{"content":[{"text":"from the sun. The seedlings need only the same shading that adult plants would receive. Part of the time, keep \n the pots moist by misting them often for about two weeks. Allow the pots to dry out for intervals of a few weeks, \n and then resoak. When seeds germinate at this and any other time, just worry about taking care of the seedlings \n and stop working on germinating the rest of the seeds until the seedlings are removed from the pot.","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.061784,"width":0.8137749999999999,"height":0.060789}},{"text":"(4) In the fall, occasionally Sclerocactus or Opuntia seeds will germinate, but few will come up. You can make the \n dry periods longer for pots that have not germinated. Most Scleros and Pedios will have a burst of growth when the \n hot days of summer are past. When you see the seedlings growing, give them a couple of good waterings. The \n small, young seedlings can take the same cold as adults, so you can keep them in the unheated frame.","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.13484,"width":0.8335339999999999,"height":0.06106700000000001}},{"text":"To summarize, in temperate climates with freezing temperatures in the winter, an unheated frame with a \n germination chamber inside works very well to germinate these seeds. You cannot keep a pot wet for extended \n periods of time because the seeds will just rot, so for an interval of about 2-3 weeks, you can mist the pots often \n enough to keep the contents of the pot moist. Then allow the pot to dry out for about two weeks and rewet them. \n When seedlings come up, remove the pots from the humid place in the germination chamber covered with white \n cloth. When seedlings are big enough to transplant, remove them from the pot and care for them much like you \n would adult plants of the same species. After you have removed the seedlings from the pot, you can replace this \n pot in the germination chamber and work on germinating more of the seeds. Some species will take up to five \n years to fully germinate, so allow this much time.","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.208325,"width":0.814753,"height":0.133377}},{"text":"Pediocactus are primarily very active in the spring when hard frost is over and then again in early fall when the hot \n days of summer are over. In late fall many of them will bud; they hold the buds over the winter. It does not hurt the \n buds to freeze. In the spring the buds will swell quickly when it stops freezing hard at night and will flower. When \n you see them starting to grow in the spring, give them good waterings and some feeding, but allow the soil to dry \n between waterings. Most Pediocactus like a small pot with more frequent waterings. By late spring, they will have \n finished flowering; when the days turn hot, they will go dormant for the summer. Let them become dry so they \n shrink down into the soil a bit; in nature most species pull down into the soil and can go underground. Just give \n them very little water during the summer; it is fine if the plants have some wrinkles on the epidermis. In late \n summer and early fall, they will show signs of growth, so give them a few waterings, which improves flowering and \n growth the following spring. During the winter, they need a couple of waterings, but most of the time they can be \n dry.","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.353968,"width":0.83018,"height":0.16260800000000003}},{"text":"Sclerocactus and Toumeyas on the other hand grow later in the year (late spring) when it is warmer, and they make \n a larger root system. In the winter keep them drier, but they need a little water to keep them going. The plants will \n become very active in late spring when the days warm, and need thorough waterings and feedings. In the summer, \n give occasional thorough soakings as they will grow later into the summer. By mid-summer, when it is very hot, \n they slow or stop growing, so they can sit dry at this time. During the winter, wait long intervals between watering; \n but some water is important and needed for the burst of growth and flowering the following spring. S. polyancistrus \n should be watered only in the late winter and spring and kept dry all summer.","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.528842,"width":0.8350110000000001,"height":0.10455199999999998}},{"text":"I have found that these plants do very well on their own roots in an open sandy soil. They are planted out directly \n into the ground in an unheated greenhouse with open ventilation. Pediocactus simpsonii needs much more water \n than the other species; give them plenty of waterings in the spring and most of the summer. P. knowltonii needs a \n bit more than the other species, and it too goes dormant in the heat of summer when the soil dries out. \n Echinocactus and Opuntia species from northern regions grow and flower during the hot period of the year. During \n the late spring when days warm up and frost stops, the plants begin to grow. Flowering takes place from late \n spring into the summer over a longer period as long as warmth and moisture are present. They need only a few \n light waterings in the spring and fall when it is cool, and should be kept very dry during the winter. In the warm part \n of the year, from late spring to early fall, they can be moist much of the time with occasional dry intervals.","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.64585,"width":0.8290219999999999,"height":0.13333899999999999}},{"text":"The common conditions for all of these temperate North American cacti is dry air most of the time, with a great \n difference between the daytime high and nighttime low. Even though it freezes hard at night, very often in the \n winter most days are warm enough to get above freezing.","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.791607,"width":0.795233,"height":0.04637000000000013}},{"text":"They all like soils that are gritty and low in humus. The usual cactus compost has too much organic matter and \n humus for these plants. When you transplant, inspect the roots; if they are not growing well, experiment with your \n soil to improve the condition. You could use a soil like this: 50% coarse sand, 30% natural sandy loam soil, and \n 20% grit (pumice, perlite, etc.).","bbox":{"left":0.082353,"top":0.85042,"width":0.819664,"height":0.06076400000000004}},{"text":"2","bbox":{"left":0.495572,"top":0.941178,"width":0.009048999999999974,"height":0.017279000000000044}}],"images_bbox":[],"images_bbox_not_text_overlap":[]}