Sunday, July 04, 2010

Lophophora alberto-vojtechii grafted on Selenicereus grandiflorus stock

Shortly after posting on my lone Lophophora alberto-vojtechii seedling I was contacted by Jacopo who is also growing L. alberto-vojtechii. Jacopo started his seeds in three different batches and had germination rates ranging from 10% (like mine) to 45%; several plants were lost to fungal infections and algae, including a variegated L. alberto-vojtechii seedling, so Jacopo decided to graft some of the plants on Selenicereus grandiflorus stock for safekeeping. Below you can find a few pictures of his plants – all photos in this post are courtesy of Jacopo Simonetto, Valencia, Spain.

Lophophora alberto-vojtechii grafted on Selenicereus grandiflorus stock
Lophophora alberto-vojtechii grafted on Selenicereus grandiflorus

Jacopo has five L. alberto-vojtechii plants in total – 3 grafted on Selenicereus grandiflorus stock plants and 2 on their own roots. He hopes that his two largest plants reach flowering size this summer (they are already 1 and 1.5 cm in diameter) so he can test the germination rate of verifiable fresh seeds ;-)

Two Lophophora alberto-vojtechii seedlings grafted on Selenicereus grandiflorus
Two Lophophora alberto-vojtechii seedlings grafted on Selenicereus grandiflorus stock plants

As an aside, I really like the carnivorous plants in the pictures – especially the Dionaea muscipula (Venus Flytrap) in the first photo that seems just about ready to gulp down the defenseless Lophophora alberto-vojtechii seedling ;-) Also, the Drosera (Sundew) in the second image reminded me that I need to get a few of these plants to help me control the fungus gnats that are having a feast in some of my (non-cactus) plants.

Grafted Lophophora alberto-vojtechii, top view
Grafted Lophophora alberto-vojtechii, top view

Jacopo’s plants were started from seed 4-5 months ago and the grafts are 3 months old at the time of writing. I hope to be able to follow the plants as they (with a bit of luck ;-) flower and set fruits in the near future.

For comparison a picture is included below showing one of the seedlings still growing on its own roots – it’s relatively small but Jacopo told me that he grafted the biggest seedlings.

Lophophora alberto-vojtechii seedling
Lophophora alberto-vojtechii seedling

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