October, 1 year + 1 month

during october i water and fertilize my living stones every 10 days: on the 6th, the 16th and on the 26th. at the beginning of the month i still find webbing on the monilaria plants so i also spray with the diy miticide on the 6th and on the 16th.

i reduce the daylight hours gradually untill the plant lamps are on only 12 hours a day. i am aiming at 8 hours at winter solstice and at 16 hours at summer solstice but i began to wonder if one is too little and the other too much.

i read about the 34th parallel south (about the parallel of cape town) because i believe that the southern tip of africa has the most extreme light levels the living stones could possibly encounter in their habitat. well, their habitat is actually a bit more north from there in the namib desert but i think it's close enough for an approximation of the most extreme light levels. at the 34th parallel south the sun is visible for 14 hours, 28 minutes during the summer solstice (in december) and 9 hours, 50 minutes during the winter solstice (in june). i decide to reduce daylight hours only up to 9 hours 30 minutes by the winter solstice.

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My grow equipment and the overall cost of the hobby (so far)

i ordered the seeds and the potting medium from a dutch seller called sunny plants. (all links on this post are non-affiliated) argyroderma delaetii 20 seeds conophytum calculus 10 seeds lithops mix 20 seeds monilaria moniliforme 20 seeds pumice 1 liter x 2 the shipping cost approx. the same as all the products together. = altogether the order was 50 euros things i already had at home: i potted the seeds in pure pumice in empty plastic containers with see-through lids. the containers were leftovers from different food packages. i used medical, sterile, non-woven swabs to cover the drainage holes in the bottom of the containers. i used the swabs already in my medicine cabinet. i used two plates i already owned under the containers. i used cocktail sticks from my pantry to help me sow the seeds. i used extension cord we already had for the plant lights. i had at home a bottle of cactus fertilizer so i didn't need to buy one. i bought: two small reading lamps...

May 2 to 28

i continue watering the only conophytum more often than the rest of the living stones. i am a bit scared it could die at any moment because of the transplanting and because its neighbor did die of drought. i water the conophytum plant on the 2nd (it shows clear wrinkles), the 8th, the 15th and on the 22nd of may. i just let room temperature water run through the pot. in addition i bottom water and fertilize all of the living stones on the 5th, the 12th, the 19th and on the 28th of may. i also gradually increase the amount of light my plants receive until it is about 16 h/day at the end of the month. my only conophytum on the 7th of may . the conophytum plant is residing in a 125 ml cup because it is so tiny. the cup didn't have a drainage hole originally so i needed to drill one in it. you can find several tutorials from youtube by searching for "drilling hole ceramic pot". the important part is to use a correct drill bit and to remember to use water to prevent t...

Useful links to find more information about growing living stones

i found useful information about these plants on the websites listed below although some of the information is contradictory. many also seem to agree that the care depends on your climate so general guidelines are difficult to give. e.g. southern africa (the origin of all the species i grow) has a different climate and their summer is when northern hemisphere experiences winter hence i decided to document my journey of growing living stones. websites growlithops denmark includes info about the genera lithops and monilaria moniliforme lithops-stories germany includes info about everything i grow except info about argyroderma and pleiospilos lithops blog south africa includes info about the genus lithops terry smale uk includes info about the genera conophytum and lithops world of succulents includes info about all of the species i grow (see previous post ) youtube channels lithops canada includes info mostly about lithops not updating any...

Growing Living Stones at 63rd Parallel North

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