Dragon Fruit Book..buyer be aware!

Well I was excited to find this book on line, since my Dragon cactus has not bloomed since I started it from cuttings six years ago...I live in the outskirts of NYC so that may play a roll, since I overwinter my baby inddors!!!!!

Sad to say it is NOT a book, rather an informative BOOKLET....6 pages and lots of pictures...yes, the information there is good, BUT, it is not a book as it is advertised all over the internet.......I am disappointed at my purchase...

To all of my good friends here, I wanted you all to know!

Hi Clemen, thanks for the heads up on the book. From what i understand and with my dragon fruit cactus, the cactus needs to be around 10lbs or more before it flowers. Thats what it did for me and I live in northern Pa so I understand your winters. When my D.F. was large and around that weight, thats when it flowered. Hope this helps.

blue

Gezzzzzz BLUE 10 lbs, lol...at that rate forget it!!! I bet you have yours in a GH, do you??

Mine is huge now and growing like crazy on a lattice wall, I always remove her from the wall and bring her indoors...SHe stays at 50 degrees or less and no sun (winter that is)
I feed her lots of phosphate, NOTHING, grrrrrrrrrr.....

Thanks for your advise!!!!

Believe it or not, mine is growing inside my dining room! This year noone would help me carry the beastie outside and this i was so hopeing for it really flower...alas, I've been using the cutters on it! I'm afraid i'll wake up some morning and find that it has spread into my bedroom! I've got to quit watching those dang twilight zone movies. lol

Haa haa, twilight zone, my favorites, lol..seems that we are so much alike. So noone would help you move the baby, how mean of them...

Do you have a picture of yours?? Would love to see the little shop of horrors plant, lol!

This is the "beastie" after an extensive hair cut! lol Guess I have taken around AT LEAST 5-8lbs weight off it. I figured it would have taken 3 people to move this thing. I couldnt get all of the plant in the picture, it is also growing on my ceiling! One arm of this I measured a week or 2 ago and it was at 82" before it sectioning off. But have to say, the flower on this is the most breathtaking I have ever seen..it is an intense floresent red. Had a picture of it but have since misplaced it since moving. But will come across it in one of my many boxes.

OMG she is a beast....which one do you have??? I wish I have the red flesh one, IF it ever blooms. I will take a pic of mine tomorrow. She sits on a small clay pot. I repotted her last year. Yours seems to be in a much larger pot. Thank you for sharing!

I was told in a pitaya group that i might have a very rare kind because of the red flower or it could be a pitahya. They are waiting for me to find the pics BUT i must have close to 100 boxes and some are in storage...there is no way i have the time to go through them to find it. Being in northestern Pa (zone 5) when it flowers it is in fall so it never has time to grow fruit. Even inside with lamps...there is just never enough humidity for it. This last spring I was going to let it grow outside one last time but that didnt happen. Probably it is a red skin and red inside fruit. Do you have any tropicals that maybe we could trade?
I also have a white veitnamiese and purple haze dragon fruit that i recieved this year but they havent grown much yet...probably in springtime next year I should have some nice size pieces.

The red flesh is the one that I love. To me it tastes better than the others. I can't believe your flower is red, I thought they were all white.

I do grow tropicals here, specially brugs and passifloras. Actually I am NUTS about those two. I also have a nice collection of cacti and succulents, they are so easy to take care of and maintain. What type of tropicals are you looking for?? Yes would love to trade too.

Wow, you sound like my kind of person! Wish I had the room to grow more. What kind of cactus do you have? Any Epiphyllum-orchid cactus (for a long shot, I'm going to try lol) Queen of the night,night blooming Cereus or Space Rocket,Saigon,Argus, King Midas, along those lines? Or possibly any vargated tropical plant? Would you be interested in e-mailing me about what you have? If not, it's not a problem, I just really enjoy making new friends that enjoy the same things!

I want the one that is called Saigon 'cause that's where I was born. Where did you get that?

Clemen, they come in all color and sizes, coral, peach, hot pink, red, purple, even yellow. Although I haven't seen any of those except plain ol' almost-dinner-plate-size white! And they like to be pot bound. I had 2 blooms this year. I'm supposed to have a red one but it haven't bloomed yet so I don't know for sure. A neighbor gave me a small cutting last year and it has gone gangbuster this year. I think it took mine about 3 years before I got flowers on it. I don't know how heavy it was but it was pretty big. They don't do much in the sunroom in the winter and it's kind of cold in there but it's kept from getting frost.

I have this picture posted on plant file and I lost my hard drive so I don't have my original photo. This is the one from Daves'.

