Balcony-Greenhouse

Hello friends! It has been a while since I've last wrote, but here I am again.

My worst nightmare and my biggest dream are coming true!

• Dream: I'm becoming a dad within a couple of weeks!
• Nightmare: Where the hell should I leave my cacti?!

Don't worry, I've already thought it all through. In one of my previous blogs (Balcony-Greenhouse and some other stuff, posted on July 05, 2012) I've already put this plan together. So here it is; a tiny, little balcony-greenhouse:

Balcony-Greenhouse with cacti and other succulents

Balcony-Greenhouse

Before I had everything on only 1 m² and people always asked me: "Where the hell will you leave all those plants when there's a baby on its way?!". Well... Told you so!

The upper level

Peyote (Lophophora williamsii)

San Pedro (Trichocereus pachanoi)

Weberbauerocereus johnsonii

Echinocactus grusonii

Next level

Bottom level

As you can see, I still have enough space left for even more! Of course I still have some plants inside the house, like my jungle cacti for example. Also my seedlings of last year are standing on top of our refrigerator. And even though my wife doesn't like the "mess", I think it won't be a big problem for her. Let's hope she gets used to them and forget about the matter... 

Now let me tell you a little bit about the way I keep the temperature around 5°C to 10°C. I'm using an old heating mat that once served as a waterbed-heater. I've connected it to a time clock (the thermostat can't be set below 20°C and I need it to be lower during the winter), so that it turns on for half an hour and then off for one hour... It works fine up till now! It is of great importance to be careful with the sun. One hour full winter-sun heats the temperature up till almost 30°C (imagine the care I need to take during the summer!), so I can do 2 things: cover it up or open it. Problem solved.

Maihueniopsis darwinii on the left, Opuntia humifusa on the right and something else in the middle...

Yep, It's exactly what you see: cacti growing outside in The Netherlands being exposed to rain, hail, snow and freezing temperatures. Up till now they're doing alright, but will they also stand -17°C? We'll see! According to some people, they should do fine.

Talking about winter-hardy cacti; I'm planning to sow some of them this year. The ones I have in mind are Escobaria missouriensis, Escobaria vivipara and Cylindropuntia imbricata. They all should be able to survive extreme cold and wet weather conditions (of course with good drainage!). I'm convincing my brother to let me build a cacti-bed in his garden, so that I can test these species. Of course there must be some sowing and growing first, but I still have plenty of space left as you can see!

What more can I say? Hmm... The baby-room is ready and free of cacti and so are we! (well, not free of cacti of course!) My perception of life has changed a lot during the last couple of months. New priorities, a different understanding of the meaning of life and of course a lot of happiness! I hope we'll be able to raise a good man amongst all those idiots that are crowding this planet... (don't feel offended! You're reading my blog, so you're probably OK!)

See ya "all" next time! CHEERS!

Last week on my favorite cacti-forum

Last week on my favorite cacti-forum - on Cactiguide - I've asked a question about cold-tolerant species that might survive the wet and cold winters we have here in Holland. Within a day some people replied to my question and named me some species that are worth it to try and also some some that already have survived here in Holland. There are a couple of species around that can stand extreme cold (up to -20) and are often covered with snow, but none of them can stand cold and wet together... So one person named me two species; Gymnocalicium bruchii and Maihueniopsis darwinii. I could find some Gymnocalicium bruchii seeds very quickly (on ADBLPS, where else?!), but Maihueniopsis darwini is one of those that are a little bit harder to find. Then someone from the forum offered to send me some Maihueniopsis darwinii cuttings...

Within a day the following package arrived and... Well.... It contained a little bit more than I was expecting!

Maihueniopsis darwinii

 This is one of the Maihueniopsis darwinii cuttings I was talking about. He has sent me another one, but that one I gave away to my friend and fellow cacti-collector Bob. As you can see, this little friend can cut you up with those huge and sharp spines! If you don't believe me, you should ask my friend Bob about it. ;-)

And... There was more... A lot more!

Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa, the Buckhorn Cholla

The following cacti are all in pots of the same size;

Echinopsis subdenudata

Notocactus sellowii

Eriosyce subgibbosa

Mammillaria nivosa

 I have never liked the Mammillaria family a lot, but this one has changed my mind about them! If you're wondering what I'm talking about, I suggest you to just google Mammillaria nivosa and if our taste is similar, you'll understand me.

Matucana aureiflora  (aureiflora means golden flowered)

Trichocereus pachanoi

Hey! That is just nice! Two San Pedro cacti! This, my friends, is another 'medicinal' species that is also used - just like Peyote - in shamanistic ceremonies. I already have one in my collection, which was a cutting that I've bought from the Azarius webshop, but these two are grown from the seed. It takes a little while for them to speed up their growth, but when they start, they do start and grow around 30 centimeters a year. (a little wiki-link for those who would like to read a little bit about this magical plant!)

Gymnocalycium berchtii

Gymnocalycium berchtii, my favorite of the package! A dark flattened species that seems to like dirt.

That's it for tonight. Only wine and Jazz is what's left for me to end this weekend. Ow! And of course my lovely wife that's making her homework in the living room right now! She's becoming better and better in Dutch grammar and sometimes when she asks me for a little help, I have to check fucking Google to be 100% sure that I give the right advise! Can you believe that?! Soon her vocabulary will become richer than mine! Ah well... It keeps me awake and in this way I can refresh my memory about my own language once in a while. ;-). Aahhh... Actually I'm very proud at her! Her Dutch is getting so pretty and... Aah! I'm lucky with her and I love her so fucking much! Back to wine now...