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Anyone sowing lithops seeds at the moment?

Logan2
11 years ago

I read it's a good time to sow lithops seeds right now. I started my dish last week and they germinated after 2 days! I'm so happy because I never had a green thumb, and can't believe they germinated so quickly. Hope I'll continue to do the right things to keep them alive. See my lil green boogers?

Comments (38)

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Also want to share other cool succulents that I just adopted! Aren't they precious? Anyone else want to share photos?

  • rina_Ontario,Canada 5a
    11 years ago

    Logan

    That must be exciting - from seeds. I never tried yet.
    Cute babies...is that a flower in the left pot? (You have bunch of different succs there!).

    Rina

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Hi rina, yes it's very exciting to grow from seeds, they get bigger each day unlike the older plants. And yes that's a seed pod the grower gave me for free. He said it was developed last year. But the opening trick still works very well. So awesome!!! I'm going to sow those seeds soon.

  • lgteacher
    11 years ago

    Mine is blooming now. After seeing your photos, I more motivated to save the seeds.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Lithops in bloom

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    hi igteacher, that looks awesome! do you have two flowers blooming at the same time to produce seed pod? or does it not need to be polinated?

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Proud for a follow up, my babies are about 4 months of age, and last week I realized some of the larger ones started to split!!!! yay!!!!

  • hanzrobo
    11 years ago

    Great job! Right on schedule!

  • stephanie_kay
    11 years ago

    Logan, they are so cute. I have never seen seedlings of lithops before. Thanks for sharing.

  • miketropic
    11 years ago

    what was the mix you put the seeds in. never tried them from seeds but I'm willing to with a little info

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    miketropic: I read online there are people with very specific sowing mix, 40% this, 20% that... I didn't have so many things available, I just have a bag of micracle brand cactus and succulent mix and a left over bag of white sand from the craft store. I didn't bake the sand like some has suggested.. I mixed about 60% soil with %40 sand at the bottom of a togo tray. on the top is about 1/4" of all white sand. the tray had a few holes punched from a knife and then twist to make a bigger hole. spray the mix, drop in the seeds, spray it a little and then cover the tray for a couple of days. You do need to open the tray about 3 times a day to spray. I kept it about 4-5 inches from a bright window, but it doesn't have direct sun light. If there's condensation from the lid, I'd wipe it clean and then spray again. Do spray lightly, the seeds are very light and a few of my seeds was sprayed away from the tray. I received my seeds from seedrack.com and in 3 days they sprouted, some of the later ones didn't sprout till after 7 or 8 days, but over all I'd say it was 99% success rate with the seeds I received.

    After the seeds sprouted, I kept the lid covered for about another week, kept spraying in between. After about 10 days I removed the lid completely and just sprayed 3 time a day. Maybe after 2 months I started to spray 2 times a day or whenever I see the mix is dry (the togo tray I had was semi transparent and was easy to see if the mix was dry). I am still repeating the same process now at 4th month. The babies made it through their first stage of life and started to split, so they are now much stronger. Hopefully it'll grow up nice and healthy for me!

    Good luck to you!

  • miketropic
    11 years ago

    I don't have much luck from seedrack but I might give it a try again. IDK whats wrong with my dragon fruit seedlings. basically what you did but with a heat pad and grow light. they got real leggy and fell over I took the top off and have been misting but I think there done for.. maybe the lithops will work out better.

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I don't have experience with cactus. I think lithops can with stand the cold a little better then cactus. Sorry no help here, good luck with it though. It might be at dormant season still. As long as you don't over water, it might revive again in the spring.

  • alkh86
    11 years ago

    Mike- did you use any kind of sand or grit as the dragon fruit got taller? From what I've been reading, once they start getting taller, they need some kind of soil cover to help stabilize the roots. I have some stapelia seedlings that are falling over and I'm trying to find some fine grit to stabilize them with. I'm still new at growing from seed,so I'm just going by what I've seen others do and what I've read. I just ordered some lithops seeds, so I really need to find some kind of fine grit or coarse sand.

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Update on my 6 month old babies, they are so cute and cuter. Most of them have shed their outer leaf exposing the miniature adult weirdness. Some looks like brains where the brain matters are quite lumpy and bumpy. Some looks like an alien butt with dots! I'm so happy they've survived the winter pretty well!

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Another corner

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    6 months old

  • 123Greta
    10 years ago

    Congrats!!

  • hanzrobo
    10 years ago

    Great job, Logan! What are you feeding them?

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    They are indoor, only drinking water spray once a day. I saw somewhere online that said no fertilizers until they are age 1.

  • hanzrobo
    10 years ago

    No sir, that's the opposite. Feed them starting immediately after germination. You want to get some size on them before the challenging heat of summer. Add some liquid fert to your spray, a 20-20-20 diluted to about 1/8 strength. Don't back off the fert until they approach maturity. I wasted an entire year not feeding my mesembs and another 4 months not feeding them enough. I actually use a stronger dose than what I recommended to you but I want you to play it safe, gauge it for yourself. My 7-month-old seedlings are equal in size to last year's batch at 12 months. Next year, I'll reach that size at 4 months.

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Oh really? I do think mine are on the small side. I just started another batch of seedlings in March and some of them are already the size of my 6 months. I did read spring sowing seem to be stronger and bigger. I guess I should fertilize mine now so they catch on. When you said don't back off the fert until they approach maturity, what's considered maturity? Mine split already, is that matured?

