ever had flower for me is my Old man cactus. You would have thought I hung the moon when that happened. I'm excited about anything that may bloom (if I can keep it alive long enough).

Helen...My word!
Those are some amazing flowers! Just gorgeous. How proud you must be of those. Absolutely stunning. Now what types of cacti are those exactly and approximately how old are they? Did you raise them since they were small or were they fairly mature when you got them?
I must say the orange colored flower on that barrel (variety?) is special. I've seen lots of white and pinks of all colors, red and cream and yellow but rarely orange. That is unusual. Very nice.

I'm glad both of you enjoyed the picture of the hawk. Lovely creature. Mr. Squirrel didn't think so but such is nature. I didn't see owls in my area. :(
I'm sorry about your friend's dog. YIKES! Is it o.k.? But if it is really a small dog and not much bigger than a rabbit or ground hog or such I can understand how a bird of prey would easily go after it or a cat. Good thing your friend was there to see what was happening.

The weather here has been surreal. HOT..HOT..HOT. It was 112 today. Same tomorrow. About the 105 or more range for the next 2 weeks. Put shade tents over Agaves again.
Did a good watering yesterday. Noticed overall the whole garden is growing.
Transplanted "Trixy". He's about doubled in size but he's also getting a little sunburnt. (He's picture #1)
Put my E. anapoli in the bubble cactus bed. They were looking a tad singed too.

Added today to the Bubble Cactus bed: Echinopsis dominos (probably E. subdenudata);
Cereus peruvianus monstrose 'Camelot'; Fairy Castle Cactus (common name)

I'm excited because the Echinopsis dominos look as though they're going to bloom. They have buds on them. :D

Below are some of the guys in my bubble bed. Not sure of the order but there's Mammillaria mystax, Mammillaria celsiana (golden pincushion); grandiflorus (torch cactus);
Mammillaria nejapensis (silver arrows cactus) . And of course "Trixy" is #1. He's not in my bed, he's across from it now. The photo was taken he was in his original spot.

I'll post more photos with the last updates and the ones I just mentioned.
Love to see more photos of what everyone else is doing.


This message was edited Aug 4, 2015 7:45 PM

Looking good. The Parodia will start to outgrow its space in a few years (it's a clumper). Here's a plant that I've had for 5 years (it started out looking like yours).

Agavegirl1: ALL those cactus you have planted need shading with 50% shade cloth IMMEDIATELY! They will fry if you don't. I already see sun damage coming on some. The cloth can be removed in fall. Some will need shading every summer, but some will take more full Arizona desert sun.
Truthfully, if you want to plant desert plants, check out native Arizona cactus and use them. They can take our brutal sun. Opuntias, Ferocactus, Echinocereus, some Agaves, and others (but only certain species in some families of plants.
Baja lives near the ocean so his cllimate is tempered but ours is NOT.
There is a small book that should be available on Amazon called Cactus of Arizona Field Guide by Nora and Rick Bowers. Look through it and plant some of those plants.

Hi Baja,
Nice looking Parodia. Mine has a few little cluster on it already. Picked it deliberately for that reason. :D Looking forward to the growth. I think he'll be o.k. for where he's at right now before I have to worry about relocating him or any of the others.
Are you doing something special in your garden or have you planted a "theme garden"?

Hi Nancy! :D
Yes, checked on the cactus and do so regularly. They're brand new. Most only a few days old and some not even 2 weeks. So far so good. Perhaps it is the camera or the website but the newest cacti in the beds aren't yellow/burning. The area they're in gets morning sun which is nice from when the sun comes up until 1:00p.m. It is only blazing from 1:00 until 3:30p.m.
At this point the sun passes and drifts across the yard to another point leaving these plants in the shade. I kind of hope they can take half a day of light and 4-5 hours of strong heat. They're supposed to be desert plants. I've often wondered how they survive in the wild if they can't endure pampered garden conditions? A lot of this stuff comes from Peru, Central America, Africa, etc. I do have shade cloth hand though and will monitor these guys closely.

I did know the Trichocerous needed to be moved. Coincidentally I did so yesterday. I noticed he was getting too much sun. You were spot on there! It was getting burnt. Thanks.


I'm not familiar with Opuntias but the others I am. I've had varying degrees of success with them regardless of where planted especially Agaves. My Agaves, most "natives" of Africa, have given me grief. Either fried to the point where I have to put up sun shades or shriveled no matter how much or little I water them. I can't water them to the point of root rot.

I don't know what's going on with the climate but it has definitely changed. Have you noticed? I read things about watering needs and sunlight requirements and they don't seem to fit. Full sun is too much or not enough; same with water. I read some other forums where people have the same kind of complaints but different plants.(A few posts above is a picture of my neighbor's plant. It's 20 years old, in the same spot it's whole life and now having problems this Summer for the first time ever!)

