I am 84 y.o. and all I remember about Biology was disecting a frog and wouldn't you know I had a female with eggs. The rest I am sad to say never made much of an impression because I was too busy playing. I am so sorry I wasted so much good learning time. I did o.k. considering until now.

Okay, Jaquie - I couldn't stand not having one of those peach flowered Ccs, so I ordered one. Now you are officially an enabler (again!).

JB, you know a lot about biology, even if you didn't learn it in a class. All gardeners are scientists to some extent - you collect data on what works and what doesn't, and apply it to keep your plants doing their best - that's the scientific process. Biology is just the study of living things, and as gardeners we study our plants nonstop, though it's so much fun it doesn't feel studious.

I have a science PhD, so no stranger to the classroom or the lab. Even so, there are many, many things I've learned in my garden that couldn't be found in any book

And Arif... I guess I've outed myself on where I stand on the arts/sciences divide Really, though, it takes both - science to understand the world around us, and the arts and philosophy to appreciate it

Always a clash if you look at a thing through an artists eye and a scientists eye. Science has to be clinical while art is philosophical. Huum! is there a clash between science and philosophy? Should be.
Regards,
Arif.

[quote="bitbit" Really, though, it takes both - science to understand the world around us, and the arts and philosophy to appreciate it [/quote]

So that explains why I am not understanding what they are doing in Washington just now. I should have taken more science.

LOL!

I don't think any amount of education can make politicians understandable

I must agree on that one. In all my years I have never seen anything like this. Enough...we will get banned for discussing the wrong subjects. Sorry.

I must say, the hybrids are really showing off this year. The Zygo Orange, Claudia, Christen, Christmas Fantasy, Salmon and Yellow are all still blooming. I was able to cut and plant 87 cuttings this week from the ones that are resting. I am wondering what is keeping them going this way.

They are not the only plants I have just now that seem to be like the little pink bunny....they just keep blooming and blooming. I have several Star Jasmine that I propagate and the stock plants have bloomed constantly this winter and the starter plants from these plants are in bloom also. What a wonderful surprise, except it is difficult to get cuttings when they just keep on blooming. Oh well, I am happy just enjoying the fragrance and beauty.

Have a good day.

I'm a chatterer, sorry about that.

To bring things back to succulents... this guy is in a corridor at my work:




And I twisted these off to try to start one for myself:



I'm confused - from what I've read, pointed teeth on the margins is a trait of S. truncata, while flowers held below the horizontal points to S. russelliana. Yellow pollen goes with S. truncata, but radial symmetry with S. russelliana. Do I likely have an interspecific hybrid?

Also, I like this plant partly because of the brilliant pink color of the (leaf-like) stems... but I'm thinking that has more to do with growing conditions than genetics. However, in most plants I know, high light leads to intense pigmentation (a protective mechanism to keep the sun from bleaching out the chlorophyll), but this is growing indoors in front of a north-facing window over a courtyard with tall buildings all around - very little natural light. The building has fluorescent tubes on 24 hours a day, but usually those don't do much for plants. So, do holiday cacti like really, really low light or does the pink color have another cause? Any tips on the right conditions to keep this plant pink once my cuttings take off?

Thanks for any input

Mmm - good luck on that one. You're right about the intense coloration from high light (0f course!) but cooler conditions can bring it on sometimes, too - I personally have never seen a Cc do that before.

And, too - hard to figure out what traits it actually has when it has been grown in kind of weird conditions. The flower being held low might be a growing condition thingy as opposed to genetics, too.

But there are others much more familiar with the differing types than I am, so the answer remains with them!

What do worldly wise politicians have to do with art . The only art they know is greed.
Regards,
Arif.

Bit, I have an old and I mean old, fuchsia Christmas cactus that I watch it changing colors as it matures. It starts out as a green cutting. It turns into a light pinkish green stem and it is a S.Truncata also. As it matures the leaves are a beautiful color. Not as deep pink as yours but a beautiful pale pinkish yellow. The stock plant is all green and it is in my bedroom facing South. Gets some late afternoon filtered sun. The starters are in the GH and I too thought it was the excessive light they get and the change in temps. that makes them get pinkish. I will look for a shot of the one that is a few years old and still pinkish. What color are the flowers on your pink lady?

It's white with a pale pink throat - the second photo in my previous post is a flower on a mostly-pink plant. Oddly, the stems near the flower seem to be more green than the rest of the plant

Sheryl, since you mentioned cool conditions... what temperature range do CCs prefer?

I find my work building to be chilly - I'm generally in a heavy sweater or jacket at my desk, so I'm guessing it's closer to 65 than 70, but I don't keep a thermometer around. My furnace at home is a bit shaky, so the cuttings are hanging out around 60-65 these days and in the 50s whenever we get a heavy frost - I'm sure that's not ideal for them, but unfortunately my landlord isn't too concerned with my plants or my comfort Springtime is just around the corner, though, so hopefully a cold house won't be an issue much longer... and I better leave it at that before I get in trouble for chatting again

bit.................here is the old fuchsia 2 yr. old baby with the pretty leaves. They do look like yours...well almost.