Blogtober day 4 - the prickly edition

Day 4

When the boys were little, to get them interested in gardening and wild things and plants and caring for 'something' I introduced them to succulents and cacti. As you would expect they were enthusiastic at first but like all 'slow' things, the boys stopped being quite as hands on. However the succulents quietly continued to grow while the boys basically did the same thing but with a lot more maintenance required!

Fast forward to them going to uni and they both took their collections with them and suddenly I realised that although the plants belonged to the boys in the first place, it was me who for the most part kept an eye on them and now they were gone - I was missing them (the plants not the boys for heavens sake!!) So to fill that space - I may have added (one or two) to my remaining (ex)meagre succulent and cacti family.

Some of the family are a little spikier than others .....

However, with the right platitudes that particular prickly cat-cus can be got around (occasionally).

Most of my little family I have either purchased or been given as small plants and have grown them on.

However, (and I fully blame MrsL for this!) recently I was introduced to, then fell down the rabbit hole of a certain crafty website where you can purchase leaves and plantlets (also known as pups) to plant up and grow on .... so I may have accidently bought one or two (not one or two leaves - don't be silly - boxes!) One of which landed yesterday and I will be going into the glasshouse to settle the leaves and pups into the nicest lumpiest grittiest, well drained-est soil I can lovingly make them.

The second box is due any day now (fingers crossed today then I can get all my new pups planted up) squeee, I may be a little over excited!

Just some of the pups and leaflets I'll be working with later this morning, and in case you are a nerd (as it appears I am) from left to right they are : Titanopsis calcareum (in my hand), Sinocrassula yunnanensis (tiny black leaves),  Dischidia nummularia (little bright green top centre), Echeveria Diffractens (dark purply ones), Curio rowleyansus (top right) and finally Echeveria Setosa Doris Taylor.

I shall also tackle this large, grumpy and reclining Golden Barrel (Echinocactus grusonii) of Eldest's. It needs a bit of surgery (yup - going to chop off the top bit, let it callous over and then plant up, then remove the pup at the base and do the same and hope the main body will recover and grow on) - so a bit of careful TLC should help this fellow recover both his former glory and his mood.🌵

What tickles your fancy? (polite answers please!)

Do you have an obsession? (how ever slight or overboard)

Go on - share your guilty pleasures - here in the comments or over on your blog - sharing is caring🌵😄

**Edited to add - the second box of succulent leaves arrived so they have all been planted- fingers crossed and I have 'decapitated' the E. grusonii and that and the pup are drying off in the glasshouse where the bare cuts can callous over before I plant them. The main trunk has been planted upright in nicer soil - so hopefully all three parts of the original plant will settle and grow.