Cacti and Succulents

from my garden

(mostly from Uncle Sammy’s collection)

Quick Reference: WordCamp Long Beach Gift Plants

WordCamp Long Beach gift plants

Ball Cactus, Parodia magnifica | Donkey’s Tail, Sedum morganianum | Jade Necklace, Crassula marnieriana | Ladyfinger Cactus, Mammillaria elongata | Leatherpetal, Graptopetalum sp. | Lemon Ball, Parodia leninghausii | Mexican Firecracker, Echeveria setosa | Money Tree, Crassula ovata ‘Gollum’ | Mother of Thousands, Kalanchoe laetivirens | Paper Spine Cactus, Tephrocactus articulatus | Pinwheel Aeonium, Aeonium haworthii | Pork and Beans, Sedum rubrotinctum | Queen of the Night, Peniocereus serpentinus | Ruby Slippers, Echeveria pulvinata | Thimble Cactus, Mammillaria gracilis fragilis | Tiger-tooth aloe, Aloe juvenna

Uncle Sammy collected and propagated cacti for half a century at his LA home. He knew a lot about them; he had notes and books. He knew their names.

Gradually, he got old. Forgot their names; misplaced his notes; couldn’t really take care of the plants any more.

I would visit a couple of times a month, and about 10 years ago I started taking a trunk load home at each visit.

I’m sure my life-long love of cacti comes from Sammy and Marie, and my garden is a daily link to them.

After they moved to assisted living, I assembled a cactus garden for them on their balcony.

So glad I saved the plants. Unfortunately, I didn’t snag much of the knowledge.

Early this year I started trying to identify some of the plants in my garden.

I found leads on sites such as https://worldofsucculents.com and followed up with Wikipedia and Google image search. I was able to guess at some plant IDs.
Books from the library, especially The Encyclopedia of Cacti and, from Gayle, The Complete Book of Cacti and Succulents.
Hours at the South Coast Bontanic Garden and the Huntington Gardens, where I photographed their cactus collections and labels.
The Cacti and Succulents Identification Facebook group has been a fantastic resource. Thanks to all the members who have helped me with IDs.