They are beautiful!!!! Do they have a fragrance? The ones i mentioned, i do not have yet, but am trying to aquire. If I do, I would love to share that with you. The only cactus I have are the 3 dragon fruit cactus I mentioned in eariler post. The beastie is the only one at the moment that can have a more ummm extensive hair cut lol
But that picture is very beautiful.

Girls having fun, lol...Lilly found us, hee hee....Took a pic of my monster but need to download..give me until tomorrow since I need to walk now...good exercise..AHhhhhhhhh grrrrrrrrrrr work too tomorrow but it pays the bills, lol!

Yes yes...we will talk more about what we like, should we switch to d mail, lol,,,,Noooooooooooooo we need Lilly here with us..I love that girl...More later or tomorrow, promise!

Yes cuttings of the night baby coming....

Hee hee, I can't say where I got mine...

This message was edited Aug 12, 2009 8:19 PM

Mine have a fragrance. I have 2 kinds, both white. This large one has a fragrance but the hookeri is much smaller and does not have a fragrance. I haven't had blooms from the hookerii this year so no photo.

There was another thread discussing what everyone thought the fragrance was. Someone at one time mentioned fragrance similar to Skin so Soft, may be stronger and more powdery smell. Can't explain it, but the large one does smell.

And I've read on the Plant File that people have Night Blooming Cereus viewing party. Unfortunately, I don't have many friends who might be interested in viewing a NBC. Actually, I think searching for info on NBC brought me to this website, where I have made so many wonderful friends - even a few not so nice people, but that is OK, the nice ones well made up for it. However, I had BUNCO the night that one of my bloom opened and I showed it to 2 of the girls on their way home from the party.

Clemen, you are cracking me up!

Morning!!! My cereus bloomed exactly last week. I was all alone watching this thing and having fun.

Well gotta get to work, but here is my Pitaya, attached to my lattice wall, she grows among other vines and things, thisis the first year that she got growth that is not attached to the wall. She is growing like a monster. I really do not know how I am going to bring her indoors for the winter....

Hi LiliMerci! That sounds so wonderful about your cactus! I read on a Pataya group through Yahoo that some people feed their cactus with Miracle Grow Tomato food and now I'm trying that...the beastie only gets alittle...I dont want her growing to the point where I wont be able to do anything with her but was wondering, what do you and Clemen feed your cactus with? Since I recieved 2 different dragon fruit plants, the only one that is really showing any signs of growth is the purple haze and that isnt by alot but it is growing. Would really like to help them get a nice growth burst before fall. Any ideas?
Wish I had friends here where I live, would love to have a plant party sometime especally if and when any cactus would bloom! That would be incredibly fun! Have dragon fruit drinks etc!
Clemen, I love the pic you have posted, your both very good at design and decorations...
As far as bringing in your beastie, it looks like you will need about 3 people or more for that job!

bluesky, I don't feed it much of anything. It likes neglect and some sun. However, the afternoon sun could burn the young new leaves. Mine is sitting in a group of plants, a lemon plant (from seeds) and a plumeria, so it gets a little protection from the sun. I have given it Bloom Booster on occasion - once a month is probably good.

I too wish I have some gardening friends that would be interested in viewing a NBC when it blooms. We will just have to make do with sharing our photos for now.

Clemen, you might just have to trim that plant back in the winter before bringing it in. I'm sure it wouldn't hurt them at all. They look great up the lattice. I like your ceremics too. I saw lots of those when I went to Mexico but I did not get a chance to buy any.

Here is something new I tried this year. Twining my morning glory vines around my light strings. It is blooming like crazy right now. I have about 20 blooms this morning. I'll take photos and post in a few minutes.

Thats beautiful LiliMerci! I could picture sitting out there day and night enjoying the lights and plants. You probably do not have a lot of cold weather, but where I'm at that is a very viable idea to also help keep plants alive when it starts getting cooler. It might even extend the life of them a few extra weeks.

I love sitting outside but it's too hot right now. Also, we had alot of rain a few weeks ago and the mosquitoes are so bad now and I tends to attract them all!

LOL..I hear that! Now that its Aug. it is finally getting warm here, we have had the coldest spring/summer on record for my area and now the mosquitoes are here with a vengance! Even bug repellants arent working all that well. It's only early morning or late afternoon just before dark that I can get to the garden to harvest anything.

the only bug repellent that works on me is that oily OFF Woods! Nasty but it's gotta be done when I'm outside.

Chatty chatty without me, how dare you, lol!!!!

I am lurking at work and could not resist to peek through...

