It's an "Easter Cactus"......well not really, but

Clare,
nice collection you just picked up. Good stuff!!
Candy,
your pictures are absolutely AWESOME. I need to consult a dictionary to come up with more appropriate descriptions, just love the show.

At the moment I am simply "flying", after work - I take care of things and then keep on moving plants outside, some on the deck, some in front of the house and most of them into the cage.
I took some pictures, but the light wasn't optimum and I wiggled a bit. I promise I will do better.
Here is the "cage", I am not done yet moving everything in, so it is not filled up yet.

more later

And here is the deck, can you spot the Epi oxy in the back? It is budding!!
And that larger pot on the black little table is Epi phyllanthus budding all over the place and showing lots of new growth.

Candy, your posts make me smile every time. Moving is such a pain, and you are right that you should wait until you move before you acquire anything more. However, epi cuttings are so small...LOL! enable, enable...

I have been to Ursula's site many times and just love it. I will go back in search of "The Cage" and check it out as I must have missed it previously.

Your pics are amazing as always, Candy. Love the Pink Parade. That is so funny that your Easter Cactus is blooming now, isn't it? It must be the confusing weather that we've had, throwing off its bloom cycle. The Epi flowers are so pretty; I wish they bloomed for more months out of the year.

Looking at the other end of the deck -
Lots of Epi phyllanthus babies, which are quite grown up this year, underneath the rack are some unknowns and Edna Stoddard budding.

Ursula, I was typing my message as you were posting, and I didn't see your posts until after I was done. Your cage is magnificent! Thanks so much for posting it! Wow! I need one like that! Congrats on your Epi oxy buds! Mine are doing nothing yet. Your E. phyllanthus looks great! Mine looks kind of pitiful, but it has been outside on my patio all winter. Is yours in full sun there? Hopefully, mine will get going here. I do have cute little E. phyllanthus seedlings doing very well;-)

This one might be a liitle better to see
This is the Epi with the name of Jefferson Davis, which is not a named hybrid.

And one of the pots with Gitti Paetz loaded with buds hanging in full sun.

Everyone, your pics of blooms are just outstanding..i love looking at them!..

Happenstance, that easter cactus is huge and beautiful!...I would assume you leave it outside all year round to get it to bloom now?...

Sandy

Ursula, that one next to Jefferson Davis a E. anguliger or a S. anthonyanus? I am having trouble telling those two apart. To make matters even more confusing, I have a third one that is different still.

Clare,
I was posting this under less optimal conditions, I did see your posts in-between.
I do have a screen over the deck, I simply bought a roll of the material which one uses to repair window screens with and placed it over three quarters of the deck. It is minimal protection, but it helps in moving plants outside without getting them burned. The hanging plants get full afternoon sun.
I will fish out later all the cage links on my website. In the meanwhile, the dimensions are 30 feet in length, 10 feet high and 10 feet deep. The little red Maple is enclosed, it provides good shade for small Orchids.

Clare,
Good question!!! That's why I am crazy about Picabo's gorgeous plant!!!!And I keep asking for flowering conditions. I am leaning towards anthonyanus on mine but I really need to see mine flowering, before I can identify it for sure.

Thanks for the pics Ursula! Lucky you with buds on your oxy......lots of new growth on mine, but so far no buds. Mine were late last year, so hoping there is still time for them to do their thing. (Love that cage!) Your Epi phyllanthus babies are practically teenagers!!

I agree Clare, we need to find a way to make these things bloom at least once a month throughout the year! But, I guess then they wouldn't be quite so special. :-)

Yes Sandy, they live outside all year round and just don't seem to mind my neglecting them. A couple more shots of this Easter Cactus.

And a closer look at Mother Nature's perfection.

Woooeeee! And the picture taker is no slouch either!!

Ok, here is last year's cage and deck
http://kammlott.net/outside2005/

It is essentially set up with the same type of racks and shelves as the greenhouse. ( Thank you DH)

Thanks so much for that info. on your cage, Ursula, and for the sun conditions information. I'm amazed at Betty's flower too, and I took her advice and put banana peels on all my Ric Racs, but I have no buds yet. Your cage is awesome, and your balcony is amazing too. Your adeniums are really cute too. Here is a picture of my S. anthonyanus (I think) on the left and E. chrysocardium on the right. I'm off to check out your link of last year's cage.

Candy, save those pictures to enter in next year's photo contest. They are amazing. You are quite the photographer, and your subjects are stunning!

Whoo Hooo!! Recognize this one Candy?!!!

I have been anticipating this since I got the cuttings from you, finally have buds and I have been watching it daily. It was not blooming when I went out to take pics this morning. Went nursery shopping with my Mom all day and just came home and spotted this bright pink through the banana foliage! Oh My, I definately have to get more of these in different colors, the wait is so worth it!!



This message was edited May 19, 2006 6:35 AM

Can't even capture it's bright color with the fading light.

This message was edited May 18, 2006 6:37 PM

Very nice, Calif_Sue!

Calif Sue, another true beauty!

And Clare, I would think my ric rac looks like yours on the left. It is nice to have plants as comparison like that. I bought last year a small Epi ackermannii in the hope to identify my so-called Jefferson Davis, or at least exclude that one.

