maxxima

I've just placed my first order, will let you guys know how it goes!

I never knew you could grow the corm outside the soil like that, very cool! I'll try that with mine next spring. Huge corm btw! Congrats

Newsflash! Hirsuta takes the award! Obviously she was offended and decided to prove she's much better at stinking, Flies seem to agree!

It's great fun to read your posts Andreas My Conophytum has arrived along with a Stapelia Grandiflora, Hoodia Macrantha and Hoya Carnosa. Conophytum looks fine for now, I am making research on the genus little by little every day. I need to learn fast so I can get some of those awesome species in your lithops thread!

Oh WOW! I love these! I think I may get addicted soon. I especially love the ones in the end, the ones resembling brain. Also Verruculosa is very very interesting!

Selam Andreas! You scared me a little about Conophyta now. Looks like I picked a difficult one for my first time...Well, that's me as usual! I was browsing the lithops on the online catalogue (which you can see here) and that's the one I liked the most. No turning back now, I'll start making some research. Thank you very much for your advice. I don't have any loam or pumice, my options are limited here. All I have are vermiculate, perlite, peat and the other usual stuff. I'll probably do a mix of those and put some special cacti mix in as well. I am familiar with root rot, but I have a nice balcony facing East + South-east (I keep all my CPs, cacti, succulents and aroids there) and I am a water nazi so I am hoping we'll get along fine with conophyta. Pray for me! I have heard of Kiron before about its application on Nepenthes leaves to kill some very tiny mites. I don't know if we have it here but I'll definitely look into it. I have used DDVP before. It is effective but not for a long time, can't say I am happy with it. OK I am holding back the alcohol (for the plants that is!) I LOVE their smell! It's very interesting, very unique in my experience. I would describe it but that would be almost...kinky Very sensual and different, though. In my experience, Huernia have very faint smell. I need to press my nose right into the flower to get anything, and it's usually still subtle then. Stapelia is stronger but Hirsuta is the only one I've smelled. Maybe Nobilis or Gigantea would be stronger, don't know. Orbea is the strongest on my balcony. You can smell it from far away even, it fools me everytime, I keep thinking "wow what died here ??". I just saw this... Umm...You are in trouble.

Andreas, then it looks like I will be needing your advice because I have just ordered my first lithops! (Conophytum meyeri puberulum) I am totally clueless about them. I will make some research of course, I still have a week before it arrives. Have you found an effective way/insecticide to battle spider mites ? They are the absolute nightmare for me. They have destroyed a few of my most precious plants including a huge elephant ear. The organic way of using soap+water to spray on plants does work but it's rather time consuming. Lately I've been using medicinal alcohol to wipe the leaves, the results are good so far when combined with regular spraying. Luckily I am not interested in orchids yet, that would be the final nail in the coffin! I am deliberately staying away from them as I know one may easily get infected Let's see if I like lithops. You know, Mrs. Hübner may be right about the weekly watering/fertilising of both huernia and orbea; they rather love water in summer. The expert I got my plants from has a big collection and he told me to water frequently in summer but fertilise once every two weeks so that's what I've been doing. I guess it all depends on your soil mix and growing conditions though... Caralluma Rogersii just bloomed a fabolous flower! It has a very interesting smell. It doesn't stink like Orbea but it's like...protein...if you know what I mean It has several ones about to open, I am waiting for the other buds to take a good photo.

Noah, you're very welcome! Daniel, trust me I hug them every day

Daniel your avatar is creepy Poor thing got attacked by aphids, not on the upper plants but the ones below which are surrounded by dead leaves. I guess aphids could make it there because of the dry areas. It stayed under water for a while and was saved. Then crows made short work of ALL her blooms (no seeds this summer, every stalk cut by damn birds) so she's living under a big plastic bottle now. And look at her! Only getting stronger, a true survivor (did that just rhyme?)

