Why Do You Grow Cacti ???

Subject: Why Do You Grow Cacti ??? Wed Jun 18, 2008 7:45 pm

It has always interested me in why people grow cacti

I know that when I first got interested it was the spines. The more unusual the more I had to have it.

If I really had to pick out why I would have to say the hairier/woolier the better. Oh and the spines of course. Then there are the flowers...........some will dwarf a plant. I am also hooked on taking photos of them (in case you hadn't noticed Razz

)

Like these I took on Sunday. Who would believe two different pilosocereus would be flowering in winter

But why do you grow them would love to hear it
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Betty

http://community.webshots.com/user/parrotsheaven

Joined : 07 May 2008 Posts : 377 Location : Melbourne

hmm.
coz they're cool Question

Subject: Re: Why Do You Grow Cacti ??? Wed Jun 18, 2008 7:54 pm

You got to do better than that Wink

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Betty

http://community.webshots.com/user/parrotsheaven

Joined : 07 May 2008 Posts : 377 Location : Melbourne

COZ THEY ARE TOTALLY AWESOME!!! Very Happy

Subject: Re: Why Do You Grow Cacti ??? Wed Jun 18, 2008 9:48 pm

Joined : 02 May 2008 Posts : 97 Location : Bendigo Victoria

our collection started when we made friends with a couple who were moving to QLD , we visisted their garden and fell in love with the agaves and cactus they had in their collection. we duely bought a few. then an amazing thing happened, we found we wanted more and more so the search was on. soon others heard that we were looking and conntacted us so the collection has quickly grown in size, ,,some we have are too big for ease of portability so now Im keen to grow smaller growing specimens but so far no special species. Have a cactus database that Im adding to almost daily as I find more details thanks to this forum and others. hubby has erected the polyhouse and the garden for the larger plants but the interest in the plants has waned some what. Im studying their cultural requirements and trying to get the best results from the plants I have. Some of them are weathered and so the new growth will give me a fresh looking plant and the mature ones will be stock plants for flowers and seeds. The seeds I have grown from our first attempt are interesting to compare with the same seedlings started with heat. looking to get a heat cord this week to get more seeds underway. and of course , less water to try and find to keep the plants alive and well through our severe water restrictions. Cheers. Lois

Age : 35 Joined : 26 Apr 2008 Posts : 181 Location : Cairns

I first started growing cacti back in the good ol days - I lived in a rural district in a drought prone Canterbury (South Island of NZ) and my landlord had some beautiful echinopsis growing... He told me they grow easy from cuttings so why not do that?

I loved indoor plants at the time - as Canterbury, although drought prone is also frost prone - I lived where it dropped to negative 8 on a beautiful star filled night. Your breath would freeze and sink to your feet.

Although negative 8 isn't that bad - it's still too cold for most outdoor cacti. Though, the echinopsis survived it all!

I started with a cutting and grew it in my sunny window... It flowered!

I bought 40 more cacti!!!

I had a room full of houseplants - from trediscantia to peace lily - and so many others. But the ones that drew most of my attention were the 40 odd cacti!

When exam time was here, instead of studying I'd be grooming my cacti. As a procrastination thing. But it was long before the advent of the Internet really - well, it was for me. So I read mostly from things we call books.

Unfortunately I moved to the big city in search of work and could only take a handful of my prized possessions. I remember selling one on NZ's version of eBay (TradeMe) - it was tiny, and I noted on the site that it was just a small rooted cutting. But people kept bidding on it and it sold for $40... I felt awful... But I accepted the money anyway... I got a bad feedback Sad

I figured it was deserved, but they did bid for it!

So - it all started from a flowering cutting of echinopsis... And, although not the worlds most stunning cacti with it's small spines, it is still on top of my favourite.

Above all - i love the flowers - so keep watching the ACF Monthly Mag - because the 'flower addition' is coming just in time for spring!

Joined : 07 May 2008 Posts : 377 Location : Melbourne

Joined : 24 Jun 2008 Posts : 131 Location : Bendigo

I guess what 1st got me into collecting cacti was, the spines, i loved the big thick mean angry looking spines, but i soon learnt, repottings a b**** with them hahaha. Now i guess its the looks of the cacti and sort of flowers, but if im at someones garden or the market or something, im useless and if im asked what that plant is, i have no idea, nor what flower it produces, guess its just a bonus of the collecting. But Astro's are probably my favourite, closely followed by Feros and Chilean species like Eriosyce and Copiapoa, but just everything. Theres a hell of alot of plants id love, mostly Japanese Astro CV's, but Turbs and Lophs and Echinocereus ahh too many to name!

