Cactus Blooms - Spring 2026

[RCDS66]

Quite a few cacti have started blooming. Few pics to share...

[RCDS66]

Few more....

[Gee.S]

It's amazing to me that you have so many tiny plants in the ground. If I tried that many/most would be gone by morning.

[RCDS66]

It's amazing to me that you have so many tiny plants in the ground. If I tried that many/most would be gone by morning.

That's correct Ron. I have quite a few small plants (actually hundreds of them) in the ground that I am planting since 2023 when I shifted to this mountain top house. Some of them are pretty big now, most have survived and out of few hundred planted, may be 15 or 20 died which in my understanding is a pretty good result. This will need a bit of explaining.
I started developing this mountain top in 2018 and completed my house by Jan 2023. During this period I planted many roses and many other plants including few cacti / succulents. I noticed that despite the fact temperature went down to 29*F on few odd nights (generally staying between 32*F to 36*F during nights in Jan / Feb), there was NO FROST. Conversely, in Islamabad city few hundred feet below where the temperature may have been a degree or two higher, there was quite a bit of frost that damaged plants. I concluded that it was the very strong wind at night (being a mountain top) which didn't allow the frost to settle down on plants though the temperature may have been below freezing. So I decided to do bulk of my plantation before the start of winters which theoretically was quite a stupid thing to do. But practically, since there was no frost, most of my small sized plants / seedlings survived. I made sure that I plant them on slopes in very well draining soil and water them just adequately to keep them alive. This resulted is my plants getting well settled by May when the real summers started and temperature crossed 100*F. By doing this I have achieved better results than many of my friends around. I think my mountain top location that gets lot of sunlight during day and lot of strong wind at night (with a temperature difference of over 12 to 13 degrees), very less humidity and the practice of plantation before winters has done the trick for me. I may be wrong but this is what I think.

Few pics taken today...

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[Gee.S]

But where are all the small mammals that would eat them in my part of the world? When I say many/most would be gone by morning, that is not an exaggeration. We have rabbits, Harris ground squirrels, and pack rats, and they all seem to prefer a diet of cultivated plants. Why? Because cultivated plants tend to be irrigated. We also have banded peccaries roaming the area, and these also eat plants -- larger plants. More than once I have awakened to find a small Fero or big Gymno upside-down in my driveway. Peccaries dug 'em up to feast on the roots.

Then there are gophers -- these are the worst. Thankfully, I have no gophers on my property but know folks who do.

[RCDS66]

But where are all the small mammals that would eat them in my part of the world? When I say many/most would be gone by morning, that is not an exaggeration. We have rabbits, Harris ground squirrels, and pack rats, and they all seem to prefer a diet of cultivated plants. Why? Because cultivated plants tend to be irrigated. We also have banded peccaries roaming the area, and these also eat plants -- larger plants. More than once I have awakened to find a small Fero or big Gymno upside-down in my driveway. Peccaries dug 'em up to feast on the roots.

Then there are gophers -- these are the worst. Thankfully, I have no gophers on my property but know folks who do.

Now this is different.
I do have rabbits, porcupines in my area and I have 7 pet goats too but a 6 ft high mesh fire fence keeps the wild animals out and right from the start, I separated the goats area so they can't come to this area.

[Gee.S]

But where are all the small mammals that would eat them in my part of the world? When I say many/most would be gone by morning, that is not an exaggeration. We have rabbits, Harris ground squirrels, and pack rats, and they all seem to prefer a diet of cultivated plants. Why? Because cultivated plants tend to be irrigated. We also have banded peccaries roaming the area, and these also eat plants -- larger plants. More than once I have awakened to find a small Fero or big Gymno upside-down in my driveway. Peccaries dug 'em up to feast on the roots.

Then there are gophers -- these are the worst. Thankfully, I have no gophers on my property but know folks who do.

Now this is different.
I do have rabbits, porcupines in my area and I have 7 pet goats too but a 6 ft high mesh fire fence keeps the wild animals out and right from the start, I separated the goats area so they can't come to this area.

Be glad you don't have pack rats. They go over and around fencing as easily as we might walk thru a park.

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[RCDS66]

Be glad you don't have pack rats. They go over and around fencing as easily as we might walk thru a park.

