Cactus Courier
Newsletter of the Cactus and Succulent Society of San Jose



Methods of Succulent propagation at the UC Davis Botanical Conservatory

This month's presentation is a brief tour of the techniques used at the UC Davis Botanical Conservatory to propagate a variety of succulent plants from seed and from stems, leaves, and rarely roots. Techniques for better seed germination and methods of vegetative propagation such as a variety of stem cuttings, leaf cuttings, grafting and air layering will be discussed.

The presenter is Ernesto Sandoval. He has been wondering and seeking questions as to why plants grow and look the way that they do for a long time. Now he explains and interprets the world of plants to a variety of ages and experiences. He regularly lectures to a variety of western Garden Clubs throughout the year and particularly to Succulent Clubs throughout the State and elsewhere. He describes himself as a "Jose of All Plants, Master of None." Ernesto thoroughly enjoys helping others, and gardeners in particular, to understand why and how plants do what they do.

He earned a degree in Botany and worked from student weeder/waterer to Director over the last 23 years. Several of his favorite garden projects involved converting lawns and water loving landscapes to drought tolerant and diversity filled gardens. He loves the technical language of Botany but prefers to relate information in more understandable methods of communication. By helping people to understand the workings of plants he hopes to help us better understand how and why our plants do what they do and how we can maximize their growth with less effort.



Cactus:         Advanced • Novice  
Monstrose and crested cactus
 
Succulents:         Advanced • Novice  
Monstrose and crested succulents
 
Something Special:         Advanced • Novice  
Bring in a cactus or succulent that you want to learn how to propagate (or your choice)
 
Beginners' Luck:         Novice Only  
Mammalaria
 







The meeting will be held in the Multi-Cultural Building



The Cactus Courier is the newsletter of the Cactus and Succulent Society of San Jose (CSSSJ). The members of the CSSSJ freely contribute the materials published herein. The accuracy of information and opinions expressed are those of the contributors. Scannable hardcopy and Windows format text files sent via email or on CD or DVD are acceptable as input. Send newsletter articles to Rich Kroll at: csssj@ckart.com



To contact our club vice president, Loyd Monaco, send an email to loyd.monaco@yahoo.com.

If you would like a membership badge, please contact Kathi at creativesucculents@yahoo.com.