Gibbaeum heathii seeds

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I was searching about species of succulent plants and I saw a picture of Gibbaeum heathii. This plant looks so unreal and unique. It looks like something from a film, something that doesn’t exist in the real world. I love it!

After seeing the pictures, I started to look for Gibbaeum heathii seeds online for few hours but I couldn’t find any shops based in London. So I searched through eBay and most of the seeds were sold by American sellers. Anyway I found one selling from Germany which is relatively closer to London than USA.

I received this package with a kind instruction paper. I was so excited to plant this !

It was the same as lithop seeds. Dust-like seeds that I couldn’t even see well. I planted this into a small pot and covered the pot with clingfilm. I don’t know if I can grow this properly from these small seeds. I need to wait until the seedlings are visible. I hope they grow well!

Soil Moisture Meter/Plant Water Monitor

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I bought XLUX Soil Moisture Meter from Amazon a few days ago.

It was always confusing to check the soil with my finger or a wooden stick. This product will help me a lot because it shows the level of moisture beneath the surface.

It’s really easy to use.

1.Insert the probe of the meter to the plants’ root level.
2.Note the moisture level in the dial which has ten scales.
3.Remove the probe from soil and wipe clean after each use.

It shows the moisture level from 1 to 10 (1-3 dry, 4-7 moist, 8-10 wet)

I checked my plants with this. It’s the Calathea Orbifolia plant which was watered in the morning.

It’s the Scots Pine tree and I watered this yesterday.

It’s the Phlebodium Aureum plant. It likes moisture at all times so I watered this plant after checking this meter which is showing a level of 3.

I really like this product. It’s so clear to read and makes caring for plants so much easier.

Making drain holes on pots

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The plant pots I currently have didn’t have holes on the bottom. I knew it wasn’t good for my plants but I just used it thinking it would be okay if I watered them carefully. After killing a few plants, I realised that there’s a reason why people say holes at the bottom of the container is critical. It allows water in the soil to drain freely so that it can prevent root rot. There’s only a few plants that can tolerate stagnant water. So I made holes under the pots for my plants.

I tried to drill it but it seemed like it would take hours to make a hole.

I used a glue gun and it was easier! I did it for the Phlebodium Aureum and Calathea Orbifolia plants. I think I will do the same thing for the rest of the pots.

I could have put smaller pots, which already have holes, into the white pot with no holes, but I didn’t have the small pots and didn’t want to buy new ones. So I made some holes. Also I don’t like using pots with holes on them since I don’t like pot saucers.

Anyway I will think about the design of the pots and saucers some other day. I’m just caring for the plants for now.

Unkillable Plant: Planting Lithop Seeds

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I’ve fallen for succulent plants especially Lithop, Gibbaeum, Lapidaria margaretae and Conophytum which have unique shapes. They looks so gorgeous. I wanted to buy fully grown Lithops (living stone Plant) online but I couldn’t find a good one. So I bought a Lithop kit for £13.50 from Ohh Deer.

A lot of people say Lithop is an unkillable plant. Lithops can store water for months so it doesn’t need regular watering and much care. I just need to water them only when the soil is thoroughly dry.

The kit contains

-1 x Packet of living stone seeds.
-Instructions and tips included.
-Starter growing pots.
-Natural coconut husk compost discs.
-Wooden plant markers.

It’s just a short introduction. It doesn’t explain how to use the compost discs so I just poured water on the discs and mixed it with a wooden stick.

Apparently, the correct way to use the compost disc is to put it in luke-warm water and let it soak but I think it’s all the same. Add some water and wait until it’s fully expanded.

These are Lithop seeds. When I opened the packet, I thought it was empty but realised that the dust looking particles are the seeds.

There are around 11 seeds.

I carefully put the seeds on the soaked soil. I’m not even sure whether I put the seeds in properly or not. It’s too small to check.

I covered the pots like in the picture. They will germinate in around two to 12 weeks.

It’s time to wait (again) !

Plants Update

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Yesterday morning, I got an email from Patch saying that my order is on the way and will be delivered on Saturday, 27th of March! I didn’t expect the plants to come in this week because when I checked the order status a few days ago, the estimated delivery date changed from 6-8 days to 14-18 days (I ordered the plants last Saturday, 10th of March). So I gave up expecting it to be delivered soon. Anyway, It was too good to be true. I got an another email from Patch in the afternoon saying that there’s some problem at their packing facility in the Netherlands so they temporarily close the facility for a few days which meant there will be a delay in delivering. They said they couldn’t be certain how long the delay will be. I was so disappointed.

On Saturday morning, I was woken up by a door bell. Somehow it was Patch! So I was waiting for the delivery man to go because they do non-contact delivery. I wanted to open the door so quick but I waited. I didn’t want to make an awkward situation but he kept ringing the door bell so I opened the door, said hi and I got my plants!

Here are the additions to my family

This is Lucky Heart / Love Heart plant (Botanical name: Hoya kerri). It’s so small and so lovely!

I didn’t expect it to be this small. It was surprisingly small and cute. I changed the pot to a slightly bigger one so it can grow well.

This is Zanzibar Gem (Zz plant). I bought the 60-70 cm one. It’s the tallest plant in my house XD

This is Phlebodium Aureum. I’m in love with this plant. It’s beautiful.

This is Calathea Orbifolia (Prayer Plant). It’s unique and beautiful plant but I’m a bit disappointed with the quality of the plant. It’s my forth order form Patch and the plants I received today had the worst quality out of all previous orders. Phlebodium aureum and Calathea Orbifolia have brown-ish leaves and there are weird marks on leaves as you can see from the picture. Also It looks vulnerable.

Anyway, I will study these plants to grow them well. I don’t want to be a pro plant killer this time.