# epiphyllum?



## Guest (Jan 19, 2006)

i don't see anybody on here using/discussing/swapping "tropical cactus" on here, is it because they don't culture well in vivariums? i have several, is why i ask, and i was thinking about putting a piece in...


----------



## Ryan (Feb 18, 2004)

I know some people use rhipsalis(spelling wrong...i know) in their vivs, I never heard of epiphyllum, I say give it a try.


----------



## elmoisfive (Dec 31, 2004)

I have a tropical cactus in one of my vivs that is doing pretty well. I think the key is to mount them in a place that is well drained so that the roots don't stay wet all the time.

As was posted, give it a try.

Good luck.

Bill


----------



## Grassypeak (Jun 14, 2005)

I’ve seen Zygocactus grow and bloom in a cup of water on the window sill. I don’t think that they are prone to rotting. Eppis grow a bit large for the average viv, but I would think that they should do fine.


----------



## Guest (Jan 20, 2006)

*sweet... all i can do is kill a cut right?*

cool cool, i'll try it... i figured i can give it a bad haircut when/if it gets too big, they're pretty forgiving of the knife... thanks all...


----------



## Guest (Jan 20, 2006)

Grassypeak said:


> I’ve seen Zygocactus grow and bloom in a cup of water on the window sill. I don’t think that they are prone to rotting. Eppis grow a bit large for the average viv, but I would think that they should do fine.


Actually epiphytic cacti are extremely prone to rotting if kept too moist.
That said, given adquate air movement they are extremely hardy.
I wouldnt suggest them in a viv that didnt contain some active not passive air movement.

Matt


----------



## Guest (Jan 20, 2006)

*it's true...*

in the "dead" spaces of the shop w/out airflow, i have one, and it does rot if i don't let it dry in between...the ones under the fans do fine...i've got a 4" fan for the enclosure exhaust but no intake below... i think i'll just try and see what happens...


----------



## Guest (Jun 14, 2006)

you guys have any pics of what tropical cactus' look like?


----------



## Frogtofall (Feb 16, 2006)

http://www.frogbroms.com/pseudorhipsali ... ttings.htm

This is a Pseudorhipsalis species that looks awesome.


----------



## Guest (Jun 15, 2006)

hmm... any actual "cactus" looking cactus'?


----------



## Frogtofall (Feb 16, 2006)

:lol:


----------



## rattler_mt (Apr 15, 2005)

speaking from much experiance with plants, their is a HUGE difference between growing a plant in pure water than growing the same plant in a saturated mixture, the difference is oxygen, there is much more oxygen in just plain water than in a saturated soil mix. 

tropical cacti can be grown in pure water, atleast for awhile with most species, however im not aware of any that do well in a constantly saturated soil mix.


----------



## Grassypeak (Jun 14, 2005)

Yes, I agree that placing a Zygocactus in mud would not work, but I recently pulled one out of a viv with a PrimeAgra (similar to regular LECA but wicks water much better) layer covered in leaf litter. The plant seemed to be doing fine without any rot. It also had lots of aerial roots. It was in that viv for a few months.


----------



## Dendrobait (May 29, 2005)

Of the actualy plants in the genus Epiphyllum are their any that stay small enough to bloom in vivs(or any cactus with big bold flowers like those?) ? I've seen a few like E. oxypetalum and they get big!


----------



## Grassypeak (Jun 14, 2005)

Zygos are a better bet for viv sized plants. Unless you have one big viv!


----------



## Guest (Jun 16, 2006)

are there any "Cactus" looking cactus' for vivs or no?


----------



## Frogtofall (Feb 16, 2006)

As far as I know, not rainforest type ones. Desert ones yes.


----------



## Dendrobait (May 29, 2005)

Hmmm...Epiphyllum anguliger(one of the rick-rack cactus) seems to stay relatively small...10-26 inches according to one website seems workable in a large viv.


----------



## Guest (Jun 25, 2006)

Epiphyllum anguliger - i looked that up and only came up with a bunch of white looking lotus type flowers.

are you sure thats the right name for the cactus you can put in a viv with PDF?


----------



## Grassypeak (Jun 14, 2005)

Big white flowers, zig zag looking leaves (,Which are actually flattened branches) that’s Epiphyllum anguliger. If you do a google image search on Epiphyllum anguliger, you will see both pictures of the flowers and the plant. It probably gets too big for most vivs but it’s a great looking plant.


----------

