Conophytum bilobum gracistylum
There's a man who holds monthly WhatsApp sales and he offers conophytums from time to time. I was late for the sale and surprised to see that everyone was going made for the stapeliads on offer and not interested in Conos. I put in an offer and to my surprise, I got them all. Some of them are species that I already have but they are very saleable at shows and they sell for quite a lot more than I paid so who needs more justification than that?
They arrived on Wednesday and although they had roots, you can never be sure that old roots will still be viable after replanting so the task is to gently strip the old leaf husks off using fingernails and pointed tweezers. This is not a job for the careless or impatient but 2 hours later it was done. Stripping the husks exposes meristem tissue close to the stem and allows a mesemb to make new roots and the technique applies to all mesembs.
All potted up: now the next paradox: don't water them for a few days,give the plants to settle in the soil and micro damage from handling to heal although Conophytums do appreciate a little misting and I did that. I'll only water next week. They will take a while to settle in but this is the start of their growing season, they adapted to their semi desert environment by resting during the hottest summer months and re-emerging to grow in autumn and winter.
Some of the plants I got last year as cuttings that have settled and are flowering now
Conophytum bilobum
Conophytum pellucidum
Conophytum friedrichae looks and behaves like lithops but for some reason it's classified as a cono. Must be something to do with the seed pods
Conophytum uviforme is one of the species that flower at night, this group has strongly scented flowers with very thin petals
Conos are fast becoming a favourite, they are much easier to keep than lithops, provided you follow their particular growth schedules and they love the heat in the greenhouse.