Nicole, you are doing a great job with those MG..I love the idea and I may steal it from you, hee hee!! How could you go to Mexico and not buy Talavera porttery...They are very pricey in the states, but not that bad over there.

Blue, TY about the comments on the wall, plants and decorations. Well I feed my NBC a high phosphate fertilizer, over 50 middle number. I have never heard abotu the MG tomato thing, I think I am going to try it.
How far are you from Osceola, PA??

Believe me I do not have any friends that love plants as much as I do. I only have a couple of neighboors that I give plants too, but I never get back anything from them. They do nto have anything that appeals to me.


OK back to work, or else I am going to get hanged, lol!

Do you see some of my flower pots in the back. I stick a couple of tomato stakes in the planters, tie them together on top so they might look like a teepee and then put a twine on them and run them up the pergola. That way, the vines can go all the way up to the top. I'll take better picture once my camera battery is recharged.

Hey Clemen! You are always included! Oseola is only 1/2 hour or less away from me....how far is it for you? I'm getting my hopes up!
I'm thinking coffee, plant talk!!!!!

Well tapping toes on the promised pic..where is that girl from GA, lol!

Blue, well see I have a friend there in Osceola, she is from DG also, I was just wondering how far it was, just in case I venture out that way one day, you never know. This is where you can always find me and Phyllis too, that is her name. I love that girl! Why don't you visit us sometime?? Lilli you too...

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1026174/

I live in NY, Long Island, about 30 minute ride on the rail road into NYC!

You are a ways away! This is a great way to make friends...I love this place :)

OK. Here is a picture and I didn't take it closer because you still can't see the twine really well, but you can see it on the other plants. The planter on the far right has the hummingbird vines and coral vines growing up it.

You probably have to open up this photo to see it better.

Yup, i could see myself sitting there with coffee in the morning! Does your morning glory come back every year? What a beautiful color.

blue

That is a lovely shot!!!

This was my cereus last week...

Yeah, you have bloom. It is so cool when it blooms. What do you think it smells like?

Blue, this is my first year planting morning glory in that planter, climbing up my pergola. Last year, I did plant some flying saucer at my mailbox and I thought they did not come back up in the spring, so I put some seeds down this year. So to be on the safe side, I collect seeds and germinate them.

It smells lemony to me. I tell you last year when I brought her indoors, I thought the fragrance was tooooo intense..she smelled better outside!

More later, I have my mon with me now from the city!

Don't mean to horn in on you ladies, but I have a question(hope you don't mind). Is Dragon Fruit & Red Dragon Flower(Huernia schneideriana) the same plant or two different kinds of plants?
I have Red Dragon Flower & if it's not the same would love to have Dragon Fruit.

Hi Christmascactus! Please feel free to join! I'm having a blast here and get to meet more people...I'm loving it!
I am not sure (I'm pretty much just learning here) but I believe I have seen yours listed as something different. Do you have any pics of the blooms? All I have right now is a dragon fruit that has no name but a site called Pataya/yahoo groups have all said they believe i might have a very rare kind of dragon fruit OR it is possible that it is a Patahya...and ..not sure but that might mean prickly pear or along those lines. But they seem to think more that it could be the rare one...but still no name. Where I live, i do not have a long enough summer for it to bear fruit but the flower is a very intense red and beautiful! Next year I should have Purple Haze and Veitnamiese White dragon fruit.

Thank you.
Mine hasn't bloomed yet.
I only got it last year so it may not be old enough?
Hope your's turn out to be the rare red.
I live in zone 7b/8a so it maynot fruit here either but would like to try growing one.

I have a night blooming cereus and sometimes it bears a small red fruit, is that a seed pod?

Christmascactus, if you will d-mail me we can exchange addresses. I would be more than happy to give you a couple of cuttings of the "beastie" i would just need that you handle the postage.
Cocoloba, I wouldnt know what to tell you on that. Maybe someone in Daves Garden would be able to help you. I have a long way to go on learning all these. Sorry I couldnt be more help.

cocoloba - I'm wondering if this is what you have:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/2443/ I can't tell what your flowers look like in the center.

bluesky, can not wait to see what your red flower look like.

I noticed that the ones that bears the Pitaya fruits does not have the flat leaves. Also, it requires pollination by night bugs, bat, moth in order to fruit. That's what I've read.

bluesky thank you so much for the kind offer you have dmail.

Coco, your cereus is gorgeous.

Well mine decided to bloom tonight and since I left my summer house and could not bring the monster home, I cut the flowers, lol, Nicole, see i learned something from you. Now I only hope she will truly open...gotta take a pic later.

ok. post pictures so we can see...