I know I've killed some plants definitely due to wrong choice and ineptitude and placement but I also feel things have changed so much with the climate that it is hard to know all the time. I've been feeling my way around and "experimenting" a little with the plants I put in my garden. I try to get a good variety and nice mix. Some are doing real well and some are....

Here's what I learned so far:
--If it looks fried then cover it. If it gets over 105 cover it. If it looks o.k. and seems to like the heat let it be.
--If it looks burnt or is getting burnt move it.
--It's hot. It's Summer in the desert. It's going to look shriveled. It looks shriveled in shade and in sun.
--Water does not cure everything. It causes root rot and still leaves you with a shriveled, yellow plant. Water when you should. If it croaks it croaks. Don't freak out.
--If it looks unhappy then move it. If it is still unhappy move it again. If it is still unhappy it will probably die and usually does. Buy a new one, different one, plant in a different place or plant it at a different time.
--NEVER-EVER grow succulents in the desert (Semperviums, Sedums, etc.) Aint gonna happen!

So what do you all think? Noticed any crazy climate changes and differences from what used to be the "norm" when it came to your plants?

Thought about a house plant I just got rid of (along with last Bromeliad ...eye roll). "Mother-in Law's Tongue" Sansevieria trifasciata. It died indoors. No matter what sun I gave it the thing was floppy and miserable.. I had no idea this was (oops) an outdoor plant!
Looked it up on plant files.It says zones 10 & 11 light shade. I have a feeling if I put this thing outside even if full shade or partial shade in 105 plus degree heat it would die. Has anyone ever grown one of these outdoors?


This message was edited Aug 5, 2015 3:11 PM

Nancy has a lot of experience and she's right to urge caution with the summer sun in Arizona. We are finally experiencing a summer "heat" wave here, high temps to 80°F or more, to give you some idea of the difference. We will get up to about 90°F but rarely above that (and always cooling off at night).

I like the bubble garden concept. There is no theme here. Over time I have tried to select winter growers (compatible with our winter rainfall climate). That includes natives and plants from similar climate areas in Southern Africa. It's worth the extra effort to learn about the climate where plants come from, because it tells you a lot about their suitability in your garden. And how much care they are likely to need before they become independent (if ever!). Once you get a few names into your head, you can start looking for those plants, and over time refine your choices. Basically impose a filter on your acquisitions so they are best tuned to your situation.

Hi Agavegirl,
Actually, the Trichocereus is probably capable of eventually taking that amount of sun, but not straight out of the box store. Also those will get big - they will get arms that stay low to the ground.
But regardless if they come straight from the box store you should know what conditions they were kept in and I am willing to bet that most were in full to partial shade, moving them to those kind of sun hours in your yard in the middle of summer is asking for trouble. I have all of those mammillarias and none get more than just morning sun. The Parodia may or may not be able to take it.

I think when you say: "hey they are desert plants they are supposed to takes this", you forget that most of us here in Arizona live in an urban desert environment, with a significant heat island effect leading to slightly higher day time temperatures, but more importantly significantly higher night time temperatures. We also live in the low desert, many of the plants you talk about may come from desert environments, but if it is a desert at 6000+ feet iso 600 feet that will have a huge impact on day and night time temperatures, and overall living environment.
As noted in a post I made above, above the variety of full low desert adapted plants in AZ is pretty limited, which Nancy is pointing out too.
On top of that the plants you are planting out were grown in very pampered conditions likely somewhere in southern CA, with a special watering and fertilizing program to make them grow quickly so they can be sold quickly. So when they end up in the ground in full sun in AZ for a significant amount of time, they simply do not know what hit them. They may look good for a few days, even a few weeks, but chances are that won't last.
So like Nancy I would suggest to give them some extra shade in their first summer in the ground and then see how they do next summer after having had a full Fall, Winter, Spring cycle to get well established.

It took me a while to appreciate this. A lot of succulents for sale in stores have been light starved, or at the minimum heavily coddled. Only after I grew my own plants did I appreciate the actual extent of this. My usual progression for seed-grown succulents goes something like this:

Sowing seeds:
indoors / N exposure (only very early sun only some of the year)

Once germinated and growing
indoors / SW exposure (daily sun in the afternoon)

Once they fill the 4" starter pot
outdoors / NE exposure (brief morning sun, otherwise bright shade)

Once they seem to be taking the increased exposure
outdoors / 20% shade

And only then, after they have gotten to a good size (minimum of months later), would I consider putting them in the ground in the sun. Of course your mileage may vary, my point is just that there's a sliding scale and the plants for sale in nurseries are grown real soft for the most part. Not knowing the background, I would start them in bright shade before adventuring any further.

