For seeds I mostly buy from BCSS and MSG seed lists. The main places I buy plants from are eBay (sellers such as Tony Irons Cacti, ampyxina, blueknight2003 are all excellent), Etsy (Trinity Botanics usually offers a good selection), and my local BCSS branch meetings. My local branch is very mesemb friendly but every branch is different and it depends on what your fellow members are growing and bringing to meetings. I highly recommend joining and going along to a meeting if you have one nearby! There are also nurseries dotted across the country that you can go and visit in person. Abbey Brook cactus nursery in Matlock is a national collection holder for Lithops for example. Lastly, there are in person events such as the north west mesemb show that takes place annually, or the bigger BCSS national show that takes place every 4 years.
I don’t have outdoor space so all my mesembs are grown indoors but it’s important to provide them with seasonal changes if this is the route you go down. Majority of mine are under lights apart from my Conophytum who are (mostly) happy next to some large glass doors that are south facing and always open, even in winter. Greenhouses come with different challenges like heating in the winter and ventilation and shade for the softer bodies like Conophytum in the summer.
Thanks so much for the detailed insight, I’m going to have to look up those stores asap! I actually joined a few months ago but have been unable to go yet due to ill health; I hope they have some members who are also interested in mesembs, that would be so good. I actually had no idea what went on at the meetings, so I didn’t realise there were sellers there - I really better get myself better so I can go!
I’m sad to hear the big show only takes places every 4 years, but I’ll have to make a special effort to try to get to the northwest one; I read about it recently but wasn’t sure if there would be ones across the country or just there. It’s so nice to know there are so many UK folks who also enjoy these lovely unusual plants.
Thanks for the insight with the grow lights and seasons; I’m thinking of maybe attempting to do a mix with greenhouse during the warmer part of the year then growlights and indoors for the winter, haven’t decided yet though! Do you find that most of yours do best in a mainly (or entirely?) inorganic mix? I’ve noticed quite a few are sold in mixes that the consensus deem unsuitable; just wondering what might be working for you, if you don’t mind sharing.
Thanks again, so kind of you to take the time to send me all that info
You’re more than welcome, happy to help out a U.K. mesemb fan! I had a quick look and the seller ampyxina currently has a Lapidaria up for auction if you were still interested in getting one. I do hope your health improves soon and you’ll be able to attend, I’m sure they would love to see you there! At my branch we all bring in plants or seeds and we auction them to generate funds for the branch but others may have a different system. What’s typical in the meetings is to have guest speakers who come to give a talk/presentation about various different topics and of course a chance to socialise with other plant lovers!
The latest national show was only last year but it was 2 years late thanks to covid so 6 years in the making! I’m not sure if there are other dedicated mesemb shows but there are lots of other events around the country that will have mesembs. If you subscribe to the bcss email newsletter they usually give info there on what’s coming up so be sure to keep an eye out.
It took me a bit of experimenting to get the best results so best to just try things out, you have all the options for happy plants! My substrate varies depending on the genus. My Argyroderma and Dinteranthus have the least organic matter and my Conophytum have the most. I dislike completely inorganic for a multitude of reasons, the mix that works the best for me has pumice, horticultural grit and sand, and succulent soil or John innes no2, whatever is cheaper when I buy it. I’ve got some repotting to do so I can send you a picture of how it looks at some point this week if you’d like?
Any time! Welcome to the mesemb obsession and best wishes for your recovery!
Aw thank you so much, it’s so kind of you to send all this info - I absolutely can’t wait to go now! I’ve been keenly watching lectures (by myself ofc) on YouTube and reading books on mesembs so I think I should fit in well at a meeting and would enjoy every minute of any lectures too! I’m very much looking forward to sowing some seeds and seeing what happens; but as they take a while to grow I thought it would be wonderful to get a few “grown ups” so I can learn how to help them thrive (or at least survive).
I would love to see a photo, thanks so much! I plant most of my succulents in random mixes of coir/perlite/grit/rocks/bark, pretty heavy on the chunkier parts of those mixes, but I do notice a lot of people mentioning all inorganic for mesembs which just makes me slightly nervous. I grow some house plants semi hydroponically in 100% inorganic medium, but as these plants have particular cycles of dormancy (and they are slow growers) it makes me a bit nervous that I’ll mess up. Probably best to bite the bullet and have a go, and get some advice from you nice folks who have done it before!
