Mammillaria theresae

M. theresae is interesting. I gave this plant carefull treatment in the warmed greenhouse. Then it was moved to unwarmed greenhouse. I gave it water at the 1st of february while it was still freezing inside. No problemo. Nowadays ithe first water is on 1st of Marz. I'am keeking M. theresae for about 7 years in the unwarmed greenhouse (temperatures incidentially below -10 Celsius and -5 Celsius for longer periods. The same for saboa and its friends. Never had one problem. I think there are more difficult in a warmed greenhouse.
(Open a new topic on this plant?)

Photo of some of the M saboa haudeana

Hi!

I have 2 Mammillaria theresae both plants on mineral compost 100 %

This year i hope to have some seeds

My plants:





See the color difference between the two plants...

Regards!

Punker

I've never tried growing these cold, but it is an interesting idea.
Based upon what I have read, and also in my visits to see these plants in habitat, I would
simply say what I have found out.

Mammillaria theresae grows very close to Mammillaria longiflora in the Coneto Pass in Durango at an altitude of about 7500 ft ( 2250m). It will get cold there during the winter months for sure.
When it rains, because M. theresae grows in the cracks in flat sheets of rock, the cracks fill up and the plants have been seen submerged totally. This doesn't last long, maybe a day or so, but it is enough obviously to bring the plants into flower fast. Spring rains are probably March or April in habitat.
M. saboe grows at a similar altitude - 7200 ft (2160m) - also in cracks in flat rocks, but a fair bit further noth in Chihuahua.
M. saboe haudeana grows further north just over the border between Sonoroa and Chihuahua, at about 5150ft (1560m) also in cracks in flat sheets of rock.
I would imagine that spring rains do the same for these last two species as happens with M. theresae and swamps them for a short time. I also know that as late as mid April at 7300 ft in these mountains the temperature dropped overnight to close to 0 C.
I don't know what the lowest temperature these plants could survive in, I suppose it all depends on how dry at the time (totally?), how dry the air is, and how long the cold stays cold.

Thanks chris

very interesting to hear how the actually grow in their natural habitat. I would love to see them in real.

In a cold greenhouse M. roczekii seems to be the most vunerable to low temperatures, though -5 Celsius occasionally does not harm the plant (not grafted).
Also the white flowering M. theresae seems more vunerable to low temperatures. I lost a grafted one. But the grafting could be the case, because they don't shrivle enough.

So M. longiflora should be quit cold hardy as well? I did not try this one yet.

I have just found a location for M. roczeckii, about 75kms south east of Coneto Pass, at an altitude of 7800 ft (2340m) so I would have expected it to be a similar climate really.

It might just grow in a more sheltered place though, as I don;t think it has a widespread distribution. I haven't seen this one, so don't know if it grows in the same way. It does though grow with M. longiflora as well.

Are you often visiting? I would like to see a picture i you have the opportunity. Do they grow deep in the ground?

I would expect a similar hardiness for M. theresae and M. roczekii. M. roczekii grows about 50 km southeast of M. theresae. I found M. theresae at 2330 meters and M. roczekii at 2415 meters. The environment where M. roczekii grows is a rather flat fairly open area. It will get freezing temperatures from time to time.
In October 2003 I found M. theresae after heavy rains (it was still a bit raining when I was there). The attached photo (from a scanned slide, so not super quality) shows a partially submerged clump. This photo can also be found on http://www.cactus-art.biz/schede/MAMMILLARIA/Mammillaria_theresae/Mammillaria_theresae/Mammillaria_theresae.htm.
Interestingly, seeds of M. roczekii germinate much better than seeds of M. theresae.

Wolter.

hmmmm, so i have to repeat the experiment. There is no real explanation why they would differ in hardiness. My impression is though that the body of roczekii is softer. I will give it a try again. I just took cuttings of a grafted roczekii and they reroot quit easy.

