Lithops - Those Wonderful Living Stones
The long in the house winter is over and my lithops are back outside in the sun and fresh air. I lost three plants over the winter. All were young plants, 2+ years, and they apparently just didn't have enough water to get through their regeneration cycle. I took a chance keeping them with the adult plants and I lost. Nevertheless, the remaining adult plants look fine and are once again receiving a regular watering.
Shown above is a part of my Lithops collection. Lithops really are beautiful plants. I've grown almost all of my plants from seed, and I thoroughly enjoy them every day.
They are really beautiful - thanks for sharing! Most of the Lithops I have are still tiny seedlings - but it is always nice to compare with adult stones!
ReplyDeleteart
Hi Art. Thanks for the nice comment. Seed is a great way to build a collection. These were all grown from seed and are between 5 and 15 years old. I keep them in the house over the winter and put them back outside in early May. The new leaves in the spring are always nice to look at.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful plants. The colours of new heads are great. Mine have not fully regenerated yet.
ReplyDeleteHi Alain and thanks for the nice comment. Lithops are great in that they give you a new pair of leaves each year. My plants' regeneration went quite well this year and there are only a couple still trying to get it completed.
DeleteYou have such beautiful lithops plants! The color, the shape - just perfect. Those aucampiae look amazing. I could never grow them properly, they reduce in size and die after a couple of years.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the successful regeneration :)
Last year I bought some L. jullii against better judgment. Hoped they'll make it. But it's all the same story again - they regenerate too slowly and then just stop. I now have 6 or 7 jullii just stuck in the middle of regeneration...
Thank you Rika. Well, they are all not perfect but there are a lot of nice plants, many of which I have had for quite a few years. I can grow aucampiae nicely for about 5 to 7 years and then they seem to deteriorate. I think I need to try repotting them at about the 5 year mark. I think every lithops grower has problems with a species or two that other growers have no trouble with. I've always had trouble with hallii. It seems to be one of the slowest to regenerated for me. Then I get impatient and give it a lot of water in an effort to force the regeneration and it rots. I think I'm down to just one or two hallii plants now. It's just all part of the fun and frustration of growing mesembs. :)
DeleteSeveral of my julii have done the same, Rika. They are hard to grow ex situ! But we keep at it because they are worth it.
DeleteRegeneration cycles are so tricky, until we know how to truly communicate with plants, there's no way of knowing why yours succumbed. But your "herd" is looking terrific, so no worries!
ReplyDeleteI do talk to them Marla, but they just ignore me. :) Lithops are very independent. They do what they want, no matter what we growers desire. But, I still think they are great.
DeleteReally beautifull, greeting from Belgium
ReplyDeleteHi Retriever. Thanks for the nice comment. I think they are beautiful also. Are you growing Lithops in Belgium?
DeleteI like it! :) Last week I sowed my first lithops seeds (hope they grow as much as yours)
ReplyDeleteWhat's te Cole number of the second pot in second row? They've an amazing light color with dark lines
Hi Maria,
DeleteThanks for the nice comments. Sorry it took so long to get back to you. I was searching for the Cole number for Lithops karasmontana subsp bella. It was C 295 from Mesa Garden in New Mexico. There are two double headed plants in the pot, both from seed planted in 2006.