Babies on the move - transplanting cacti seedlings.

There is a time in a baby cacti life when they have to be transplanted to a new home. And even though they would be better off growing in the same place for a bit longer, they just couldn't fit anymore! It was a one mass of green. I couldn't see the soil. They were so stuck to each other they just couldn't grow and develop anymore.

Time to move them... they are few weeks old at this point.

_{Gymnocalycium Baldianum}

_{Neoporteria Huascensis}

So I got a big tray, filled with with cactus soil mixed with sand, perlite and some crappy garden soil and started the moving process...
Slowly, taking small portions out from the old, small pot, gently separating the little blobs and planting them one by one using toothpicks. Yes.. they are super small!

Sounds like fun. And it is fun when there just a handful of them... Look:

_{Neoporteria Huascensis on the bottom, Gymnocalycium Baldianum on the top}

That was no fun at all! And it is just 2 types... There is more little pots with more overcrowded babies. One by one they will all need to be moved.
Don't get me wrong. I love them all. It's just that this repoting part when they are this small is a bit tedious.

_{Neoporteria Huascensis on the left, Gymnocalycium Baldianum on the right}

I transplanted Gymnocalycium about 2 weeks ago already. They were getting really thin and long because of the lack of space. They grow so nice now and I start to see some first baby thorns. Of course some died - you can see some bigger gaps between them. The rest is doing good. I do not keep them covered anymore. They get sprayed every 2 days or so + watered from the bottom to keep the soil evenly moist.

Now they will stay here for at least few months or until next spring if they don't grow too big. Next repoting will be easier. They will be bigger (those little poops are the size or a rice grain), easier to handle and there will be less of them. As much as I can care for them, some will always die. Either way I damaged them while moving, some mold or other thing attacks them while they are so gentle and young, or they are just weaker plants. Natural selection!

Some other seedlings that are still in their sowing pots are doing great too. They are not as crowded, but they will get a new home in the next few weeks. To have more room to grow.

_{Frailea Pumila}

_{epithelantha micromeris}

Do Google the last one! Its so pretty and I can already see the white fur coming up :)

All the seedlings above were were sown on the 13th of July. So yea.. they grow slow. But soon they will look like mini cacti (Frailea Pumila already does) and then, the ones that survive 2-3 years with me, will bloom. I hope :)

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_{Shot with Nikon D5500 + Sigma 105mm lens
Click on the image to view full screen!}

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