Lithops optica var. rubra

Hi everyone. Sorry I haven't been posting much lately; it's been a little hectic. These are some seedlings of Lithops optica 'Rubra' that are beginning to  look really nice.
Our granddaughter from California will be visiting over Thanksgiving and I'm giving a talk on growing succulents to a Garden Club tomorrow. In addition to that, of course, we decided to open the nursery for orders until December 6 and we've been fairly swamped.
Finally, our weather is finally turning cold with our first hard freeze expected this week. Now any money we earn from the nursery sales goes "slurp" to the heating oil man.

Lithops optica ssp. rubra

This is our latest batch of Lithops optica ssp. rubra (or var. or cv. or 'rubra' depending on the author) and they're enjoying our late season hot spell. We've had a love for these little pebbles for a long time. 

But the warm spell is over. Our daytime temps have dropped into the 60s F and nighttime temps down into the 40s F. Quite a change.

Enjoy your plants!

Lithops optica 'Rubra'

A long time ago I posted a photo of a couple of Lithops optica 'Rubra' seedlings. They've grown up a bit.

The color isn't quite right, but you get the picture. Lithops are such fun plants. People often tell me that they're just too hard to grow. Well, they can be a challenge for a beginner - and sometimes even for a seasoned grower. I tell people they're probably going to kill one or two before they catch on, but it's worth the effort. Haven't grown them before? Try them; you just may fall in love with them.

Christmas Greetings!

I may not be able to blog for the next couple of days, so...a few images to brighten the season:

Whether you are Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist ... or none of the above ... I wish you peace and love in this season. And especially for those of you who visit this blog periodically, best wishes for a season of blessings and a wonderful new year.

Lithops optica ssp. rubra

OK, so I said I'd get back to more images of Haworthias. I will; I really will. But I just couldn't resist posting this closeup photo of a Lithops seedling...Lithops optica ssp. rubra. Years ago we bought a bunch of these in California and on the way home in our trusty old VW camper we decided to camp out in central Oregon, which is high desert country. When we came back from a long hike we found all the "rubras" had been eaten by chipmunks. Mind you, none of the other Lithops...just the optica rubras! That's a true story. And one more reason we like these critters so much...the Lithops, that is.

And yes, we still like chipmunks. They're cute little critters too.