Oh, and i love this picture. Is the rock always a liitle bit red where M. theresae grows?

Hi!

Mammillaria saboae ssp. roczekii is the only one from the saboae group is missing in my colection...

Al the Mamms reroot quit easy, is not my favorite metod but is ok...


Does anyone had some cutings of M. roczekii i am very intersted???, i give in change Opuntia humifusa hb.(hibrid between 2 locations) cutings....very good for grafts and very cold hardy(- 30) wet and cold no problem.

This is the plant:



Regards!

Sorry, Punker, my plants of M. roczeckii are at the moment single heads from growing seeds. If they do offset in the future, I will let you know.

Ruudt, I think the wetness magnifies the redness to some extent. Hre's a photo of M. theresae at Coneto Pass in dry conditions.

Hi chris

nice picture, gives me a good idea about how they grow in the wild. It is really in a crack.

I am interested in why germination seems to be poor for M. theresae

Did anyone the chip the seeds to encourage germination, like in this video about germinating Sclerocactus:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGG2-YpGDWA
Did anyone try to germinate them in the dark (because the seem to love to germinate in cracks, it must be darkness that encourage germination or a very high humidiy or some kind of material that collects in the rock crack.

I have never tried to germinate seed of M. theresae, so can't shed any light on the subject.

The seeds are typically embedded deep in the body of the plant, and can be very difficult to get at. I wonder how the seeds do get out in nature?

I wonder if the length of time that the seeds spend inside the plant body has anything to do with the germination rate?

Hi!

Quote :

Sorry, Punker, my plants of M. roczeckii are at the moment single heads from growing seeds. If they do offset in the future, I will let you know

Thank's Chris, if you want Opuntia i can send you in spring.

Quote :

The seeds are typically embedded deep in the body of the plant, and can be very difficult to get at. I wonder how the seeds do get out in nature?

They never get out,...when the plant die the seeds germinate, the dead body assure the perfect conditions to germinate so one series of the seeds are ready to replace the dead plants.

They are perfect adapted to dry conditions and this mecanism is critical to survive.

I think my plants have seeds, i have 5 metods to try to germinate M.theresae...one metod is the one that ruudt prezented,...and the others are chemicals who produce scarification of seed.

Germination speed, increases with age...older seeds do it faster.

I will try to germinate the seeds in spring

Regards!

punker

When a theresae plant dies (or other species from the saboae group), I always cut the dead plant body in very thin slices. Usually, there are quite some seeds present, almost always invisible from the outisde of the plant.
I think that it is true that older seeds (10 years??) germinate better than fresh seeds, but I am always too impatient to wait so long. It is quite likely that the seeds are released only when the plant dies or when the internal seed pods are so far down the body and so old that cracks are produced on the surface of the seed pod and the lower part of the plant body. The seeds can then fall out by itself or be washed out by rains.
I have the impression that M. theresae seeds germinate better in a peat-based substrate (does it mimick a dying plant body?) than in a mineral substrate like pumice. And several years ago I got a reasonable germination after the theresae seed pot (baggy method) had stood for more than a month on a top shelf in the greenhouse. Was it just an exception, or do they need a high germination temperature with a large difference between day and night temperatures?
About 4 years ago, Ruud T. gave me a roczekii grafted on a cold-hardy Opuntia. The roczekii grew very rapidly, flowered well for a few years, but then died. Interestingly, this plant appeared to be self-fertile and I obtained a nice number of seeds. Roczekii seeds seem to germinate better than others from the saboae group, for I now have about a dozen roczekii seedlings.

Wolter, Assen, The Netherlands.

Hi Wolter!

Quote :

I now have about a dozen roczekii seedlings

I am very intersted about M.roczekii if you sell, or i give something in exchange?

Regards

Punker

Romania

Hi!

Mammillaria theresae - fruit



Regards

Punker

Hello, do you know if an adult plant non-grafted produces a lot, few or none offset/compensations?