Let’s go into detail and get to know this plant and its needs better in the following article (….).

Introduction

As is often the case with plants, the classification of species included in the Titanopsis genus is debated and depending on the author/researcher, Titanopsis species can range from three to six. On the other hand, taxonomy is a complex and constantly evolving matter, as I have highlighted in a specific article that you can find at this link.

Description

Limiting ourselves to the “calcareous” species of the genus Titanopsis, we can first of all say that this Mesembriantemacea is easily identifiable even by the less expert eye: the stem is made up of groups of leaves up to 5-6 centimeters wide, which depart from the center and end with the apex rounded, spatulate, arrowhead. The surface of the leaves, especially the apical part, is covered by point-like reliefs similar to warts, which contribute to giving the plant that “lumpy”, rock-like appearance. The color decisively contributes to the overall result: the leaves in fact have a color ranging from blue to greyish (with a tendency to darken and redden if exposed to direct sunlight), with the reliefs of a lighter colour, gray to reddish.

Cultivation

Regarding the cultivation of this particular succulent, I have often found, both online and in various books, approximate or conflicting indications. The controversial element is that relating to irrigation: some sources advise treating this plant like a cacti, thus suggesting that it be watered only from spring to the beginning of autumn; other authors suggest a similar approach to the one recommended for Lithops, i.e. watering from May onwards, suspending it in the summer months and resuming it moderately in autumn.

In the past years, struggling to extricate myself from conflicting indications, I decided to carefully observe my Titanopsis calcarea to try to understand in which months the plants vegetated and in which they went dormant (at least in the Northern hemisphere), so as to adjust the watering accordingly. For a year I therefore almost completely suspended the irrigations, letting the plants “talk” with growth, flowering, color change, etc. For several years now, on the basis of my observation, I have therefore adopted a specific watering regime for the Titanopsis: I water in moderation, reducing the watering to once a month, from January to the end of April. With the arrival of spring and the first heat, I suspend irrigation because I have noticed that these plants begin to slow down the vegetation until it stops completely in summer: the stems deflate and the leaves retract until the plant slightly sinks. I start watering again, always in moderation and sporadically, only when the heat lets go, around October and until the end of November. In the autumn period I noticed that Titanopsis calcarea resumes vigorously vegetating, swelling the stem until it “re-emerges” from the ground, putting on new leaves and, later on, starting to prepare the buds (from the end of November).

Regarding the substrate, the sources are generally less conflicting and my own experience has taught me that these plants want a very poor soil, almost completely devoid of organic matter (peat or humus). For several years I have kept my Titanopsis calcarea in a mix based on clayey field earth with little or no limestone (about 20% of the total), sand, pumice (at least 40%), quartzite and gravel. I add just 10% earthworm humus to the substrate to make the soil a minimum of nutrients, also considering that I don’t fertilize these plants. On the surface I place fragments of white limestone, which over time and with watering turn yellowish, harmonizing perfectly with the plants from a chromatic / aesthetic point of view.

In terms of exposure, the Titanopsis like full light, but I have never placed my specimens in direct sun, limiting myself to keeping them in an unshaded greenhouse, protected only by the transparent sheet of the roof.

Finally, the temperatures. Also in this case I noticed a discrepancy between the sources, with some authors recommending not to keep the Titanopsis at temperatures below 10 degrees. Also in this case, I have directly experienced and for at least seven years I have kept my Titanopsis calcarea at minimum winter temperatures close to zero, with some sporadic peaks below zero. It is essential that the temperature rises during the day, so as to keep the plants in force, which I also water in the cold months, as I wrote, albeit sparingly.

On the whole, by observing these few precautions, I can consider the Titanopsis calcarea a succulent of easy cultivation, although with a relatively slow growth, as demonstrated by the photos side by side on the cover of this article, with the same specimen photographed five years later (on the left in the 2015; on the right the same plant in 2020).

Flowering

Flowering coincides with the winter months. In my case (northern Italy) the Titanopsis calcarea flower regularly in the period between mid-December and the first half of January. The flowers, medium in size compared to the plant, emerge from the attachment of the leaves and in my specimens they are white (however, I have also seen plants with yellow flowers: I think this is the norm) with a slight pink shade at the apex of the petals. They open from rounded “calyxes”, glabrous and of the same color as the leaves.

Reproduction

The reproduction of the Titanopsis calcarea is mainly carried out by sowing, but it is also possible to multiply the plants with the method of dividing the tufts, separating the autonomous ones, ie those with their own root and which detach easily from the mother plant. I have no evidence about the multiplication by cuttings, i.e. detaching the leaves to put them to root: I have never tried and I fear it is not feasible with these plants.