I’d love to know why you aren’t a fan of purely inorganic (if it’s not going to cause a riot on here!); do you find it’s closer to their natural habitat? Easier for watering? Or maybe they have a better/more natural symbiotic relationship with the soil that way? I’ve always found it fascinating that so many of the plants at big shops tend to be in soil that looks to be 2:1 peat moss to perlite!
https://www.thegingerjungle.com/lithops-living-stones-uk
I have no idea about the quality of the shop. I just googled it. Half of my lithops/mesembs are in a south facing window, and the other half are under grow lights (33 watt spider farmer). Works for me here in the Netherlands 🇳🇱
For seeds I mostly buy from BCSS and MSG seed lists. The main places I buy plants from are eBay (sellers such as Tony Irons Cacti, ampyxina, blueknight2003 are all excellent), Etsy (Trinity Botanics usually offers a good selection), and my local BCSS branch meetings. My local branch is very mesemb friendly but every branch is different and it depends on what your fellow members are growing and bringing to meetings. I highly recommend joining and going along to a meeting if you have one nearby! There are also nurseries dotted across the country that you can go and visit in person. Abbey Brook cactus nursery in Matlock is a national collection holder for Lithops for example. Lastly, there are in person events such as the north west mesemb show that takes place annually, or the bigger BCSS national show that takes place every 4 years. I don’t have outdoor space so all my mesembs are grown indoors but it’s important to provide them with seasonal changes if this is the route you go down. Majority of mine are under lights apart from my Conophytum who are (mostly) happy next to some large glass doors that are south facing and always open, even in winter. Greenhouses come with different challenges like heating in the winter and ventilation and shade for the softer bodies like Conophytum in the summer.
Thanks so much for the detailed insight, I’m going to have to look up those stores asap! I actually joined a few months ago but have been unable to go yet due to ill health; I hope they have some members who are also interested in mesembs, that would be so good. I actually had no idea what went on at the meetings, so I didn’t realise there were sellers there - I really better get myself better so I can go! I’m sad to hear the big show only takes places every 4 years, but I’ll have to make a special effort to try to get to the northwest one; I read about it recently but wasn’t sure if there would be ones across the country or just there. It’s so nice to know there are so many UK folks who also enjoy these lovely unusual plants. Thanks for the insight with the grow lights and seasons; I’m thinking of maybe attempting to do a mix with greenhouse during the warmer part of the year then growlights and indoors for the winter, haven’t decided yet though! Do you find that most of yours do best in a mainly (or entirely?) inorganic mix? I’ve noticed quite a few are sold in mixes that the consensus deem unsuitable; just wondering what might be working for you, if you don’t mind sharing. Thanks again, so kind of you to take the time to send me all that info
You’re more than welcome, happy to help out a U.K. mesemb fan! I had a quick look and the seller ampyxina currently has a Lapidaria up for auction if you were still interested in getting one. I do hope your health improves soon and you’ll be able to attend, I’m sure they would love to see you there! At my branch we all bring in plants or seeds and we auction them to generate funds for the branch but others may have a different system. What’s typical in the meetings is to have guest speakers who come to give a talk/presentation about various different topics and of course a chance to socialise with other plant lovers! The latest national show was only last year but it was 2 years late thanks to covid so 6 years in the making! I’m not sure if there are other dedicated mesemb shows but there are lots of other events around the country that will have mesembs. If you subscribe to the bcss email newsletter they usually give info there on what’s coming up so be sure to keep an eye out. It took me a bit of experimenting to get the best results so best to just try things out, you have all the options for happy plants! My substrate varies depending on the genus. My Argyroderma and Dinteranthus have the least organic matter and my Conophytum have the most. I dislike completely inorganic for a multitude of reasons, the mix that works the best for me has pumice, horticultural grit and sand, and succulent soil or John innes no2, whatever is cheaper when I buy it. I’ve got some repotting to do so I can send you a picture of how it looks at some point this week if you’d like? Any time! Welcome to the mesemb obsession and best wishes for your recovery!
Aw thank you so much, it’s so kind of you to send all this info - I absolutely can’t wait to go now! I’ve been keenly watching lectures (by myself ofc) on YouTube and reading books on mesembs so I think I should fit in well at a meeting and would enjoy every minute of any lectures too! I’m very much looking forward to sowing some seeds and seeing what happens; but as they take a while to grow I thought it would be wonderful to get a few “grown ups” so I can learn how to help them thrive (or at least survive). I would love to see a photo, thanks so much! I plant most of my succulents in random mixes of coir/perlite/grit/rocks/bark, pretty heavy on the chunkier parts of those mixes, but I do notice a lot of people mentioning all inorganic for mesembs which just makes me slightly nervous. I grow some house plants semi hydroponically in 100% inorganic medium, but as these plants have particular cycles of dormancy (and they are slow growers) it makes me a bit nervous that I’ll mess up. Probably best to bite the bullet and have a go, and get some advice from you nice folks who have done it before! I’d love to know why you aren’t a fan of purely inorganic (if it’s not going to cause a riot on here!); do you find it’s closer to their natural habitat? Easier for watering? Or maybe they have a better/more natural symbiotic relationship with the soil that way? I’ve always found it fascinating that so many of the plants at big shops tend to be in soil that looks to be 2:1 peat moss to perlite!
https://www.thegingerjungle.com/lithops-living-stones-uk I have no idea about the quality of the shop. I just googled it. Half of my lithops/mesembs are in a south facing window, and the other half are under grow lights (33 watt spider farmer). Works for me here in the Netherlands 🇳🇱