I noticed that you had a lot of epi's on your deck (RUK). Are they getting the hot sun all day?
I have a large deck that would be a great place to put some plants on but I've always been afraid that the sun would burn them and die. Would they be ok if I got them used to it gradually or do epis' need that much sun?
Beautiful pics everybody. I really love the yellow.
Patricia

Patricia,
the deck faces north, so most of the plants at this end of the deck will get at least morning sun.
http://kammlott.net/Decketc06/deck106.jpg
Close to the housewall it will get sunny by the afternoon at this time of year. Now the hanging pots stick out far enough that they are now half exposed to full sun. The other"half' is protected slightly. If you look closely, I draped window screen material over about three quarters of the deck.
Here is another picture to show the deck at a previous season. ( see next post) You can see, it is easy to drape something over the top. (There are bars connecting the wooden hanger thing to the house.)
My Epi oxypetalum spends the indoor season in our very sunny greenhouse, so I can bring this one straight outside without burning. The Epi hybrids were in the garage over the winter, I placed them onto the deck in April, watching for some cloudier days. No problem, they adapted fine in this set up. Others I conditioned a bit slower right against the shadier house wall and then moved them forwards.

edited to say "see next post"


This message was edited May 19, 2006 1:54 PM

here is the older picture showing the deck.
http://www.kammlott.net/backview.jpg
dimensions are 6 X 20 feet. This year I placed more Epis and other C&S up there.
The question you asked was "do they need that much sun"? I always thought it helps, as much as can be tolerated without burning.
And yes, if one were to go from a shady winter location into straight hot sun outside, one would see a lot of burned Epis. ( been there, done that...)

How do others here grow theirs? How much sun is needed?

Thank you. One more question if you don't mind. (maybe two) I have a sunroom that I am converting into a green house. It faces east on the back of our home. My husband is putting in a fan on one end and a vent in the other to help with the heat. Right now it gets so hot in there because I can't leave the windows open while we are at work. So the fan and vent will help me keep the temps down plus circulate the air. This is where most of my plants spend the winter and they do really well. I noticed there was a vent or something in your sunroom. During the warm months, do you leave any plants in there or do they all come out? My sunroom is the type where the ceiling is glass and it curves down like a Florida room. It needs a lot of work so it would be cheaper to turn it into a sunroom and put a pot under the leaks. (no complaints here) Are there any special tips that experience has taught you using your sunroom. I am anxious to put plants in there but don't want to over do it. I know some plants benefit from the warm air but not sure hot to really treat this space during the summer (warm months)
Thanks,
Patricia

Patricia,
one of the reasons I move everything outside is the heat built-up inside the greenhouse. ( double glass and a good size fan on the southwall, which kicks in at about 83 degr F).
Even with some older window screens placed inside over the orchids, they would be too hot inside, especially if the fan fails - which happens once in a while. I do have an air conditioner as part of the system, which I have set to start up at 85 degr F, as a back up during the Spring and Fall when temps can spike wildly.
At this point I simply move everything outside in April, May and bring them back inside during September, October. As long as I am able to do so.... Besides, it is fun, I look every plant over in the process of moving them and I scrub out the greenhouse for another season. And the plants love it outside.
If I wanted to grow year around in there, I would have to invest in some better outside shading.

So you put your epi's (once conditioned) out side where the get full sun all day? I just know how hot it gets on the wood deck. I guess they are pretty tough plants.

That about sums it up!

Thanks, Ursula.

I meant to continue to show my other Ric Racs, but I got interrupted and couldn't come back until now. My other one is a E. anguliger, I think. I'm not sure what the third one is, but as you say, we can find out if and when it ever blooms.

By the way, your deck last year was so lovely. This year's is too. A deck is a must-have for any plant lover.

My epi's stay on my deck/semi-covered patio all year long. We used to have three Koi Ponds, but due to a series of accidents and problems, we now only have one. The bright side is that I'm keeping my epi's in the empty ponds! As I am expanding, I am thinking that I might move the hybrids out after they finish blooming and keep them under the tangerine and orange trees where there is a lot of shade but morning sun. The only problem with that is that the trees get a variety of insect problems such as aphids and mealy bugs, and I frequently give the trees a good hard spray to rid them of those pests. I might use an insecticide first and then put them below. They could stay where they are instead. Sorry for thinking out loud here. Anyway, when my leaves do escape the patio and stick out in full sun, they turn red. As long as they are really well-watered, they don't mind. I have a christmas cactus like this also.

Here is a more recent picture of them after I rearranged them and took away their plant stands:

Here is a picture of 'Paradise' today:

Ursula, here is my other Ric Rac that I think is E. anguliger. The ridges are definitely not as pronounced.

I agree, I like seeing everything outside anyway. They like the fresh air too. I just don't want to burn them.

This is the red Christmas Cactus. It has been this way for a few years now, but new growth is green.

Absolutely beautiful Clare_CA. I guess it is in full sun for the stems to be red?!? Just lovely.

Thanks RUK for taking the time to explain.

Thanks, Pdoyle! Actually, it only got a couple of hours of direct sun a day. It take take much to turn the stems red. It does stay out all year like my other plants do.

Whooo Hooo for Sue!! Yes, I do recognize the offspring of some of my pink Epis! So glad they are blooming for you...here are some images of the Mom & Aunties of Sue's cuttings.

Kind of a gloomy day here today, but it isn't stopping additional blooms from opening.

And you can see how these are grown "hard" with a lot of sun turning them red.

Nice to see them all. I do think I also have a cutting of a white you had, not sure though, if so it's most likely in the same pot so once that blooms, I'll have to seperate it.
And I like the stands you have, kind of a must when they get that full I imagine. Plus it keeps the snails away. And the bulb supports are nice too, I'll have to rememeber that when mine get bigger.

Lovely pics, Candy! I love the lavender glow that your pinks have. Awesome!

Here are a couple of mine from yesterday and today. This is the small red/orange:

This message was edited May 20, 2006 12:18 PM