Weird 'Fred'

Fred's been here before. But I took this photo last week and I couldn't resist posting it. The variegation showed up a year or two ago, making it even more weird...if that's possible!

Cephalocereus senilis

Seedlings of the Old Man of Mexico used to be very common at the local nursery. The problem was always getting them past that "I'm going to turn to mush on you" stage. That's a stage that came rather regularly in our early years of getting to know succulent plants. Now they're not as commonly available - due, I understand, to a shortage of seed. So if you happen on a nice specimen, you might want to grab onto it...not literally, of course. After all, under all that hair there are some sharp little spines. Kind of like some people I know... And, please,  they don't need little plastic eyes or strawflowers glued onto them!

Echinocereus viridiflorus

This nice little Echinocereus grows hidden in the grasses or under the snow in fairly mountainous terrain in Colorado and Wyoming (and in various expressions, throughout other states, from Texas and north). It can take a lot of mistreatment and not only survive, but thrive. Just as yesterday's post was of a "hard keeper," this is one "easy keeper."

Enjoy your plants!

Pachypodium brevicaule

Because we have so many different succulent plants around our house and nursery, we've never really had room for a lot of very big plants. Some of the larger pachypodiums are a case in point. But this is another matter, as it's a dwarf, staying quite small. It can be difficult to grow on its own roots and is especially sensitive to cold and wet conditions. On the other hand, it doesn't really like to have its roots totally dry out. But the challenge is worth it for these unique little beauties.

Aloe deltoideodonta var. candicans

You'd think that after 40 some years of growing succulent plants I'd get a little tired of them. True, some of the "old timers" sometimes become boring, but I usually get over it and I get fascinated all over again by what first caught my attention: the amazing diversity of form. How can you not be enthralled with the almost unbelievable beauty of a plant like this? Wow!

Echeveria 'Glitter'

This one's called 'Glitter', and that's exactly what it does in every ray of sun. And the flower just adds an extra splash of color.

 

The weather has returned to typical Spring with clouds, sometimes heavy showers and a sun-break here and there. ("Sun-break" is a peculiarly Northwest weather term.)

Random Succulent Images for May

I'm tired tonight so I'm just posting some random images that Lynn-Marie captured the other day in one of the greenhouses. I hope you enjoy them.

 

 

I have a tendency to wake up way too early when the days start getting longer in late spring, but I still stay up into the wee hours. I'll eventually adjust to the season but, in the meantime, it makes for long days. At least today was filled with good company at the meeting of the Oregon Cactus & Succulent Society, meeting jointly with the Cascade Society from Washington State. It was a fun gathering and we owe them a debt of gratitude for making the trip down here. Next up is the "Fat Plants" sale in June. More later.

Epicactus 'Sparkling Burgundy'

This is 'Sparkling Burgundy', another one of the Epicactus plants which is flowering now. We're usually away on our annual trip when they're blooming but we took our trip early this year and we won't miss their flowers. And there are plenty of them. We don't specialize in these plants but we've gathered a bit of a collection - often neglected - over the years.

This evening I met with several members of the Cascade Cactus & Succulent Society over dinner and tomorrow they'll be meeting with the Oregon society for lunch. They're a wonderful group and I really enjoyed meeting them. I look forward to visiting again tomorrow.