Some plants NOT to put in the Arizona sun, which I have growing here on a south-facing balcony. It's my maximum exposure location, only suitable for a few plants. Lots of them have tried and failed, mostly dying in the process, let's put it that way. :( The stress colors are maxed out, and weird things start to happen (like the really short "arms" on the third plant). In order: Echeveria (hummingbird magnet), Dudleya (native to islands near here, where they grow in almost the same difficult situation naturally), Euphorbia, Dyckia, aloe.

This message was edited Aug 6, 2015 3:03 PM

With the same caveat here are some more Euphorbias and three Mammillarias, growing in the same "difficult" location (what would be called "hard" in the trade). The plants with a powdery dusting (first two above) and the plants with dense spination (like the second plant here) seem to profit from having natural sunscreen.

Hi guys, :D

Baha, I envy your heat wave. It sounds like paradise.

Last 2 days were 112F and not too cool at night. Today it is 16 degrees cooler (96F), cloudy and no "rain" so to speak although it did spit a few drops here and there and quit abruptly. Glad you like the bubble garden concept. Grew out of the dead succulent concept. :P
Figured there had to be something I could put in that long narrow space that would be visually interesting, not too big, and cohesive. So little "round" and/or little "bubbly" cacti that bloom became it because they fit the space!

I liked the idea of one special collection or certain types of plants in a garden area that tell a bit of a "story", or share a common thread. It is visually interesting and it just seems easier to grow or care for since basically they're all the same family/species or within the same need requirements. Seems like I goofed this up too (eye roll)

I like what you said about imposing a filter on my acquisitions so they are best turned to my situation. Made me chuckle. Nice diplomatic way of saying don't buy whatever tickles my fancy or pleases my eye but buy what's going to stay alive in the yard! (LOL).

Hate to admit it. I'm probably the most practical person in the world BUT the artist in me gets drawn to anything that has a sense of whimsy or oddness but is still pleasing to the eye. Maybe not necessarily the greatest combination to possess in S.W. outdoor gardening? It seems quaint and 112F aren't exactly compatible.

I do have photos for you of the bubbles.

Hi mcvansoest :D

Yes, looking forward to the Tichocereus growth spurt. So far it's done well. As Nancy said it did look like it was getting burnt. I did notice that an moved it. It was in a spot that got full sun all day and seemed quite happy and about doubled in size. I assumed it was quite happy and let it be. It wasn't until we had a few days over 106F in a row that it got a little sorry looking. That's when I moved it to a place where it will get all a.m. sun across from the bubble garden and then only an hour or two of afternoon sun. The rest of the day it will be in shade. So by 2:30 it will have complete shade. Previously it had none.

The problem with my yard is that the sun makes an arc and literally walks across it. It is over head from 5:00a.m. -noon on the bubble garden then slowly, inch by inch walks away across the yard from the bubble garden across my walkway to the area right near it where the trichocereus is until 2:30.
The sun then moves and is at it's highest and most intense at 2:30 or 3:00 near the middle of the yard and covers a large majority of it. From 3:00-5:00 it is in the middle of the yard to right side. From 5:00 to sunset it is completely on the right side of the yard, the one side of my house that faces my neighbor, the space in between our property and the neighbor's wall.

The unfortunate thing with my yard is that at some point in the day, somewhere in my yard, no matter where, whatever I plant is going to get beat on a few hours by the sun. It is inevitable. It also means come winter something is not going to get enough sun either.
We won't discuss the back yard too much. It reminds me of a swimming pool. Huge center rectangle filled with blistering sun shine and about 2 literal square feet of shade along the perimeters that ebb less and flow into larger spots as the sun makes it's path overhead. Always that middle though. Majority of plants along the perimeters and they're miserable. My A. potatrum looks miserable and its in shade 40% of the day. Only thing thriving are the Century Plant pups. Growing again!

So yes, you and Nancy are right I do need to shade my plants. I do and I have shade screen on standby and will put up at the first sign of distress. (Clueless on back yard so I don't even mention it most times).
My only concern is will this constant shielding from all stress prevent a plant from ever becoming hardy and adapting to its environment properly and early? I've moved plants from "full-sun" as it is said they require to part-sun. It makes me wonder what will happen when the time comes to put them back in the sun.
What do you think?

Here's some pictures of the bubbles.

