Babytoes Blooms in 2015, Too!

The summer heat is on and Fenestraria, aka Babytoes, is celebrating by...you can guess this...blooming! She starts around dawn and her blooms are in full glory by breakfast time:

Babytoes hails from Namaqualand, Africa, and is grown just like all other mesembs--well-draining, rather poor soil, lots of sun, not too much water. She's been cheering me for years now, and her blooms never cease. Hurray for Babytoes!

Bloomin' Babytoes Returns

It's been while since I posted a photo of one of my very prolific Babytoes (Fenestraria), so here goes:

Fenestraria in Bloom, MR, 2014

These cheerful mesembs never fail to make me smile....

Weekend Update: Tiny Alien Lands on Earth...

...and requests a Blooming Babytoes!

Alien Visitor Poses With His New Babytoes.

After receiving his very own Fenestraria, he left for his home planet. Enjoy your new life, Babytoes!

Might explain how Fenestraria got to Earth in the first place, or maybe my garden sculpting project is just getting out of hand (and off-world).

Have a great weekend!

Pensive Tuesday: Lithops, Not Lagomorphs

Easter season and Spring Break are upon us! Just a public service message from Lagomorphia today:

I support our local rabbit rescue shelter, so I am sending out the word at this time of year, don't buy someone a pet bunny as an Easter gift unless you know they can handle a ten-year commitment to a pet that is as wonderful as, and as high-maintenance as, a cat or dog. Most pet Easter bunnies are soon abandoned to be killed by a car or predator, or die quickly because they are fed the wrong diet (they eat hay and greens, and that's it), or are confined to solitary prison in a small cage in a backyard or garage. That's just so wrong. Instead of a bunny, how about a chocolate bunny, or better yet....

A blooming Babytoes! Or even...

A cheerfully flowering Mammillaria! Or even...

Lithops! Those leaves do look a little like bunny ears, now that I think about it. Let's start a new gift-giving tradition for the spring holidays. It's sure to catch on eventually....

Another Bloomin' Monday!

Not just another pretty face, my Mammillaria hahniana is now in full, crowning bloom. Wonderful!

Many Mammillaria cacti have a distinct "crown" of flowers, usually in the pink-to-purple range. Here's a closer look at the crown:

And never one to say "No" to a flower party, my Fenestraria is...doing what it always does. I love that delicate shade of peachy pink with the bright yellow center. The other Babytoes is getting ready to bloom as well; they usually bloom in tandem.

More Lithops are starting to bloom also, as are some of the Tillies. So more flowers to come, stay tuned.

Hurricane Sandy Pulling Away...But....

Where's the SAND???

That's right, Hurricane Sandy has eaten our sandy beaches! This is low tide today, after 3 days of serious pounding by Sandy....

Florida has taken a hit, for sure; we had 58mph winds yesterday. But obviously, we're worried for the folks up north. We're more used to this sort of thing down here.

My mesembs are screaming for sunshine. All except one (two). The ever-cheerful and optimistic Babytoes (Fenestraria), both of them, decided to bloom! What positive attitude, I love these guys!

Radical Mesemb Surgery: The Results

The surgery on my Gibbaeum mysterioso was successful. I now have a happy, thriving little unidentified succulent:

Unidentified Gibbaeum

And to celebrate the happy outcome, Babytoes is blooming again! (Well, she can't exactly heft a "Congratulations" sign, can she? ;-)

Blooming Fenestraria

Hope your Monday is a peaceful one. See you for Pensive Tuesday!

Oh No! Really? Again? So Soon??

Babytoes (Fenestraria) is at it again. Yes! It's only been a month....

Are my Fenestrarias really blooming again?? So it would seem....

Oh yeah, it's Big Bloom Time....

I have never encountered a plant as exuberant as Fenestraria! Bloom Babytoes, bloom!

Babytoes 2 and Baby Lithops, the Oddball

My second Fenestraria, not wanting to be outdone, has also bloomed magnificently! Unfortunately, they weren't quite synchronized, so I don't think the chances of seed formation are high.  Fenestraria flowers are so large compared to the plants themselves, they always get ooos and aaaahs from anyone who sees them. No scent, though, too bad.

And here is a group of the Lithops seedlings for the beginning of August, a couple of months old now. Can you see the copper-colored oddball in the center? I am quite interested in how that one will look when grown, it's beautiful already! In accord with what I've read on the Internet, I'm giving them less water now. And stronger light. Always stressful, growing the first batch, I suppose!

Beauty in What is Old

The flower is now old and decomposing, becoming a seed pod. Still so much beauty! The entire lifecycle from bud to seed pod is enthralling, when you really look at it....

Babytoes Blooms!

I really love Fenestraria. It's a much tougher plant than its lookalike, Frithia, much easier to care for, and has a beautiful flower as well (though it's not showy magenta, like Frithia's). It's a monotypic genus, all out there alone. The subspecies aurantiaca has yellow flowers. They hail from South Africa and Namibia. They are known as "Babytoes" here and are very popular; new shipments usually sell out in a couple of days at the local nurseries. Do any of you like or grow Fenestraria?