"Fat Plants" : cacti,succulents, caudiciforms, whatever..

[ashley]

A few more flowering now or recently:

Lobivia arachnacantha var. torrecillasensis
Lobivia tiegeliana var. flaviflora
Rebutia schatzliana
Sulcorebutia vargasii

[Maggi Young]

A delight to see these  cheery flowers on a  very dull day here - just  waiting for the  rain to start!
 

[ashley]

Gymnocalycium gibbosum var. brachypetalum

[ChrisB]

I’ve got a few opuntia grown from seed. They are becoming a bit top heavy.  How often should I repot them and any tips to get them to flower pl?  can I put them in the garden in my sandy dry soil

[fermi de Sousa]

...How often should I repot them.....

Very carefully!
Wear  gloves!
 
cheers
fermi

[ChrisB]

 

[ashley]

I’ve got a few opuntia grown from seed. They are becoming a bit top heavy.  How often should I repot them and any tips to get them to flower pl?  can I put them in the garden in my sandy dry soil

Chris, not having grown opuntias I waited for someone with direct experience to respond.  Most cacti in the active growing stage seem to appreciate repotting every 1-2 years.  If your plants are top-heavy you might consider making new plants from terminal pads, and in that way increase numbers for experiments outdoors.  Above, Rudi showed us great results with plants overwintered outdoors without cover but beneath a dense conifer to deflect rain.  However in our (certainly my) climate it might be advisable to protect from winter wet using a little cloche or 'hat' that still allows good ventilation.  A rest at lower temperatures does wonders for reliable flowering, and opuntias from mountain areas should be quite hardy if dry.

[ChrisB]

Thanks Ashley.  I do have three pots so I’m going to put one out in the garden in one of my raised beds to bed in this summer.  I do have very sandy free draining soil and I’ve been able to overwinter many plants that are generally considered tender.  But I have no experience with cactus for sure.  I’ll post here next summer whether it makes it through...

Meanwhile, I will repot the other two. Think I will put them in clay pots to give a bit more weight to the base.

Would be wonderful if they ever flower ...

[shelagh]

I'm not sure whether these are still called Zygo Cactus or not but as Brian says "I wish our alpines flowered as well".

[ruweiss]

Echinocereus start to flower:

[ashley]

Lovely plants Rudi. 
Here my first this season is Gymnocalycium andreae

[ashley]

Here the main flush of flowering has started in the last few days.

Aylostera cv. 'Sunrise'
A. deminuta 'Flavistyla'
A. deminuta 'Heliosa condorensis'
A. pygmaea 'Crassa'

[ashley]

Aylostera pygmaea 'Crassa'
A. pygmaea var. minor
A. pygmaea 'Steinmannii'
Mammillaria glassii

[ashley]

Mammillaria zeilmanniana
Rebutia kariusiana (considered a selection of R. marsoneri)
R. minuscula
Sulcorebutia hertusii (syn. S. caniguerallii crispata)

[ashley]

Aylostera deminuta 'Flavistyla', a more typical form than the yellow one above
A. deminuta 'Minutissima'
A. deminuta 'Perplexa'
Chamaecereus hybrid