Hi Baja...
:D Oh how lovely. These last 2 posts of yours came in while I was writing and downloading pictures. Love the little Mammillarias. So cute. Would look great with the bubbles. Also like the one with the spines. What is that.
Had to laugh when you said, "Here's an example of what not to grow." Yep. Succulents of any type. Just doesn't happen in a desert. Also agree with you about Aloe. I'm beginning to think it is a shade plant. The one I have on my patio nick-named "Miracle" receives no sun or very filtered and limited sun. It's all green now. It's also growing. I'm convinced they're shade plants. I'll have to post a pic of him again.

Hi Baja, Agavegirl,

Regarding your Euphorbia/Cactus post, Baja: I have versions of all of those. The Euphorbia lives on an outside north facing windowsill: a few hours of sun a day very early and very late. The next one (Mammillaria plumosa) I have on another outside windowsill this one facing east - so morning sun only - it is slowly but surely outgrowing its pot. I had another one of those, that I tried in front of my west facing wall of death and you guessed it: death...
Next one is M. camptotricha (it has a longer name, but that is what I remember it as), is very happy in morning sun on an east facing outside shelf unit. Doing really well. Then the last one I have as well, forget the name, another mammillaria (I think common name 'un pico'), is the problem child. I have it in my side of the house 'nursery' and it was getting a scorched look under 50% shade cloth but in almost full day sun... and then a bird went after the young growth.... so it is looking really sad right now.

Agavegirl: when you buy plants at the big box store, disregard anything that the labels might say about how much sun they will take. It is not written for AZ. Check where the plant stand is: you will find that with those small little pots, they are in some kind of shade 100% of the time. So even if the plant you bought will eventually take full sun, it most certainly will not right out of the box(store). So they need protection especially if planted in the summer.

Now getting plants used to the sunny AZ environment can take time and lots of patience: I have plants I had to cover in the summer for two-three years in a row, but ones that will adjust you will see do better the second summer (be OK longer without cover) and go from there. This year was special though no gradual transition, which I think caught a lot of things by surprise. So not good for new plantings...

Your balloon garden may be OK though with many of those plants after they had some time to adjust. Not getting 3+ PM sun is probably really crucial for most of those plants. I see that most of my suffering plants in the front yard and in front of my west facing back yard wall really get kicked in the butt by the late afternoon low angle summer sun.
Regarding the Tricho: I see big growths of T. grandiflorus all over my neighborhood, many go really really yellow during the summer, but all appear to recover just fine from that. I have some that I just planted (last October/November) that could look a little better but are hanging in there with minimal shade (it is my experiment before I do a big planting as I have many of those in pots).

Good morning everyone :D

Again Baja your plants are so lovely. I'm green with envy even if my plants aren't! All the things I can't/shouldn't grow here. :( (At least now I have sense enough not to buy them)
How nice though to live in a climate where you can grow almost whatever you like.
.
mcvansoest,
Sorry the birds are picking on your Mammillaria especially since you're going through great trouble to save it. :(
I don't know if it's good or bad idea but I sometimes put out peanuts and sunflower seeds or a little lettuce or carrot scraps on occasion. I figure they rather eat this than my plants. They can just grab and go. No work required on their part to pick at my plants or get around prickles and spines. Seems to have worked well for me in terms of chipmunks and rabbits too. Also my neighbor has a huge Prickly Pear that bears tons of fruit so that might help matters too. :D

I get what you're saying about the labels on the cacti and plants at Big Box stores. Who writes that stuff anyway? Half of the names are inaccurate and 1/3 obsolete or have been changed. Of course, as I've discovered and you pointed out, none of the plants requirements or watering instructions are right. I do have to say my only solace is if I kill it and I keep my receipt they will take it back and let me replace it. At least this time I can do it right or pick something that can live in the hole I already dug in the yard. I'm even finding the help at the nurseries less then stellar these days. They hire people to "work" watering, moving pots, ringing register, answering the phone, filling orders and there's the owner (never there or busy) and maybe one person with actual plant knowledge. The rest of the time you get, "I dunno." or they're reading the plant labels or flipping through reference guides.

I like both of your suggestions. I think my new plan of attack pre shopping should be see what grows here and just don't buy what is impossible to make grow here no matter how much I like it. If I like it and feel like I can't live without it I'll research it first. Then go back and buy it IF I can keep it alive in AZ. Oh, shade cloth, shade cloth, shade cloth. Still clueless on back yard. Would be easy to have a "sun garden" so to speak but have a dog to consider. She already jockeys around an obstacle course and I like my carpet just the way it is...clean!

