Cactus flower buds?

[pikevi]

I see many new growths on one of the cacti I have. I am wondering if they are flower buds or just new growth.

Would anyone know?

Thanks

[fred]

they look flike flower buds to me pikevi

[BillC]

Hi Pike, very definitely flower buds. Looks nice and healthy.

Bill

[pikevi]

Thanks fred and BillC.

That means the flowers are going to be yellow and I love yellow flowers. I assumed that the flowers will inevitably be red.

[sandra]

FLOWERS! Congratulations pikevi!

[sandra]

and these flowers will last a long time pikevi! Cactus flowers are incredible, not that others aren't.....

Happy for your success with this!

[pikevi]

Thank you sandra.

I have never had Cacti since I am not fond of thorns. But after seeing one of fred's beauties I decided to try them. I have a good collection now acquired over the last 6 weeks or so. I have my own mix as soil: sand, black earth, perlite, crushed wood bark and a wee bit of peat. All are growing well.

However,only one out of 16 is blooming.

[sandra]

pikevi, like most plants, cacti also have their own time clocks when it comes to blooming. Some cacti and many succulents can take a few years to bloom, it's not unusual at all. I remember seeing your collection. They're fantastic.

P.S. How is your Christmas Cactus doing? I had a big scare a couple of weeks ago with my huge one. Mealies........ I hadn't bothered checking it in a while and had it in more sun than I should have. The entire plant was covered in those buggers. I did the insecticide and kept it in total shade then the following week, sprayed it with a few drops of diluted anti-bacterial soap and it's beginning to perk up again. I'll post pics of this one when it blooms. It begins budding in November and will last for months........You're going to love yours all over again when it blooms for you.

[Tobi]

Very nice Pikevi!!. It looks like it's in the Notocactus genus. I have a couple of
them, but haven't had much success with them flowering. Only had one
reflower for me in 3 years. Yours look healthy and the buds look great.
Post a pic when they flower.

[pikevi]

Thank you sandra and Tobi.

Tobi: It may just be a beginner's luck. I have had these plants for only about 6-7 weeks. May be re-potting caused stress related blooming. But I would like to think it is my special mix, lol (conceited?)

sandra: Two of the three christmas cacti are doing fine with many new shoots. One , which is a pink variety, is not doing that well. I re-potted it into another mix but the result is the same. I may xfer it into a normal pot from the hanging pot soon.

[sandra]

Maybe a smaller pot pikevi? I know they do well when crowded in small growing environments. I see they're in plastic and the other 2 are doing beautifully. I don't have any luck with plastic, ceramic, anything other than clay pots for these but yours look beautiful so eliminating the suggestion to switch to clay, it could just be an unhealthy plant that may not respond well, no matter what. Maybe it just needs to be out of the sun for a little while. These don't need full sun and can sometimes respond unfavorably to too much sun. I've had some that no matter what I tried, their time was destined.

But, like your midas touch with getting your cacti to flower , I have faith in your growing techniques!

[pikevi]

You could be right, sandra.

That weak one is close to a wall and the reflected heat and the direct sun may be a reason. I have just moved it to another location a few minutes ago when I went out to get some photos of the Nepenthes.

I hope it helps. I will also check if the water is draining properly.

Thank you for all the help.

[Tobi]

This early spring, I experimented with some of my cacti and succulents and
created a saucer arrangement. So far so good. They seem to have taken
and grown. Hopefully I'll get some flowering some day.

[palito]

Tobi, very nice arrangement. I have had similar things, but eventually they outgrow the container too fast, specially if they are outdoors and then you have to repot them, ouch. lol :-)

Originally Posted by sandra

These don't need full sun and can sometimes respond unfavorably to too much sun. I've had some that no matter what I tried, their time was destined.

hehe, I am experimenting with a Christmas cactus that was indoors and looking a bit pale. I slowly increased the sun exposure since march, and it is now adapted to full sun since june and it is working. The plant is light green yellow in color but no sunburn at all. I will see how the flowering goes in winter and compare.

This is the plant, last December, and now in August.

[pikevi]

Nice arrangement ,Tobi. I hope the flowers from each of them will be of different colour! It will be great if they all bloom at the same time. BTW, does the container have drain-holes?

palito: that is a wonderful colour. I have red and pink. I just missed a white one recently. Yours is such a beauty!

[Tobi]

Pikevi - Yes it has several small drain holes on the bottom. I learned a long time
ago to never plant anything without a drainage of some type in the container.