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[Ian Morris]

First, I love you guys and gals just putting it out there in the universe.  Look at this mutant, T. Pac (PC?) it appears to have mutated and then grown from two different 'tips' to make a heart shape.  Obviously this type of growth is untennable but what would you cacti gurus do?


Second, what do I do about this guy, the Pere stock slowly lost all its leaves and the thing just kinda leaned over, I have seen this after the Pere got too dry but alas, extra watering hasn't helped this one.  FYI, the Loph has pupped in the twelve oclock and five oclock positions, so its not all bad I guess.

What should I do?  Is it time to let it root itself?  if so, any tips on going forward? 

Thanks in advance!

[LSoares]

I can't help you with the Trichocereus, I'm not very experienced with those, and even less so with crest and monsters and such.

As for the Lophophora, I would stake it and let it grow some more (if it is growing, that is). The stock will let you know it has passed its use by shrivelling just below the scion (at least it is like that with the clone I'm familiar with). I degraft by cutting the stock as close to the scion as possible and then put it to root in pure pumice, lightly sprayed now and then. The plant won't grow much at first, as it has to rebuild a proper rootstock.

[Bach]

That kind of branching in trichs is called dichotomous ramification and is fairly rare, I've only ever seen two or three. As an adjective you can say the plant is dichotomously ramified. Makes you sound knowledgeable among your fellow trich aficionados... 

As for what to do about it, I say enjoy your new treasure. If it becomes too top heavy for the base to support you can stake it or cut it and reroot using standard techniques. But cut below the ramification. I wouldn't ever separate those beautious branches!

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[Ian Morris]

Two great answers, thanks.

LSores-  like the pic and you can see where the calloused bottom ends and where the root system 'pupped' out the edge of the callous.  Some follow up if you will, how long does it take to strike root on the pumice?  thoughts on other inorganics?  bonsi soil, vermiculite, playground sand? 

Bach - good to know, I make a living sounding knowledgeable!  craziest thing is this plant has a twin with a similar mutation, when I get back over to that parcel, I will try and document it all but here is my rough in; the first plant was a find at my local big box with two cacti in the same pot, they grew for a couple of years and over that time they twisted sightly and shifted rib numbers, so growing and twisting going from X ribs to X+1 ribs to X ribs; they were grew big; were enjoyed and the growing tips cut leaving two stumps, calloused and rooted, each of the two tips mutated this one heartshape the other is more candle stick; the stumps are growing pups with obvious mutations, its like a perputual wonder! 

[LSoares]

No roots are growing from the "scar", they have pushed from the adjacent tissue. That plant was rooted about one year ago and has flowered normally since then.

I use pumice exclusively for rooting cuttings, I find stuff that light will eventually float to the surface of the compost as I tend to leave my plants long time in the same pot (more out of lazyness than by conscious choice). Roots appeared in a month or so in late summer.

The base of my mix is lava rock, or scoria or whatever it is called in your part of the world. It has a density close to one, is very porous and the particles are very irregular in shape and texture. The other major ingredient is something I cannot put a name on: it's the product of an eroding basalt face near the place where I work. It's not gravel, it's not hardened clay and it's not soil, but drains fast and still holds some water. I mix the two at a 2:1 ratio and this is used with up to 25% of something else - garden soil, worm castings, terra rossa, limestone chippings, coco coir, whatever I feel will be usefull.

Another important aspect of my mix is granulometry: most of it is in the 2-5mm bracket, with some fine "dust" (this is important for water and nutrient retention) and some larger chunks to create an uneven and airy consistency that will allow the roots to explore. But bear in mid that I live in a warm mediterranean climate with bone dry hot summers and cold(ish) very wet winters.

Bottom line: mineral mix, mandatory for most mexican and all fat-rooted species and variously complemented for all the others. It tends to work well for slow growers but not so much for fast growers like Trichocerei, I am still learning how far can I push these to achieve fast, even and thick growth.

Hope this helps.

[kykeion]

Hey Ian,

I realize it has been about two months, but here is my 2 cents on the tricho.  You could just leave it as is as Bach suggested, and you'd probably be fine for a while. Eventually though you will probably get too top heavy and possibly snap at the thin area.

Personally I'd cut the upper portion and re-root it as a separate plant.  Since you already have aerial roots forming I'd cut at about the yellow line, allow the cut to callous, then plant with it buried up to about the red line. That way you get some sturdy support, plus you already have some roots.