Cold Climate Cactus

There were plenty of weed seeds germinating around the cactus plants this fall. Mostly prickly lettuce, and it seemed like there were thousands of them. While digging out the broadleaf seedlings I found lots cactus seedling too which was very exciting because I didn't know they were growing there. I transplanted them to their own pots and they are ready to spend the winter in the cold frames. This is the first time I've tried transplanting cold hardy seedlings in the fall. They should survive well this way and begin to grow next spring, and if this works well I should try more fall transplanting. Before I was transplanting cold hardy cacti in the early spring, so we'll see.

We have had rain every day in the month of June and July is still bring plenty of rain too. Some seedlings have died under these conditions and others are growing like mad. There are probably some species relationship to the ones that survive these conditions and by the end of this summer I imagine I'll know which ones these are. The cold climate varieties in the Echinocereus, Escobaria and Pediocactus generics are all holding up very well and growing.

There has been rain almost every day for the past week. I think I picked a good time to plant cactus seeds in outdoor starting trays. They have stayed wet and the night and day temps. have been good too. Hopefully in a week or less there should be some germination.

The Pediocactus var minor seed pods became ripe about four days ago. They have to be gathered as soon as they are ripe or the pods will start letting the seeds out, which makes them very hard to collect. The seeds tend to fall down the sides of the plants and hide in the network of spines at the base of the plants. Once the seeds are trapped at the base of the plant they are impossible to remove without harming the cactus.

Another difficulty is that the pods need to stay on the plants and removing the whole pod can cause serious damage to the stem of the Pedio. The pods need to be gently split open and the seeds picked out of the pod a few at a time with tweezers. A few weeks later the empty seed pods will dry and fall of the plants without damaging their skin. If the plant is damaged by removing a seed pod the resulting injury can become infected and the whole plant will die.

It took me over three hours to remove seeds from less than twenty plants. Picking the seeds out of the seed pods is tricky because they tend to slip away while I'm trying to grasp them. I am storing the seeds in the frig. and hope to plant them later this summer.

The Echinocereus triglochidiatus cactus plants are opening their buds today and I think they are some of the most interesting and beautiful flowers. They're beautiful in a strange way and are surely some of the most unusual flower for any plant. If I can get some similar plants to open at the same time I should get some good seeds. Otherwise I'll be happy with any seeds from these plants. There are some triglochidiatus, triglochidiatus var. mojavensis and triglochidiatus var. gonacanthus, so I'm not sure if I'll end up with any pure species.

The Escobaria vivipara cacti are starting to bloom. Their buds are much harder to see because they blend in with the appearance of the spins. Then they seem to suddenly open. Taking every chance I can to pollinate them and often they are closing up again by the time I come home from work. These flowers come out with the sun light and they start to close when the sun goes behind the trees.

The Echinocereus viridiflorus cacti are flowering very well and I'm hoping they will form plenty of seed pods too. They open with the sun and close again later in the afternoon. On cloudy days or if the day turns cloudy they will close up very quickly.

There have been gray skies and cool rain for the week and the Echinocereus cacti all still have their buds closed. Hopefully the sun will open them on days when I can get out to pollinate them. It is impressive how these plants can save their flowering for sunny weather when the insects they need will be out too.

The Echinocereus triglochidiatus and viridiflorus cacti are producing lots of buds. A few plants have started to open their flowers, but cooler weather has kept all of the flower buds closed for a few days. When the sun comes out again there should be plenty of flowers to pollenate.

The Pediocactus plants are on their last flowers and they will finish blooming before any other species begin to bloom. There are signs of developing seed pods and the plants are putting out plenty of new growth.

The Pediocactus simpsonii var. minor plants are starting to bloom. Now, I'm going out with a paint brush every day to pollinate these plants. I think they have the most ethereal flowers of any cactus plants. All of the outdoor cacti seem to be forming flowers and buds early this year.

I have this dream sometimes that I'm a child riding my bicycle in the town where I grew up. There are piles of fill dirt for road construction and I see globular and prickly pear cacti mixed in with the piles of dirt. I decide to go home to get a bag to carry them in so I can plant them in my parents yard. Then I wake up.

It is nearing the end of March and the Pediocactus simpsonii var. minor are starting to show some flower buds. These plants bloom really really early in the season and I'm hoping to see plenty of seeds too. Very exciting...

We are possibly getting snow tonight, so the cold frames are all closed with the cold climate cacti in them. These plants could be snowed on and do just fine, if they were all growing directly in the ground. These plants are in flower pots and will do much better under the protection of the cold frames.

Today was a great day to plant a few Cholla plants. I bought a few plants in a Colorado greenhouse last fall. Last fall one pot was planted outdoors while the rest were kept in a window in an unheated room. The one planted outside was under snow most of the winter and did great, and so did the plants in the unheated room. Now they are all planted outdoors together, and should grow into a great formation. Some Opuntia pads were also planted outdoors. This is the best time of year to plant Opuntia and Cholla type plants because it is just before they go through a rapid growth period. When they are planted in the early spring they will grow new pads and lots of new roots too, which will help them become well established plants in one growing season.

Just this week the snow melted off of the cold frame lids. This is the snow that started to build up at the end of November, so the cacti have been under snow for almost 4 months. The cactus plants look great and are still in their winter sleep stage with no signs of new growth. It has been cloudy for the week and this will help these plants get use to the sun again.

A few disappointments... a Glandulicactus in as a cold frame trial didn't survive, and a mole dug up some seedlings in small pots. The seedlings I could find will live, but I'm missing a few Pediocactus seedlings I really wish I could find.

Next fall I will have to find some natural product to keep the moles out of the cold frames. I've had mice, but they never dig up any cactus plants.

Cactus seedlings that were planted last May in 2009 and started outdoors spent the winter indoors. These seedlings have been under artificial lights from November through March. They have actually grown a little over the past few months and look very healthy. They will go outdoors again when night time temps are in the 40s or higher. They will need to be under shade cloth when they are put back outdoors. It is very exciting to see most of them healthy and looking good.