I didn't realize plants may have to be covered for consecutive years. I thought the first year until "settled" or "established" in the yard and then they could tough it out in their new environment and get covered only in unusually hot circumstances. Like you said they'll probably need more of a gradual transition for a longer period of time; maybe a few years. See...learned something :D

I agree with the no gradual transition on our weather. It seems almost hot all year or warmer than normal when it should cool down. Either no rain or days of it raining buckets (always after I waited forever and then water) and earlier. No rain when we should have it. I wonder what Winter will be like this year?
More than heat my concern are the days of endless rain. I can't do anything about that like I can the sun. How do you handle that situation? I thought about covering with some kind of tarp but that doesn't stop the water from getting into the ground or avoid condensation.

Let me know how the tricho experiment goes. Trixy was quite happy in full sun and got 2xs as big but only recently showed some yellowing. I moved him across from the bubble garden on the other side of the walk so as the sun crosses my yard he should only get sun from morning until 2:30p.m. at the latest. He was o.k. until we hit the string of 109+ days. I'm also happy to report my 2 Octopus Agaves are finally growing and my solo Natal Plum is growing and getting new leaves. Some of the other leaves look a tad yellow or crispy but for the most part green and growing! It's in the same "zone" in my yard as Trixy.

Let me know if either of you see anything glaring in the bubble bed as far as incompatibility or pure inability to live there. I wanted to ask about the Echinopsis dominos/E. subdenudata. The one has the little "fuzz ball" on it. Is it getting ready to bloom soon?



This message was edited Aug 7, 2015 7:51 AM

Sorry, forgot pic. The Echinopsis dominos with "fuzz ball"

That is a flower bud, but they can make those and never do anything with it. I have a whole bunch of Echinopsis plants that have flowers this morning, so it has been humid enough with just enough overcast days for them to actually produce the flowers.
You should see it lengthening and eventually make a flower if it is going to flower, if not it will probably stay as it is and eventually fall off.

I can hear thunder as I am typing this, but my weather app suggests that the rain is just going to miss us... passing a little too far to the east.... :(

Attached two pictures one of my E. subdenudata hybrid 'Dominos' (pic 1) and the other of a close relative E. subdenudata hybrid 'Dolores' (pic 2), both have white flowers and the spineless green bodies with the fuzzy white area where spines should be (the word for that escapes me at the moment), and in some cases some times are. I give mine morning to about noon sun only, but I am sure that they can last those extra few hours that you are giving them.

Mammillarias are pretty much the ultimate bubble plant, if you ask me, especially when they "pop" with flowers and fruit. Also a prototypical Mexican cactus, though they also grow elsewhere. The spiny one is a cultivar called "Un Pico" (a selection of M. spinosissima). It does not offset but the other two are pretty aggressive clumpers. The plumosa was about 5 times its current size when I broke it up a month ago. The camptotricha (now under decipiens I think) was also bigger until recently, here are the other plants now flowering in their own pots.

My Echniopsis plants like that usually have at least a couple of buds on them, but most do not end up turning into flowers. No complaints, the flowers are pretty good when they do happen.

Mcvansoest
that is quite an impressive flower! Amazing such a little plant produces something like that. I'm hoping mine will. When I was shopping and I spotted the E. dominos I picked the one specifically with the "fuzz ball" (love my technical terms?) on it thinking that was a flower bud. I'll keep an eye and see if it grows. :D
If it blooms I'll be thrilled. If not I'll be disappointed but kind of expecting it. The only other cactus I had bloom for me was an Old Man Cactus (common name). I still have it and it is doing well in my back yard. Loves it there.

I am also happy to report my Haworthia IS NOT plastic. It is actually growing some little new leaves inside. I was beginning to have some serious doubts about that thing. But it is doing fine. If it keeps growing I may find another.

Baja,
Beautiful Mammillarias. I just love them. Yes indeed, the ultimate bubble plant! So much fun and amusing to look at. I discovering more and more the varieties they're coming in. I'd love to acquire some different ones. I currently have M. fragillis. I'm really enjoying that little plant. Thrives well in full sun, shade, likes water and just grows and grows. I just took a clump of mine and put it in the bubble bed off to the corner. I've been watching it grow and hoping it will spread.

WOW.....gonna go!
Major thunder and lightening and now it is just pouring. Came from nowhere. Gray all day and not a drop. Now just pouring!
Talk to you later guys,

Rain here at work too. Hoping for rain at my house...

These gray days are good for the blooming of Echinopsis. This time of year the full sun days make Echinopsis flowers either never develop or when they do open wilt in like 5 seconds (OK, maybe 5 minutes).

Mostly wind now...

