Today's deep thoughts about plants

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Azuleja
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#101

Post by Azuleja »

I really preferred these as a jumbo 6-pack, but I decided to give them some new 4" digs before winter. They'll be a year old next month.
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A. ovatifolia before
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#102

Post by Gee.S »

They look terrific! How old?
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".

"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#103

Post by Azuleja »

Thank you! They're 11 months and spent almost all summer outside under shade cloth. They were the larger seedlings from a group. I planted the smaller ones in another 6 pack and they're a ways behind still.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#104

Post by Azuleja »

This group is 4 1/2 months along. Fast growers with big wide leaves. My other seedlings are doing well, growing at a slower more normal pace. Maybe it's time to separate these before they become more tangled. Or will they be fine until spring?
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Agavemonger
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#105

Post by Agavemonger »

I would plant them up right now. You still have a month or more of reasonable weather to establish them this season, and they are fast growers.

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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#106

Post by Azuleja »

Thank you, Agavemonger. I'll do that.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#107

Post by Stan »

They look great. Congrats.!
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#108

Post by Azuleja »

Thanks, Stan. I'm saving one of those ovatifolia for you.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#109

Post by Stan »

Thank you. I know I owe you a D.platyphylla.- fun to say really,I picture a Platypus as a plant.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#110

Post by Azuleja »

Well, only if you can get one out without bloodshed.

Those sobria seedlings were the perfect size for separation. Nice healthy roots, they came apart easily. Do any of you other seed growers cull your seedlings? I feel bad discarding the smaller ones but space is limited. These 12 are the largest with the widest leaves.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#111

Post by Gee.S »

All looks very good. I might exercise a little caution in regard to separating. Many seedlings seem to very much enjoy each other's company, and require less water when kept together. 'When-to-separate' is another of life's mysteries I haven't quite worked out yet. I have experimented some, but results to date have been mixed.
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"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".

"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#112

Post by Azuleja »

Looking back at previous threads, I see how much bigger and more crowded the seedlings can get. They look great. I would guess the slower growers benefit the most from the support of a group.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#113

Post by Gee.S »

They can, or some might get lost in there. That is the only culling I've done -- 5 plants in a 4" container, and one is lagging badly, and heading in the wrong direction.
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".

"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#114

Post by KLC »

You can leave them together until they break the pot open (and they will do that for sure). Just pull them apart, it doesn't hurt them to lose some of their roots. Fwiw, the bigger they are the quicker they will recover from separating them. It does no harm to them.

A quick look through the archives produced this pic of A. vizcainoensis I separated in 2012-ish.
vizcainoensis 001.JPG
vizcainoensis 001.JPG (167.87 KiB) Viewed 3411 times
The A. nickelsiae you have is likely one from this group of youngsters.
seedlings june 2012 014.JPG
seedlings june 2012 014.JPG (89.25 KiB) Viewed 3411 times
So Yes, you can let them crowd each other in the small pots, and no it wont hurt them to pull the tangled up roots apart. Been trying to 'splain that for some time but everyone lately insists that bare rooted plants need to be coddled and kept moist, but they really don't. You seem to have the rooting thing down Azuleja. Did the few seeds of giant ovatifolia I sent ever germinate for you? Mine are maybe an inch tall.
agaves april 13 225.JPG
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#115

Post by KLC »

With a little TLC you can get this:
seedlings june 2012 012.JPG
seedlings june 2012 012.JPG (100.9 KiB) Viewed 3411 times
To turn into this:
DSC_1159.JPG
DSC_1159.JPG (78.65 KiB) Viewed 3411 times
:D
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Azuleja
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#116

Post by Azuleja »

Rooting is easy except when it isn't. Now and then I get a plant that's stubborn about it for no apparent reason.

I have two giant ovatifolia seedlings from your seeds and two larger plants from Starr Nursery. I'm excited to see them full grown someday. They seem like a cool cross.

My regular ovatifolia seedlings really took off after I gave them their own space. My kerchovei are struggling a little and probably would have been better off left together. I don't plan to divide up any of my others. Sometimes it's hard to be patient though. I really, really want the satisfaction of going seed to bloom. That will be kind of awesome.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#117

Post by Steph115 »

Good to hear everyone's thoughts about separating seedlings. I've been thinking about separating my A. durangensis (left), but in light of this discussion, I think I will give them a little longer together. In the center is A. mckelveyana (from Gee!) and on the right is A. americana - definitely the fastest-growing seedling I've had by far.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#118

Post by KLC »

Looks good Steph. Your little guys would fare much better if you left them together for another year or so. A. durangensis was a good germinator for me too.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#119

Post by KLC »

Azuleja wrote:Rooting is easy except when it isn't. Now and then I get a plant that's stubborn about it for no apparent reason.
Yep we all get some stubborn ones now and then. I prefer pure pumice and multiple daily waterings for the stubborn ones. I think maybe our expectations for how long it should take a plant to grow new roots as compared to how long it actually takes may cause us to think we have a stubborn one or something is wrong. Sometimes it just takes a few months for an agave to get around to sprouting buds and growing roots. I have a pup of A. mapisaga v Lisa that sat in a 10" pot since 4/9/17, it was limp and the leaf bases were wrinkly for a long time. Just very recently it slowly filled back up with water and is normal looking again. I think after 60 days you should see some significant root development if there are none at all. If there are none yet and the base has not rotted, put it back and leave it be a while longer. I pulled some pups off of 2 large plants I dug out last weekend and it may be a while before I get around to potting them up, I mean a month or more. They will go a lot longer than that with no ill effects.

That was my deep thought about plants for today. :P
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#120

Post by Steph115 »

Thanks, Keith! And thanks for your insight. I will leave 'em together. Hearing Azul & others talk about plants taking off when they got some more room to grow tempted me.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#121

Post by Azuleja »

The ones that took off for me were fast growers with large leaf sets and established roots. I still have 5 containers of others that I'll be leaving until next year.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#122

Post by Gee.S »

OK, I finally had a deep thought. I wonder if one might employ Giant Agave Bugs (Acanthocephala) to control/eliminate Running Bug (Caulotops) issues. I don't recall seeing both on the same plants, and wonder if Agave Bugs might drive them off as competitors. Hmmmmmmm...........
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"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".

"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#123

Post by Azuleja »

And thus the mega hybrid Acantholotops was born.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#124

Post by Stan »

Steph- I had that Cereus "fairy castles" that is a dwarf plant of natural mutation I've forgotten. I read it someplace.Geoff would know. It was one of the very first cactus I ever bought. I had that thing well over 25 years,it had a nice trunk like the huge trunks of big Cereus,only in miniature. Then,it caught some virus. No amount of fertilizer would snap it out of just yellowing and dying by the year. As last resort I planted it out..and that was the end of it.
Maybe that's just its lifespan. I don't know.
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Re: Today's deep thoughts about plants

#125

Post by Gee.S »

Azuleja wrote:And thus the mega hybrid Acantholotops was born.
Oopsie. Let's not get carried away. Ever notice kissing bugs look a lot like Agave bugs? There's a hybrid I could take a pass on....
Agave
"American aloe plant," 1797, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at".

"Some talk the talk, others walk the walk, but I stalk the stalk"
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