Hello Andreas, Yes, Anıl is my name :) Don't worry about your plants, they are really easy. I use a soil mix of cacti mix (this is how it's sold, a yellow package, i can check the brand if you like) and I mix it with %50 perlite. The mix already contains perlite in the package but I haven't experienced any negative effects of using %50 more; in fact, I haven't had a root rot case since then except with Edithcolea that is. I kinda remember she's from Somali, she can not stand cool temperatures so it's another story. Just hold back the water is the only important thing I can tell you. In winter I hardly water succulents, maybe once a month. I never water my cacti in winter. I leave all my succulents and cacti outside even when it's down to 0C. In summer I water once every week or so depending on how quick the mix dries up. They receive about 8 hours of direct sunlight in summer so they do need more frequent watering. It is easy to save a plant from a "not enough water" case but it's so difficult to get rid of root rot...So, just don't water, be very harsh about it. That's my way, anyway! I didn't know there are different Ceropegia species. I have a Ceropegia Woodii; she's a crazy bloomer. Mom has one but hers hasn't bloomed in years. It might be about the direction they're facing. Mine are facing West, getting afternoon sun and they get very very little amount of water. I can't keep this windowsill clean!

Thank you very much! That was very useful for me as well.

Hey guys, I have a few more photos of new blooms coming. They should be ready soon, buds are swollen. Hey Inactivemoth, the species are: 1. Stapelia Hirsuta 2. Orbea Variegata 3. Huernia Angolensis 4. Caralluma Rogersii Merhaba Andreas :) What a warm message, thanks! Yes I have a small collection of them. Most of them are easy. I grow them like I grow my cephalotus or the other way around :) You just need to be careful with some of them. Edithcolea Grandis is one! I grew that beauty for a year before root rot took her away from me. I still managed to root all the cuttings I took but lost those because of the exactly opposite reason this time: too little water! Cephalotus is like kindergarten when compared to Edithcolea, in my experience anyway. Here's my list: Orbeopsis lutea var. vaga Orbeopsis lutea Huernia pendula Huernia Keniensis Stultitia tapscottii Huernia angolensis Huernia lepida Stapelia hirsuta Orbea Variegata Caralluma Rogersii Echidnopsis Cereiformis Edithcolea Grandis - cutting, struggling You can share your shots here if you wish! sevgiler, anıl

Agreed Jim! Survivors are the bomb :)

Being always on the hunt for something rarer, something more "exotic"; I tend to forget how the easiest, cheapest, most "disposable" species can amaze and embarrass people like myself. No special treatment; all I did was to take her out of that blasted terrarium. April, 2010 June, 2011 September, 2011

Hey guys! A few photos from my little collection... I have a couple more I'll be adding later. I think I have about 10 species or so...plus a struggling Edithcolea cutting. I hope it roots but it's such a small chance.

Very interesting ! I didn't know cephalotus made such a big, visible amount of nectar. How big are the pitchers ? Judging by the newly forming small one I'd guess them to be about 4cm but I could be totally off.

Those are huge ! And here I am up in the clouds because mine is making a 4cm pitcher...

Sorry to hear that, but at least you still have it which is what matters. Good luck with it.

Is there a way to learn what he's using right now ? I've been happy with his mix for exactly a year now, never had any problems. It worked particularly well in winter when I didn't water my plant for 2-3 weeks. I use it for the %75 part of my pot; the top part is all live sphagnum.

Ah ok, thanks for the heads up. I will definitely watch out.

I also have mine sitting in water. I had to resort to this because it receives about 7-8 sunlight every day and the substrate can't keep up with the temperature even though it's Charles Brewer's mix (sphagnum + perlite mainly). It has responded very well, making 3 new mature pitchers whereas before it had only 1. I keep the water at about 3-4 cm though, nothing deep.

Wonderful, any new photos of this one ? Love the colouration.

What a nice find! (For me anyway) Thanks for sharing. I had opened a thread on another cp forum wondering if I should be worried about this "leaf attack" of my own plant; but it turns out that it's only a seasonal effect.