Good morning Baja, Mcvansoest,
WOW...it rained, and it rained, and it rained. It stopped 10 minutes then it rained and it rained sideways literally from all the wind. Then it lightning and thundered and rained all night.
Back yard is a sponge. Stepped on it and actually sunk. Must be a pure quagmire under all that rock. Pine cone cactus looks drunk. Went to take a look at the A. potatrum. Heard "squish" when I got near it. That's how wet the ground is. Bottom leaves of that thing are not looking good. Moving on.
Front yard is a disaster.
I forgot the front yard is on a bit of a downward slope. Watching the literal river of water roll from the back of the yard area down the middle and pool all along the front where it meets the sidewalk reminded me. ( :D smack forehead!)
While it rained the Barrel cacti were submerged half way; prickly pear and fire sticks looked like cat tails in a swamp. It was really neat watching the water literally part as it made it's way around my 4 foot pole cactus and continued on it's way in little rapids to the front of the yard and my M. fagillis. The water also eroded some of the Pole cactus's soil from under the rock so now it's a little wonky. I have to go out and "level" it and make sure the cactus isn't tilted.
The place where I put my natal plum is tucked into a corner. The roof overhangs there for a little shade. Well, water also rolls off a roof. Kind of like Niagara Falls heading towards the ground... and the plant...all day long!

Took a look around. The plants are o.k. it seems just incredibly water logged. Nothing a few days in the sun won't cure. Yes, sunshades still needed.
Found my M. fagillis floating like golf balls in a wee little pond by the side walk. No harm. They're nice and plump and green. Just replanted them in a better spot. Hate to say it the soak may have done them good. They look better than they had.
Trixy still looks the same. Green and kind of yellow-ish. Poor Trixy if it isn't heat stroke it's being drowned.
The bubbles still look like the bubbles. The one E. dominos lost it's fuzz off of the flower bud. The flower bud is still attached firmly just not covered with it's protective fuzz. I hope that doesn't hurt it or keep it from blooming. I put a shade tent over it immediately. I really would like to see it bloom or at least try to make it bloom. Hey, little things excite me. :D It won't die after it blooms will it? I'd really love to see the Trichocereus grandiflorus hybrid I put in bloom. (Common name torch cactus). Now that would be a treat!

Are most cactus flowers fans of lower sun and night? Kind of ironic considering it is a cactus and comes from a desert environment. It seems like all of them either bloom at night or when they bloom it doesn't last very long. If the blooms last they don't like the sun and fold up on hot/hotter days.

Aside from debris of leaves, twigs, etc. I don't see any plant casualties...yet! Have to clean up the yard. Did either of you have a storm like this? I know here in AZ it has a tendency to hit one area and miss another 20 or 30 miles away. Odd.

O.K. let me know. Really interested in learning more about the small types of cacti too if you two would like to share or recommend some. Any that are aquatic? (LOL) :D

It rained here too. From the sounds of it not quite as bad as what you got. We did not really get the wind, but about 45-60 minutes total of rain with two spells of really heavy downpour.

Have not been outside yet.

Nope those Echinopsis/Trichocereus plants do not die after flowering (well they could but it would not be because they flowered).

My main goal today will be the Aloe inspection. I have several that tend to get water pooled in their crown and than can lead to a little bit of rot, so far most have just had that happen and moved on, but it always worries me as you never know when it really catches hold and kills the plant.

I have attached a picture of Echinopsis x 'K-T event' (a Schick hybrid) that has been a very very good flowerer this year. This is from late May. More on the way at the moment.

I think as long as the water pools and then drains away pretty quickly most of your cacti will be fine. However, if it stands around for more than a day it is not a good thing.

This was a good time for some rain. It had been a while and rain always does the plants more good than water from the hose, even if I acidify it a little bit.

Agavegirl1: Have you thought of joining the Central Arizona Cactus & Succulent Society. There are several people from Casa Grande who are members. We meet at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix once a month and have a facebook page. Take a look. Over time you would learn so much about what does well in the low desert areas.

Hi Gang,

Glad to hear my cacti won't die after/if ever flowering. I kind of like the little guys. Besides I running out of ideas to put in that space! Knowing me and my ever growing obsession I just had to get another one. Added a Notocactus leninghausii (golden ball cactus). I know they'll eventually turn into a small pole cactus but for know they're (o.k. added 2) really cute and fit in with the bubbles. Plus the yellow is nice. This way it isn't so noticeable when they're fried or dying (LOL).

How is the Aloe inspection? Everything o.k.? I know you have some special collectors plants and rare ones that would be hard to replace. That's a gorgeous Echinopsis. How old is it? Is there a way to tell what color the flowers will be?

I looked my plants again. I don't see anything wrong aside from the normal complaints (eye roll). Back yard doesn't feel like walking on a sponge anymore but I don't think anything will need watered for 3 months. There's no more water left in the front yard and all little puddles are gone.