  • hanzrobo
    10 years ago

    When you buy a potted Lithops it's usually freshly mature or almost there - the leaf pair has reached near its maximum size. Your plants will split many times before then. I start to reduce feeding when they reach about 3/8" wide. If you continue heavy fert after that point, growth will exceed absorption and you'll get stacked leaves.

    There is a point where a large adolescent leaf pair finally splits to reveal the mature form of the leaf. That's the undeniable sign. I'll try to find an example of it later.

  • Adrien_87
    10 years ago

    Nice seedlings Logan2!. Are the seeds from the lithops villetii ssp. kennedyi on the first pic? It seems to me they are very different.
    I like your post, continue showing us the evotion

    This is the one I have on that species:
    {{gwi:669464}}

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Beautiful Adrien! I actually purchased a mixed bag of seeds and had a free seed pod that I don't know what the variety was. It's all a surprise for me right now, and hopefully everything will continue to grow together in harmony.

    Do you think I can replant these yet at 6 months?

  • Beachplants
    10 years ago

    If you can, better to replant at 1 year or even later.

  • hanzrobo
    10 years ago

    Yes, agreed with Beach, you should wait.

    I took these photos the other day showing a few different leaf forms as plants mature.

    This first one shows 4 mature plants and one still in juvenile form (all purchased, not grown here). It was probably fed pretty heavily to get to that size while still at a young stage. If you couldn't tell, it's the bottom right.
    You can see how the leaves are still fused together. That will probably change with the next few splits.

  • hanzrobo
    10 years ago

    This photo shows the next stage, when they double-up. All 3 of these doubled together. You can see how the leaf pairs develop a left and right shape, like shoes. The upper left shows the rounded, solitary shape. This one, if the size is any indication, will probably double when it splits next time.

  • Adrien_87
    10 years ago

    It's better to repot when they don't have space. If they have, I would also whait till they are 1 or 1.5 years.

    I've also seen that big lithops tend to split more than the smaller ones, but we can't take that as a fact. I have a L.Lesliei that is like 4.5 cm and has never splitted since 2009... and a L. Fulviceps and L. Otzeniana that have both splitted this year being only 1.5 cm.

    But yes, in general their probability to split is higher.

  • hanzrobo
    10 years ago

    Adrien, do you mean split as in "when the leaf pair separates - no longer fused" or do you mean doubling?

    Either way, good point! I agree completely. There's much variation between species, some remain fused for a long time, some separate very early. The same goes for doubling or "clumping", it can happen very early or not at all. Both extremes, I believe, are noteworthy exceptions to the general rule. The question is: Is the trait seen across the species or is it a freak in the batch? The freaks are of special interest to me:)

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you everyone! I am trying to keep it untouched as long as possible. But the to-go container I started the sowing is only an inch deep soil. I know the roots already surpassed that in length and if this is ok to house the plants for another 6+ more months.

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you everyone! I am trying to keep it untouched as long as possible. But the to-go container I started the sowing is only an inch deep soil. I know the roots already surpassed that in length and if this is ok to house the plants for another 6+ more months.

  • Adrien_87
    10 years ago

    If it's only one inch deep then you might have to repot them. Try not to damage the roots so much. The good thing is that this is a good time to repot.

    Yes hanzrobo, I meant "doubling" instead of "split" hehe. English is not my native language :)

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    I started to propagate these from leaflets and they quickly developed new leaves. It's only been one month and these two started to flower. Is this normal?

  • Danielle Rose
    10 years ago

    I've never had success with lithops, but after a lot of reading and figuring out what I did wrong, I planted about 20 seeds. It was over a month ago (late, I know).

    Nothing happened. Not even ONE of them! I think I was so worried about too much water, I didn't keep them moist enough. There was condensation on the cover, but perhaps not enough in the soil. It also gets about 45 minutes of direct sun where it's sitting, and I thought maybe that did it.

    About two weeks ago, I just threw caution to the wind and watered the little pot thoroughly, then went on vacation. Lo and behold, there are three or four little green specks! I'm still not 100% convinced they are actual plants, but we'll see!

  • Logan2
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Hi Danielle, good job not giving up. One thing I've learned about succulents is not until it completely dried up and dead, it might still be revivable! Condensation is good, the soil is moist enough. Do keep AWAY from direct sun, little babies will get toasted in the sun in matter of munutes. I keep mine indoor next to a big window, north facing to be exact. It has enough light for it to live their young life, then I will slowly introduce them to my south facing window when they are big enough. Also if the soil is too moist, too much light could cause mold or moss. Good luck on it! I'd live to see pics!

  • Danielle Rose
    10 years ago

    Well, before I go ahead and try to take a pic, I'll make sure they are actual lithops and not a moldy speck of perlite! It should become obvious in a week or so.

    I did as you suggested and moved the pot further away from the window so it won't ever be in direct sunlight. The little bit it gets is very late in the day, so I was hoping it would help rather than hurt. Still, it's better to be safe.

  • CactusSquirrel
    10 years ago

    I have some lithops mixed seeds I wanted to plant is it too late? I am planned to set them up under fluorescents indoors. This is my one plant that I got in February. I think it needs help. But I am afraid of killing it. I have not watered it since I bought it. But it seems to be getting tall?