 SUBSCRIBE TO THE SITE  – If you liked this article, subscribe to the site to have access to all the contents for one year or three months depending on the formula you choose. Here you will find terms and conditions.

 SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER  – If you want to receive the free newsletter every time new content is published (even if you have not subscribed to the site), fill in the fields at this link!

Correlated articles

Succulent plants
Cactus cultivation cards
Watering succulents
Classification of succulents

© The texts, videos, photos and graphic elaborations of the site “Il fiore tra le spine” are original material and are covered by copyright. It’s forbidden to reproduce them in any way.

L'articolo Titanopsis calcarea, a winter flowering succulent with particular cultivation rules proviene da Il fiore tra le spine.

Let’s deepen our knowledge of the Lithops genus in this article, in which we will also see the particular cultivation regime that these plants need in order to live in the Northern hemisphere. (…)

Description

Among the genera belonging to the Mesembryanthemaceae (or Aizoaceae according to the classification currently accepted by the majority of researchers), that of the Lithops is certainly among the most full-bodied in terms of number of species and at the same time among the most appreciated in cultivation. These are dwarf plants, ie small even in adulthood, coming from semi-desert areas of southern Africa, in particular from the areas of Namibia and South Africa. The “living stones” are called by Giuseppe Lodi in his splendid volume “Le mie piante grasse” (Edagricole). And “living stones” or “living rocks” is the definition to which we often see these plants associated, due to their flat, rounded appearance, with colors and superior design capable of perfectly reproducing small stones, with which in nature they are camouflage on the soils of origin. On the other hand, the same scientific name indicates this characteristic, being derived from the Greek lithos, i.e. pebble/stone, and opsis, i.e. “appearance”.

Each plant is formed by a pair of fleshy leaves, joined at the base of the short conical stem and clearly separated by a slit at the apex, which is flat and with rounded edges, overall ovoid in shape. If along the sides the stem and the leaves have a uniform colour, which varies from species to species from green to reddish to grey/blue, the upper part of the leaves, i.e. the one that receives light and stores it for photosynthesis, is covered by thin veins (in some cases there are punctiform spots) and rich in shaded colours, these too vary according to the species. The stem is almost completely underground: the plants emerge from the ground for a few millimeters and the upper face of the two leaves has a sort of “window”, i.e. an area without chlorophyll and therefore able to filter the light and let it penetrate inside the plant. The root system develops at the end of the cone which forms the stem and branches off from a fleshy root, dividing into not particularly long peripheral roots. Overall, however, between the stem and the root system, the plant grows several centimeters deep and it will therefore be a good idea to use deep pots for cultivation.

The flowers

Lithops blooms are never abundant: generally one or two flowers at a time, but if we grow these plants in bowls, side by side, we will have a beautiful spot of color during flowering, which in our latitudes (Northern hemisphere) occurs in autumn roughly between the end of October and the beginning of November. The flowers emerge from the crack between the two leaves and are always white or yellow, reminiscent of daisies and open in the afternoon. In this regard, what Lodi notes is interesting: “The difference in color of the flowers is often accompanied by a difference in the shape of the bodies. In the very young plants of Lithops with yellow flowers (…) the fissure between the two lobes does not cross the entire upper face; in those with white flowers (Leucolithops) the fissure crosses the entire upper face” (Giuseppe Lodi, “Le mie piante grasse”, ed. Edagricole).

The moult of the leaves

A peculiar feature of these plants is the moulting of the leaves, which can occur in variable periods (in any case during the winter in the northern hemisphere) depending on the species and age of the plant. It is through the moult that the plant, in fact, is “reborn” and perpetuates itself. The old leaves dehydrate to get completely dry; at the same time, a new pair of leaves begins to form from the buried stem. As they grow, the new leaves will literally break the old ones, which will have collapsed in the meantime. Once the new ones have formed, the old leaves will dry out completely and can be detached by simply pulling them gently with your fingers (operation to be done only when the leaves are completely dry!). Of fundamental importance is not to water the plant while the moult is in progress. In this phase the Lithops do not absorb water and the new leaves feed on the liquids accumulated inside the stems. Watering would be equivalent to soaking the soil so that it remains wet for a long time (in part because the moult takes place in winter and the humidity does not evaporate due to the low temperatures, in part because in this phase the plant does not drink), with consequent triggering of the rot that would lead the plant to death.

Cultivation

The cultivation of these plants requires particular and distinct precautions compared to those required by cacti or other succulents. Overall, however, Lithops are not difficult to grow, provided you know their needs.

