A cactus and an adenium of some sort

Discussion in 'Cacti and Succulents' started by blynb, Mar 19, 2009.

  1. blynb

    blynb Active Member

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    Hey all. I was hoping you could help my shot memory. The cactus was purchased a while ago and I no longer have it's info card - funny how the minute you realize you don't have it is the minute it starts bothering you what type of cactus you have. Anyway if anyone know's it's proper name please share. . .this other one is an adenium I'm pretty sure but a while back I was online and there was one like it with a much bigger caudex - anyway it was called something else, something more specific. If you know what I'm talking about again, please share :) Thanks so much. b.lyn

    Oh, before I forget (go figure) how can I clean the cactus without injuring myself? I've been misting it regularly but if you can tell from the picture it still has what look like water spots on it. can I use leaf shine or is there another way?
     

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  2. K Baron

    K Baron Well-Known Member

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    One should never mist cactus....it will encourage rot and fungus which will either ruin or worse, kill the plant. I would use a cotton swab to clean your cactus. Hope this helps.
     
  3. Barbara Lloyd

    Barbara Lloyd Well-Known Member

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    blynd,
    I agree w/ K Baron - never mist cactus!. Think of where they live - the desert. Little if any air moisture.
    Yrs. ago prior to the "plant police" I brought home from Cabo, Mexico a slip of PEDILANTHUS titymaloides veriegatus aka Zig Zag plant. Had never seen one and was totaly enthralled. This winter it got put near the "Mist Me" plants and it developed a horrid case of mold. I sniped and cliped and got rid of all I could see and it's doing fine now.
    Try to find out the plants native region and then mimic the same conditions. And don't use "Plant Shine" on anything. A damp or wet paper towel, depending on the plant, wash the leaves, and they'll be fine.
    barb
     
  4. mandarin

    mandarin Active Member 10 Years

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    For some cacti (Copiapoa for example), mist is the major water source, and cacti in forests and grasslands recieve substantial amounts of rainwater.
    I often spray my "desert" cacti with water in summer, but it is important that the water evaporates relatively fast, water drops remaining for long on the growing tip is a big risk.
    Some collectors even water their cacti using a hose ...

    Cacti from rainforests like frequent misting, they do best in a humid environment.
     
  5. Lila Pereszke

    Lila Pereszke Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    1. is a Ficus microcarpa 'Ginseng', not an Adenium...
     
  6. blynb

    blynb Active Member

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    Tried the cotton swab, K Baron, actually a q-tip and it worked suprisingly well. . .I was a bit worried cotton would get stuck in it's thorns but it didn't :)

    mandarin, I've been misting this one (once or twice a week for a couple of years) and it hasn't hurt it yet, knock on wood. Does that mean there may be a chance it's a rainforest cactus?

    I don't know if it would help but I asked the previous owner and she told me it was purchased at a wal-mart. I don't know if maybe they stock some from a certain nursery or if there would even be a way to get that information but anyway. . .

    Lila Pereszke, thank you. :) I've been calling it an adenium since I saw one with the same buttressish roots on an adenium website, but I realize now that the leaves look completely different than mine. I looked up the ficus microcarpa and saw the same pattern in it's root as mine (kind of like two spiney lines down the middle of each fold.
    Wow. I am officially one cactus away from having no unnamed plants in my home. . .that's a good feeling :-p
    -lyn
     
  7. Barbara Lloyd

    Barbara Lloyd Well-Known Member

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    Mea Culpa........Yes Barbara, read your own post. "Find out where it's from and try to duplicate its home land". I see cactus and think Desert. Never would have thought damp understory or rainforest. See we keep learning! :))
    There used to be a Cactus Grower in Stockton, Calif or near by. Does anyone know if it is still in existance? My Grandmother used to mail order from them and was thrilled when she actually got to visit them on a vist to us in San Jose, yrs ago.
    barb
     
  8. mandarin

    mandarin Active Member 10 Years

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    No, columnar cacti like yours usually grow in semi-arid steppes to more arid, desert-like regions. I do not know the columnars and I do not want to guess what it is, especially as it is still small.

    Rainforest cacti are smaller and mostly epiphytic, like Rhipsalis.
     
  9. blynb

    blynb Active Member

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    mandarin, you have given me an idea (probably a bit hairbrained of one) but I'm going to try to do a metasearch on columnar cacti - I didn't know that was what it's called and one reason my searches have been so dry as of yet is probably because I'm calling it a star-shaped cactus. So, if it works, thank you. . .and if it doesn't thank you anyway - at least I can stop calling it star-shaped :)

    Barbara I forgot to ask you yesterday when I replied, but why no leaf shine? Luckily I haven't had a chance to really use it other than on my rubber plant (and I will say it seems to be collecting dust a lot quicker since) but is there a bad chemical in it?

    -b.lyn
     
  10. mandarin

    mandarin Active Member 10 Years

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    Yes, "star-shaped" is a word more affiliated with the genus Astrophytum. You could try this site, they have a good list of genera and many photos. CactiGuide have some pictures too.
    Unfortunately there are relatively few photos of young columnar cacti on the Internet. Maybe it is best to let it grow for a few years and then make a new attempt to identify it.

    Leaf-shine is usually just oil or some other fatty substance that forms a thin, shiny layer on the surface on the plant. Many types of bugs die when sprayed with oil, but apart from that I cannot see any reason to use leaf-shine on a cactus. Sometimes it can promote scorching if the plant is placed in sunlight shortly after application.
     
  11. Barbara Lloyd

    Barbara Lloyd Well-Known Member

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    Blynb,
    I agree with mandarin. It also can seal off breathing areas on the leaves if transfered to the underside via fiingers etc. Someone more knowledgeable than I can give you the chemistry. Just a quick wipe with a wet paper towel or misting, then wipe is easiest and less harmful. And for heavens sake don't use milk - it sours and leaves a nasty residue that is not easy to get off.
    barb
     
  12. blynb

    blynb Active Member

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    (big laugh) :-D
    I have a friend that has been trying to get me to try milk on my rubber plants for over a year! I never tried it for that very reason I just could not imagine at all how you could use something that curdles and it not at least leave a sordid smell - I'm glad you told me that. . .:)
    As for the leaf shine I think I'll hang that up to. . .I've actually just started with qtips and water with the cactus (it's a bit more time consuming than a quick squirt, but it seems to look more natural and it also cleans a bit better somehow)

    oh and the name astrophytum - I've seen that more than you know. :)
    I haven't got to look at the webpage thoroughly yet but I have already had a chance to pick a couple out that look like full size versions of mine so I've got my fingers crossed. Thank you for the references.
    lyn
     
  13. Rosemarie

    Rosemarie Active Member

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  14. blynb

    blynb Active Member

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    That looks a bit more like it than my guess does. . . I saw a Browningia hertlingiana on cactitiguide (mentioned in mandarin's post above) but now I'm not sure because this one's columns look more like mine as does the color. the only thing is the top of mine is more flared but the one there is so much taller, it could be that that's just something that goes away with age. Thank you for finding that for me, tomorrow I will be researching it more. In the meantime, if you've ever heard of the Browningia herlingiana, or could take a peek at it for me, what do you think?
    lyn
     
  15. blynb

    blynb Active Member

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    wow, you're awesome rosemarie. . .I just searched the Pilosocereus deeringii and mine is definitely that. I'm indeterminite about if it's that one of the another one on this site (i think it's pilosocereus coloumnus? I'm probably worng about that name but anyway) this is great. . .I don't have any unnamed plants now! :-D
     

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