As for plant casualties Pine Cone cactus still looks drunk. I think part of it may have root rot. It isn't leaning. It's virtually lying down. I'll wait and see. If so, I'll take the good branches and plant them in a new place. There's one dead pad on my prickly pear. Not a big thing there.

Trixy has a crack in the bottom of his arm that has already been kind of yellow. :( I'm hoping it will mend now that he's under a shade tent. If he loses an arm I'm sure he'll still be fine.

I'm going to have to think about buying some rather large landscape "mini boulders" to block the water or putting a group of pots there to somehow divert that downward flow of water around my plants and move it more towards the middle of the space between the two houses where there is nothing growing. (My neighbor doesn't garden and I don't invade/cross the property line). I still can't believe according to the weather service we're 1/2 less than what we should be in terms of rain for the year!

Two very happy things to report. First Miracle is now 100% green! My little scorched, fried and almost died Aloe from many posts back is now 100% green. He still looks a little tattered and worn around the leaves but overall resembles a plant instead of a piece of petrified wood. I'll post pic a little later. I think he'll be ready for the ground come next Spring! Or maybe I'll continue to baby him just putting him in a larger pot for another year.

Second the Niagara Falls seemed to have done my Natal Plum a world of good. I've never seen it look so green and lush! I guess the ground back in that corner had been so dry and hard that the incessant pounding of rain finally was enough to penetrate or deliver some nutrients. Go figure. I can't.

Maybe you can count this as a third. Those Century Plant pups are STILL growing. Even the ones in the middle of the back yard with full all day blazing sun. Uhm...those things are kind of intimidating. Sure your neighbor doesn't want a few more? I still have all of the original 12! I'm beginning to think they wouldn't die unless it rained bleach. Can honestly say, however, they are every new or failed gardener's dream plant!

Baja, did you get any bad weather?

Hi Nancy! :D
Looked at the CAC&SS web site. Sounds great. I've not been to this particular botanical garden you speak of. It sounds quite enjoyable. I will look into it more and it's events schedules. Sounds like great fun. I do believe my husband is off on The 30th also. :D

The progress of Miracle my little fried Aloe(?) Agave(?) Can we tell what he is now?

pic #1 taken 6-23
Pic #2 & #3 taken 7-7 &7-23
Pic #4 & #5 taken TODAY 8-9

Hi Agavegirl,

It is still an Aloe.

My Aloes appear OK so far, though I did just randomly loose the top of one of the crawling branches of my A. megalacantha.... I am puzzled as to the why of that, but will probably see about rooting that particular chunk of the plant.

I have had that Echinopsis for about a year and a half now. Got it from the Huntington Botanical Garden, which has the original Bob Schick Echinopsis Hybrid collection and curate it. They sell specimens of most of them for a pretty decent price.
Unless you know what it is and there is good photo documentation available on that plant it is really hard to know what the flower colors maybe. So I usually try to get named plants that I can find photos off, but sometimes it is fun to get something unknown and see if you get surprised.
More rain last night... soon I will start complaining we are getting too much rain ;)

Regarding the rain and your plum: I am not sure if it is penetrating in as much as the fact that the rain water is chemically so different from the tap water here. At least here in Mesa, the tap water is slightly alkali (pH above 7), and salty, which is usually not ideal for the plants. They like slightly acidic (pH < 7) and not salty. Of course the deluge coming of the roof would definitely have helped was any shallow caliche/salt deposits away that might have been forming in response to shallow hose watering.

Hi Mcvansoest :D

Happy to hear your plants are o.k. Hopefully the chunk of the A. megalacantha will take. It was pretty windy that day. Perhaps that did it?

Glad to know the Echinopsis won't die after it flowers like a lot of the Agaves do. :D
Now Is that the Huntington Garden in California of which you speak? If so I visited there a few times when I lived in L.A. quite a beautiful place. Wasn't into gardening then as I am now but still appreciated it. Looks like my plant will be a surprise. I have no documentation on it aside from the goofy label on the side of the container it came in. That's o.k. I can't imagine an ugly cactus flower regardless of color.

We didn't get a drop of rain last night. I'm glad. My yard finally doesn't feel like a sponge when I walk on it. It was gray and looked like it was threatening to rain all day but didn't. Full blazing sun. Was just going to work on some new sun screens. Mine aren't looking so good. I think I'm also going to dig up one arm of that Pine Cone cactus. It is still lying down. Something isn't right there.

Your explanation for the Natal Plum sounds far more intelligent than mine. Whatever happened the plant is quite happy.