The soil must be very poor and draining. You can use a third of clayey field earth mixed with fine sand to which we will add a third of pumice and a third of quartzite (that for aquariums is fine). Alternatively, we can reduce the part of clay a little to add a small organic component (peat or earthworm humus). Lodi advised, for these plants, a substrate composed of three parts of sand, two of clay and one of leaf mold. As far as exposure is concerned, Lithops need plenty of light, even direct sun if they are used to it, for most of the day. In this way they will maintain the compact shape of the stem and the leaves will not lengthen, ending up protruding a few centimeters from the soil, as happens in incorrectly cultivated specimens.

The waterings can be abundant but it is good to reduce them and wait for the substratum to dry completely between one watering and another, also because these succulents are particularly sensitive to humidity and can rot easily if the soil is not correct. On the contrary, like many other Mesembryanthemaceae, they tolerate long periods of drought without problems, so in case of doubt, the advice is always to not water and let more time pass before giving water.

As a rule, let’s say that in the Northern hemisphere the Lithops are watered exclusively from May to all of October, reducing the watering in the central months (July and August) to suspend them completely in November: in fact, they should be watered from when the moult is completed until the plants slow down to face the winter. During the winter months it is not entirely certain that these plants go into stasis, as happens for example with cacti. It is probable that, even if they stop absorbing water, the plants work on moulting in the underground part. No problem with low temperatures: if kept perfectly dry from the end of October, Lithops can winter even at five or six Celsius degrees below zero.

Reproduction

Lithops can be reproduced by cuttings or by division of the tufts, but the most used method is sowing, which follows the rules common to cacti. The seeds are rather small and the undertaking can prove inconvenient for the less experienced, but overall it does not present particular difficulties.

Species and varieties

There are dozens of species attributable to the genus Lithops and even more varieties. Only an expert eye is able to distinguish one species from another or a variety from a cultivar. The design on the leaf surface can help, as well as the color of the plant and its nuances, but the undertaking, for those who are not experts, remains quite difficult. Among the most common and widespread species we should mention the aucampie, the karasmontana, the lesliei, the optica and the pseudotruncatella. As for the colors you are spoiled for choice and there is no shortage of bright green Lithops (once very difficult to find) or blue, gray, brick red or purplish.

 SUBSCRIBE TO THE SITE  – If you liked this article, subscribe to the site to have access to all the contents for one year or three months depending on the formula you choose. Here you will find terms and conditions.

 SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER  – If you want to receive the free newsletter every time new content is published (even if you have not subscribed to the site), fill in the fields at this link!

Correlated articles

Succulent plants
Substrates for cacti and succulents
Watering succulents
Classification of succulents

© The texts, videos, photos and graphic elaborations of the site “Il fiore tra le spine” are original material and are covered by copyright. It’s forbidden to reproduce them in any way.

L'articolo Lithops: peculiarities and cultivation rules of the so-called “stone plants” or “living stones” proviene da Il fiore tra le spine.

Giving a succulent plant a scientific name, in other words correctly identifying a succulent plant, is far from simple. The classification, in general, the so-called taxonomy, is the prerogative of researchers, scholars, true enthusiasts and, in some cases, real maniacs of order. In that boundless land that is the classification of plants – and in the specific case of succulents – there is often great confusion, to the point that it is not uncommon to see the continuous re-denomination of the same plant, first included in one genus, then placed in another, then moved to another one. Some plants are classified in one way by some researchers and differently by others; some tend to simplify and reduce the number of genera, while others are inclined to divide plants as much as possible, according to their peculiarities, into several genera, species, subspecies, forms and varieties. Diatribes between authors and researchers about the classification of this or that plant are the order of the day. Thus, the common grower and the ‘collector’ of succulents are forced to rely on plant tags or try to classify them by comparing the specimen with pictures found on the Internet or in books.

In the following article, we see how to find your way and what you need to know to begin to identify and classify succulent plants. We also learn how to distinguish a cactus from any other succulent plant and how to identify the best-known succulent families. (…)

Per proseguire nella lettura dell'articolo Accedi o Abbonati
To continue reading the article LogIn or Subscribe

L'articolo Recognising succulent plants and cactus: a guide to identification and correct classification proviene da Il fiore tra le spine.

Have you always wondered what part of the world your cactus or succulent plant comes from? From the Americas or maybe from Asia? From Africa or Europe? The topic of succulent plant distribution is vast and very intricate. However, to begin to simplify, we can say that all cacti are native to the Americas, while succulent plants in general (i.e. non-cactaceous succulents) come from different parts of the world.

In this article and in the two large maps attached, we see how cacti and non-cacti succulents are distributed around the world. We see in particular from which geographical areas the succulents originally evolved. (…)

Per proseguire nella lettura dell'articolo Accedi o Abbonati
To continue reading the article LogIn or Subscribe

L'articolo The distribution of cacti and succulents in the world: maps with the states where they grow proviene da Il fiore tra le spine.