Blooming Great March

This is what's Blooming here in Brisvegas in March.

that's a cephalum, not a bloom. But that's where this cactus will bloom from when it does bloom.

Another two Cacti right next to the first one.
Looks a little bleached don't it ?

Another angle.

Is this "fish-hook cactus"? It looks like one I have. Luciee {;^)

They are Melocactus rather than Ferocactus.

The one with a Redder cap looks like Melocactus bahiaensis but it is difficult to tell in a picture. The two together could be from the Violaceus group of Melocactus, but again it is difficult to tell. They look great! Ginger are you in Brisbane?

A wider angle of this Golden Globe.

A wider angle.

And another Small Flowering Cacti.

There are three different blooms in this Picture.

This Cacti is similar to the one I started off with.
But it has distinct corrugation's on all the ribs.
And it is also a more blue green colour.



This message was edited Mar 10, 2012 8:35 AM

Another Corrugated Ball Cacti.
This one has yellow Flowers.

The last ones appear to be Notocactus, probably Notocactus magnificus.

Thanks Dean,
When I took these Pictures I was in a hurry and had no time to ask the groundsmen.
But from what Bob has said in the past about their signage.
I am more likely to get a true ID from the wonderfull members of Daves Garden.

I am about to do a Yahoo ! search on Notocactus magnificus.

kell.

AKA Parodia magnifica (synonyms). Also check out Notocactus warasii (syn Parodia warasii).

This is probably a true Succulent.

The Flower is coming from the Succulent on the right of this Picture.

Stapelia gigantea

Thanks once again Dean.

I never did see this Flower completely open.
But I am going back this coming Sunday.
(I'm getting to like the Trains rides around Brisvegas)
So there will be more Pictures to come.

The Fatter part of this Succulent is very soft and there are NO spikes on it at all.

Fatter part, you mean the unopened flower?

I'm not sure what the fat part is called ?
In some Cacti it's called a paddle.
And no Dean, not the Flower.

Ah, part of the stems? I'm not sure what you mean by fat part. I can't think of a particularly fat part on Stapelia gigantea. If the stems are soft on Stapelia gigantea, it may be running low on water; though it's a flexible plant and can adapt to a range of conditions.

I think it is 'Stems' I am trying to think of.

My next Flower.

Oh nice. Cleistocactus, I'd think. Could be C winteri, but I'm not good at that family.

I think you are right Dean.
This and many other Cacti are not tagged in this BG.

This is probably an Agave.
It only had two Flower Spikes.
It is a very tightly clumping unit. (probably a miniature)
I wonder how one gets pups from this type of Succulent ?

Haworthia attenuata is my guess. Or a close relative. It's hard to tell from this distance, but I think I see the telltale tubercled stripes on the abaxial (outward-facing) surfaces.

looks like a Dyckia to me (I see teeth on the leaves)

I think you're right. That makes sense with that spent inflorescence. Hard for me to tell anything from this distance.

Sorry for my slow answer.
Been out all day taking Pictures. ;o)

Close Up of Flower spike.

Oh there we go. Palmbob is right. Definitely looks like Dyckia to me. Now... the next step, narrowing Dyckia down to species is hard for me. I have about 20 different Dyckia, though; and several Hechtia. Just got another one this week. They took a while to grow on me, but now I love them.

You asked how to divide or propagate cuttings from succulents like this. The answer is: VERY CAREFULLY. :-) The armed, dry-loving Bromeliaceae—Dyckia, Hechtia, uncommon Encholirium—are VERY harsh on your hands and arms. I think this is partly why they tend to be expensive. They offset fairly readily, which should make them easy to propagate, but unfortunately they draw blood when handled.

Thanks Dean and Bob for your very helpfull responses.
I spend so much time on Yahoo ! looking at all your posibilities.

Today the Stapelia gigantea Succulent opened its Flower fully.
Boy oh Boy what a surprise that turned our to be.
Dull and pale-green all over outside.
But the inside was a sight to behold.
Especially for a beginner like Moi. ^_^
It was like a young girl undressing for me for the first time ever.

A little teasing.

And this was the final reveal.

I know this is supposed to be a Palm.
But I still consider it a Succulent.
It's another March Flower·er.

Oh, definitely a succulent: Pachypodium lamerei, so-called "Madagascar Palm". That's one of those common names I dislike—calling one plant by a different category altogether. It is not any kind of palm. It is in family Apocynaceae, MUCH more closely related to "Frangipani" genus Plumeria, "Oleander" genus Nerium, and genus Adenium.

Adenium, incidentally, has the same problem, being called "Desert Rose", another terrible common name since Adenium is not related to the Rose family. This is like calling lizards "Desert Squirrels".

The superficial resemblance of Pachypodium lamerei to a palm comes from being tree-size and having long, arching foliage emerging from a vertical stem or trunk.