I'm just hoping the rain will lay off for a bit. I had way more than needed. I'm also wondering if Winter is going to be wetter than usual. I hope not!

Anyway, going to get moving on those sun screens.

Are you going to watch the meteor shower tonight? It'll be starting around 1:30a.m. and going until sun up from the 11th through the 14th. Not a science person but for some reason it is supposed to be really special and unlike meteor showers we usually get.
Have a great day.

Yep, will do some pool floating on Wednesday/Thursday night... we usually get some nice meteor tracks, but since we live in the middle of town it is not as spectacular as you could get if you find some lone hill/mountain top/stretch of the desert without any light pollution.

We can turn our house and garden lights off, but then there are the lights from the neighbors and the street lights....

I should get home from work about 3 am Wednesday night, if it is clear, I can sit on my deck with a drink and look to the northeast. I have done this before with this Perseids metior shower, It can be quite a show, or sometimes not so much.

Ohhhhhhhhhhh, Ahhhhhhhhhh, Ooooooooh!
WOW!
Hey Pistil good of you to drop in. No, no meteor pun intended. :D
Whatch doin' for work you get home at 3:00a.m.?
My meteor viewing was spectacular this a.m. Since I get up at 2:15a.m. everyday anyhow
(Yes...read right, 2:15a.m....get UP) due to husband's work sched, I just got up an hour earlier.
They were getting fired up about 1:30a.m. (Again no pun intended).
About 2:00a.m. they were a rockin' (hey...I can keep going with these!)
Fantastic. Saw two orange/red ones still glowing; a super charged yellow one; saw several that traveled in arcs rather than straight lines; and actually HEARD a collision. Sounds like a "click".
Saw several meteors that back lit the clouds much the way heat lightening does out hear where it just kind of bounces around in the cloud but doesn't touch down. Sky was completely filled even if they weren't all bright meteors there were a multitude in the sky and just clusters of them surrounding every star.

All in all just worth getting up an hour early for. Excellent experience. I had a nice clear view. Since my back yard has an open middle space just put out a table and chair and enjoyed the 360 degree action. Neighbor's tree and century plant behind me filtered the majority of the street lamp from in back. All of the house lights and my neighbor's lights in the area were off. I'm in the middle of the street so the street lights are far down at either end from me. Just perfect.!

Clouds went in and out but didn't hang around long. My viewing stopped at 3:30. My neck hurt from looking up and it was time to walk the dog. Going to get up again same time the 12th and the 13th to see it. I think it ends then.

Rained a little today and we had a major wind/dust storm. Now it's gray, hazy and overcast. I don't think I'm going to get to shade covers today for the back yard. Napping seems more appealing. :D
I DID FINISH the front yard yesterday. Did a good job too!

So how was everyone else's show? See anything good?
Baja you still here with us? Supposedly you were in an area where it was visible too.
O.K. gang,
Nap time.

No rain here (we don't get rain this time of year), no meteor gazing either.

Here's one for your bubble garden (don't know how it would deal with the low desert, probably would be okay in the shade): Parodia scopa. Nice yellow flowers, bubbly growth habit. My plant grows really dry (water every 2 weeks) and does not complain, though it tends to look better in the winter (probably the lower light levels).

Good Morning Baja,
:D Nice to see you're still with us. That's right. Southern hemisphere correct. Now "Winter" weather or am I getting things mixed up?

Sorry you missed the meteor gazing. This morning's was a bust. Had rain last night so it was very cloudy this morning and could not see much. Only stayed out for an hour. Saw a few back flashes behind the clouds and one outstanding meteor. Very large and very much aflame! Just amazing. That was the only note worthy thing this morning.

Parodia scopa is a lovely plant. Great flowers. Quite pretty in that the flowers are bicolored. I have so many choices for that garden that they're going to be occupying the space on the other side of the walkway. :D Fine by me. I've been enjoying creating this and all the suggestions.

I have been writing them down and taking them shopping with me and hoping I run across them. I, being myself, of course still look for the amusing and whimsical BUT take with me notes about it's habit needs (eye roll)

Have made a list of a few more I'd like to have because they're wonderful. They are:
Euphorbia horrida v. 'Major'
Euporbia polygona v. 'Snowflake'
Gymnocalyaium saglione
now I can add Parodia scopa

Of course I have to check the habitat needs. I was just window shopping/computer browsing when I made the list.

O.K. so tell me what you've been up to lately and what's been exciting in your world?

I'm soooooooo excited!!! :D
Look what I found this morning......
How many more days do you think it will be before this thing blooms?

Baja: I have Parodia scopa and do keep it in only morning sun. It does great here with that treatment. Photo is from May. It doesn't bloom for me in summer.