Joined : 28 Jun 2008 Posts : 27 Location : SEQ

I've allways had a few cacti (mostly Rhaphiolepis & Epi's) amidst my collection of tropical Aroids, Orchids, CP's & aquatics. However with the continuing water shortages most of the Aroids, Orchids & CP's have found new homes with friends in the tropical north (where they still have that stuff my granny used to tell stories about, i think she called it rain?)
I mean one has to admire anything that can sit in a kinda stasis for a decade or two between rain events. Even if Qld DPI seems concerned that "these things can survive even when all other vegitation has perished" i would have thought that some vegitation was better than none at all, even if it is exotic.
Unfortunately the new"ish" house rule is "if it isnt usefull we wont waste water, money or room on it".
I have a bit of a passion for columar cacti & the Opuntiads many of which have pretty decent fruit, & i can justify my Trich's as root stocks. now how do i justify some Astro's?

Joined : 23 Jul 2008 Posts : 53 Location : Victoria

My interest started becoz my Mum had a few in pots. Then my youngest daughter decided to do a cacti garden as a project towards her Queen's Scout award (which she passed btw). Anyway the house got sold, the plants went west. Then last year my youngest took a trip to CC and fell in love with Echeverias. Sent me a few piccy's so I started looking on Ebay. Now they are taking over, many species, many varieties, cacti, succulents I'm hooked (on the spines occassionally 2), lol. I think its becoz they r so diverse and really don't ask for much and give big rewards (can't w8 2 c mine flower). There r 2 many to get every species but then u c one that catches your eye and u think just one more won't hurt, lmao.

Joined : 04 Apr 2008 Posts : 34 Location : melbourne

I was first given a couple of succulents for christmas when I was sixteen, an echeveria agavoides crest and a kalanchoe of some description. I've since lost these plants as at the time they didn't really spark much of an interest. I wish I still had them.

A year later I developed an interest in 'medicinal' plants, I bought my first Trichocereus at an exuberant price from the place previously known as 'happy high herbs'.
Later after moving to melbourne I discovered a market stall that sold many plants I was inteterested in and started buyin one or two a fortnight. After purchasing most of the medicinal plants on offer, my hunger didn't cease I continued buying cacti of all descriptions.
After another couple of years collecting I was lucky enough to score a job at a nursery and my habit became quite uncontrollable. I became interested in all manor of succulent plants, particularly caudiciforms, haworthias and cacti.
I now have far too many plants to count. I have a particular interest in finding new species and varieties of Trichocereus, I have over 35 species and numerous varieties. I love there appearance, large majestic colums covered in gnarly spines, that just seem to demand respect. There cold hardiness as I've spent alot of my life living and growing in the highlands of victoria. I wouldn't even dream of eating them anymore, which had been my initial plan.

I like collecting things, books, plants and now vinyl toys. There's something about owning a collection of related objects. I can't quite understand it, I just like it.

Joined : 07 May 2008 Posts : 377 Location : Melbourne

Good stories guys! Smile

okay, my turn....
I had always been interested in plants, animals and the natural world in general.
My cactus collection/addiction started when i was about 15 (im 17 now). There was a Lobivia arachnacantha on the veranda of my home and i never paid it much attention, until it flowered. The most amazing shining metallic purple that glistened in the sun. I thought it looked just great. There was also an old neglected Epiphyllum sp. (that i was later suprised to hear is actually a cactus) that i thought was really ugly until it flowered with a massive nocturnal white flower that scented out the entire veranda. Intrigued, i thought i should get a few more of these amazing plants. So i went to weekend markets and bought some common cacti like echinopsis and opuntia sp. for cheap prices. As months went on i also added some succulents and other unusual plants to the veranda. But cacti were the best so i focused on them. I thought they needed next to no water and that they thrived on neglect, so hence many of these plants looked pretty rough. they endured months of winter rain but they survived because these were very hardy cacti. Next i started researching cacti in books on and the net, and became more interested. When i figured out how to care for them better, i relocated my plants to a more appropriate position and started adding a few more unusual types to the 'collection'.... and the rest explains itself i think... i became a cactus nut and was constantly reading, getting advice and buying plants.

Today i have a small mixed collection focusing on small globular plants. i like small plants. I know i should but I don't really have a specialty area (i like too many types!) but focus mainly on Astrophytums, Gymnocalyciums, Mammillaria, crested, monstrose, rare cacti and mexican minatures. I hope to start up a Melocactus collection and have also recently became interested in seed raising.