After reading some of anne's posts about growing hydro Pereskiopsis I am rethinking my methods.
Right now I grow in plastic trays with soil and avg 75 plants per square foot. What methods are others using and how many plants per square foot are you able to grow?
75 per foot is pretty good.
Wow, way less. Although most of my grafts are the regional varieties so I'm trying to keep them seperate. Although I guess I could have labelled with tape to grow them in the same container... I figured their root systems would compete but likely that's how they grow naturally as they don't produce seed. What I'm finding is terra cotta dries out way too fast for Pereskiopsis so I won't be making that mistake again.
Hi guys, First post.
Not new to growing, but very new to hydro pereskiopsis. I have always had bad luck with this cactus. Now I will turn the tables. My cuttings rooted, but they grow slowly, and very spindly new growth. Is there a way to make it fatten more?
sounds like etiolation to me. are they getting enough light?
They are 6 inches below CFLs currently. My initial stems were very thin and poorly selected cuttings. I am turning those into better cuttings. The three that are actually a couple of inches tall are still only a millimeter or two across.
other members are more knowledgable than myself, but to me it seems more light will correct your issue. a fan might help too. an etiolated plant is essentially reaching for light and if a plant doesn't bend/sway it won't become strong.
update:
close to 75 per square foot now. sometimes managing to get 9 per 3 inch pot. it's tricky to work any tighter than that. judging from the looks of them what can you suggest about nutrient levels etc?
excellent.........
Just my thoughts a day late and a dollar short here, but I try not to let the leaves of my cacti or plants touch and definitely don't allow my plants to shadow each other if I am trying to optimize growth. The reason for this is that chlorophyl requires light to produce energy for the plant. The more overcrowded you have them the slower the growth can be. Similarly, the more root space a plant has the faster it tends to grow. Some plants actually produce inhibitors to slow the growth of those plants that encroach upon them. A good rule of thumb, for me at least, is to space my cacti at least far enough apart that the Pereskiopsis leaves just barely touch so that none of their leaves block the sun to another Pereskiopsis or grafted cacti underneath them.