Can You Feel the Love Tonight?

Wouldn't it be cool to rewire that big 70's chandelier hanging in the greenhouse?  Smart people entertain these midnight thoughts and act on them at a more sensible time.   So, I'm wandering the aisles of Walmart in the wee hours (It's summer) and my shopping cart, an extension of the plant mobile, finds the plant area.  (Of course.)  Poor grafted (Moon) cacti mutants line a shelf.  One is lying on its side, the cellophane tube and foil wrapper having been removed and the plant being too top heavy to stand on its own.  Noticing it's dark color and feeling sorry for it, I stood it back up and let it lean on some of it's neon neighbors.  In response, it seemed to say "I love you."


Because the top part of the graft, Gymnocalycium mihanovichii can't produce chlorophyll on it's own, to survive, it's grafted to (usually) a short-lived tropical Hylocereus spp.  Therefore, the whole thing usually doesn't live more than three years.  However, the top can be grafted to a different bottom if one knows how to do such things.  I learned that the first mutant seedlings were discovered in the 1940's and that now 98% of these come from Korea where they're produced by the millions.

 Can you believe it?  I'd never seen a heart pattern like this on a grafted cactus and it isn't painted on. the pattern is consistent all around the top grafted part.
Can you believe it?  I'd never seen a heart pattern like this on a grafted cactus and it isn't painted on. the pattern is consistent all around the top grafted part. Sensible people smile at these mutants and leave them at the store.  Here it is, potted up and playing with it's friends that were already living in the greenhouse. They all need a bit of gravel mulch.  I'll go do that right now.