How to Germinate Rare Cacti.

Nothing is more satisfying to the cacti enthusiast than germinating seeds or caring for peyote seedlings grown from ones own seeds.

Nursing lophophora cacti seedlings through to maturity, seeing the first flower bloom and in turn harvesting the seed of a second generation plants offers opportunities to experiment with genetics. For the purposes of this information page seeds of Lophophora Williamsii (peyote) have been used but this technique is effective for most types of cacti with the main difference being that some cacti germinate in the dark whereas Lophophora and similar species require light to germinate. As a consequence loph seeds should not be buried.

Prepare soil: If you want to be absolutely careful you can bake or microwave the soil to sterilise it. Be warned this can create some fairly noxious smells. Personally I don't bother as moulds and fungal spores are all about us. I prefer to use a mild dose of antifungal copper-sulphate for the first watering. For best results follow these easy steps.

1.   Fill chosen pot with soil. Either John Innes No1 or better still John Innes No2 with a layer of John Innes potting compost or No.1 on top (about 2 cm.) Press the soil down firmly but not too hard.
2.   Make sure the seeds are free of all pod and flower debris. Place them on the soil. Do not cover them. The way you place them is not important. If you like order you can place them in rows say 1 cm apart. That will give them space to grow for a year or two at least. I use a 10cm square pot to germinate and scatter the seeds so that they nestle together but are not on top of each other.
3.   Label and date your seeds- small cacti all look very similar.
4.   Place a sandwich bag over the pot and secure with an elastic band.
5.   Place the seed pot into room temperature rain water which is about 5cm deep for at least 20 minutes.
6.   Remove pot from water and place in a warm sunny place- somewhere warm but not too hot. If you have an electic propogator so much the better.

7.   Light requirements are this stage are modest, young seedlings can scorch easily.
8.   Remove the bag and check your seedlings every week. If you see signs of mould apply copper sulphate, 5g in 1 litre of water.
9.   Keep your cacti seedling damps for at least six months. As they start to resemble peyote you can snip open a corner of the bag so that they can start to harden off.
10.   Be sure to have gradually exposed the cacti seedling to normal conditions and dried out the soil completely for their first winter.

peyote seedlings 1 year old peyote seedling 2 year old peyote seedlings

Peyote seedlings at (Lophophora Willamsii) one week, one year and two years old

lophohophora with seed pods

A ten year old Lophophora Williamsii plant

When to water Peyote?

3 year old peyote plants The important thing to remember is that Cacti are desert plants, supremely adapted to dry conditions. In dry conditions plants will stay dormant but alive for long periods of times. What they do not like is wet and cold and the same time- a combination that will cause rot and the eventual death of your cacti. If growing in the northern hemisphere or in conditions with colds winters the trick is to ensure that you stop all watering in the cooler winter months.

Peyote: In the UK, these cacti kept in an unheated greenhouse should not be watered after late September, early October. Do not water Lophophora Williamii (Peyote) until a week or two after the daffodils are out. This tends to give a better guide than going by the calendar as winter conditions vary and the daffs seem a better judge of when the worst has past. If you have not watered your plants and they are completely dry they can withstand temperatures well below zero. The slightest damp and they will die. After winter dormancy period, in about late March or so, start to water with plain rain water, lightly so at first. As the temperature picks up you can increase the watering to a more liberal wetting but always ensure that the pot dries out completely before watering again. Variables such as ventilation and temperature can affect this greatly so experiment and find the best regime for your plants and their particular conditions. If you experience a long overcast period stop watering. It is important to note that these plants experience a dormant cycle when growing in its native environment. This dormant phase, which coincides with the dry season, enables the development of flower buds for the next wet season. Too little water is better than too much. I water once every fortnight in April, May increasing to weekly watering June, July, August back to fortnightly in September. Experiment on the side of being stingy with your water and your lophophora will do fine. Like so many cacti these fascinating plants seems to thrive on neglect...

When To Re-pot Peyote?

Rare Cacti such as Lophophora have evolved to withstand the harshest of conditions. It's not uncommon to see an old lophophora or ariocarpus cactus in the most denuded soil and toughest conditions flowering freely. Some say that the plant knows when conditions are tough and so chooses this time to flower and produce seed, hence giving itself; via progreny , the chance of survival. Knowing when to re-pot is something to learn through experience but if you want your plants to grow actively re-potting every one or two years seems sensible. If, on the other hand, you live a hectic lifestyle and are away from your plants a lot you might want to consider leaving them in their nutrient denuded soil. Plants in general are suspectible to shock and cacti are not different hence re-potted plants need careful vigilence for a month or so after re-potting to ensure that they are happy in their new soil.

If you want to repot your collectible cacti bought from Crazycacti or elsewhere then follow these easy steps. Soils mixes and suggested ratios of loam to sand and other soil additives will be dealt with separately. For the purposes of this repotting a Lophophora Caespitosa has been chosen as an example. For soil Joihn Innes No. 2 mixed with sharp sand and vermicelite has been used.

1.Select the rare cacti to be repotted and a slightly larger pot perhaps offering 25% extra space. Don't go too big or your plant will run the risk of not being able to fill the surrounding space before that soil is leached by watering. Notice how the plant below has distorted the pot by its gorwth.

Lophophora Williamsii Caespitosa in need of repotting

2. Make sure your selected pot is clean and free of pests and old soil. Place a good layer of sharp gravel or small pebbles in the bottom of the pot for drainage and circulation of air (Roots need air to grow healthily).

Pot with gravel for drainage

3. Mix preferred soil in an appropriate tray or bucket. In this case John Inns no.2, sharp sand and vermiculite.

Soil mix for repotting cacti

4. Carefully remove cacti from old pot. Lift away as much old soil has you can without breaking the tiny system of roots attached to the main tap root. This is a good time to check for pests such as Mealy bug.

Lophophora ready for repotting

5. Fill the new pot with new soil to a height that allows the plant to sit a centimetre of so from the rim of the pot. Rember that soil will settle and subside over time so dont set it too low. Different cacti enthusiasts have conflicting views as to the appropriate height as in the wild plant such as lophophora will burrow into the gound during drought. I prefer to see my plants sitting above the soil. Whatever works for you...

Place lophophora ar correct height

6. Once happy with the height of the plant fill the surrounding space with soil and firm down around it just enough to ensure the plant is well supported.

Fill soil around lophophora

7. Top dress with stones as this stops the soil drying out too fast.

Top dress lophophora with gravel

Important- do not water straight away. If your normal regime is once a week leave it for two weeks before watering, longer to be safe. This is becasue the new soil will already have some moisture and will be full of nutrients. If you have damage any roots they might find it hard to absorb moisture for a while. A sudden increase in water and foo can cause cacti to split, rot or even die.

Gradually increase watering to normal levels once you are confident that your rare cacti has settled in.

If you have lots of plants date the repotting to give you an idea of when next to repot although if all goes well your plant will tell you soon enough when it takes up all avalble space.

Remember to repot late spring to mid summer, any time aftrer that it is advisable to wait till the following year- your plant wont mind.

Job Done

Care of Lophophora

Lophophora is a genus spineless cacti from the Southern United States and Mexico that includes peyote and other sub-species of the lophophra family. Peyote 's latin name is Lophophora Williamsii. Please note that these plants may be subject to regulations pertaining to the country you live in. Please do your homework- we will not be held responsible for plants confiscated by customs officials. In some countries laws may have nothing to do with the plant species so muchas being a ban on all plant matter. We cannot check the import regulations of your country of residents please make sure that you do!

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