As regular readers of Gardening Succs are no doubt aware, I have developed quite an affinity for the stacked crassulas--the chunkier and rarer, the better. I have also developed an addictio--er--an affinity for propagation. The natural marriage of these two affinities has resulted, perhaps unsurprisingly, in the following:
From left to right, the rows are: (1) c. deceptor; (2) c. deceptor; (3) c. columella; (4) c. marchandii; (5) half c. barklyi and half c. moonglow; (6) c. emerald; (7) a "catch-all" row that includes c. hirtipes, c. ivory pagoda, c. coralita, and a couple of others; (8) c. deltoides and c. namaquensis. I used a mix of half organic potting soil and half dry stall (aka pumice), since this simple soil cocktail has done me well in the past.
I would love to propagate larger cuttings, but for many of these (especially c. barklyi, which I love but can't find in the US--can anyone help me?!?), I only have one or two tiny little plants from which to take tiny little cuttings. In some cases (e.g., c. namaquensis), I've basically decimated my only plant in the hopes of propagating more.
Why, you might ask, am I propagating these stacked crassulas? Am I hoping to start my own nursery? Sell online? Guerilla garden stacked crassulas up and down the California coast in the hopes that they'll overtake our ubiquitous ice plant? The answer, of course, is that I have no idea. I am propagating these plants because I really, really like them, and I want to get good at propagation for reasons that elude even me. Such are the mysteries of the human mind.
I would love to propagate larger cuttings, but for many of these (especially c. barklyi, which I love but can't find in the US--can anyone help me?!?), I only have one or two tiny little plants from which to take tiny little cuttings. In some cases (e.g., c. namaquensis), I've basically decimated my only plant in the hopes of propagating more.
Why, you might ask, am I propagating these stacked crassulas? Am I hoping to start my own nursery? Sell online? Guerilla garden stacked crassulas up and down the California coast in the hopes that they'll overtake our ubiquitous ice plant? The answer, of course, is that I have no idea. I am propagating these plants because I really, really like them, and I want to get good at propagation for reasons that elude even me. Such are the mysteries of the human mind.
| I've also been growing from seed again. As you might recall, I had moderate success last year with growing haworthias from seed. (I'll post pics of those sometime.) I decided to try again with a variety of types, and using techniques I learned from this fabulous book. I had no luck with crassulas and little with agaves and echeverias. However, after a few months, some types were doing well enough to transplant, as you can see in the picture to the right. Various mammillarias look good, as do haworthias. I am also excited about the astrophytums, which are in the center row in this pic. I've had two astrophytums in the past, 50% of which perished under my care, so I'm interested to see if I can keep these alive. |  |
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