Ron I do have rats in my location but perhaps they have yet not discovered that small cacti and agaves taste very good
BTW, those are cute little devils that you have

Today's blooms. Pics just taken after sunrise. Being night bloomers, blooms of Echinopsis can be found open early morning.... other cacti are still sleeping.

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[Gee.S]

Be glad you don't have pack rats. They go over and around fencing as easily as we might walk thru a park.

Ron I do have rats in my location but perhaps they have yet not discovered that small cacti and agaves taste very good
BTW, those are cute little devils that you have

Today's blooms. Pics just taken after sunrise. Being night bloomers, blooms of Echinopsis can be found open early morning.... other cacti are still sleeping.

They are kinda cute. They look like gigantic mice, 30 cm+ and heavily built. They like to build large nests out of cholla balls.

[Gafoto]

I’m always amazed by animals that are impervious to cholla. Critters that actually eat opuntia are terrifying.

Many of my Echinocereus are starting to bud out. I expect a good show, as usual. I’ll probably be out with a Q-tip making crosses again.

[jdjn13]

Here's my contribution. Mammillaria Bocasana.

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[RCDS66]

Just forgot about this thread. Thanks for reviving the thread, jdjn13
I really love Parodia. Few pics to share.
Parodia herteri

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Parodia scopa f. inermis

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Parodia sellowii

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Parodia erubescens

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Parodia sellowii

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Parodia turecekiana

2026-04Parodiaturecekiana6220.JPG (219.97 KiB) Viewed 264 times

Parodia schumanniana

2026-04Parodiaschumanniana5953a.JPG (284.49 KiB) Viewed 264 times

[RCDS66]

Thelocactus setispinus

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Acanthocalycium glaucum

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Echinocereus rigidissimus

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2026-04Echinocereusrigidissimus.ssp.rubispinus6462.JPG (136.84 KiB) Viewed 264 times

Echinopsis wrightiana

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Gymnocalycium ragonesii

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[jdjn13]

Absolutely beautiful plants, Hamad. Feel free to call me Joe.

[Fairview]

Thelocactus setispinus
2026-04Thelocactussetispinus6454.JPG

Acanthocalycium glaucum
2026-04Acanthocalyciumglaucum6460.JPG
2026-04Acanthocalyciumglaucum6461.JPG

Echinocereus rigidissimus
2026-04Echinocereusrigidissimus.ssp.rubispinus6459.JPG
2026-04Echinocereusrigidissimus.ssp.rubispinus6462.JPG

Echinopsis wrightiana
2026-04Echinopsiswrightiana6439.JPG

Gymnocalycium ragonesii
2026-04Gymnocalyciumragonesii6263.JPG

Lowest temperature this has survived? I have one and would like to see if it would survive texas winters.

Thanks

[RCDS66]

Absolutely beautiful plants, Hamad. Feel free to call me Joe.

Thanks Joe

Thelocactus setispinus
2026-04Thelocactussetispinus6454.JPG

Acanthocalycium glaucum
2026-04Acanthocalyciumglaucum6460.JPG
2026-04Acanthocalyciumglaucum6461.JPG

Echinocereus rigidissimus
2026-04Echinocereusrigidissimus.ssp.rubispinus6459.JPG
2026-04Echinocereusrigidissimus.ssp.rubispinus6462.JPG

Echinopsis wrightiana
2026-04Echinopsiswrightiana6439.JPG

Gymnocalycium ragonesii
2026-04Gymnocalyciumragonesii6263.JPG

Lowest temperature this has survived? I have one and would like to see if it would survive texas winters.

Thanks

Fairview, all above cacti were fully exposed to the cold weather/sunlight and had no problem. This year, during the period from end Dec to start of Feb (the coldest part of the year), the temperature dropped to 28*F on a couple of nights only but most stayed between 32 to 42*F the lowest.

[jnewmark]

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EPi hybrid whose name escapes me.

[jnewmark]

Echinopsis marte

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[RCDS66]

Found this beauty hidden between the larger cacti and euphorbias.

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[jdjn13]

E. Coccineus

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[RCDS66]

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[Fairview]

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Lowe's had it labelled cactus. They at least were able to get that right. First of many to come from the looks of it.