This thread is for pictures and subjects that are slightly off-topic, but still of interest to succulent growers. Think of the other plants that are growing next to your succulents, or the pets that hang out around them. Stuff like that.

I will get this started with a hairy 8-legged visitor I found outside the public garden. It was literally succulent-adjacent.



That's a standard 6-inch curb, to give you some idea of the size. We've seen these hairy black tarantulas here before, but I don't remember one quite this big.

Please share your photos!

@Baja_Costero yikes on the spider looks scary to me. But great idea on this chat. The Orchid forum has the same off topic chat and that's where I post my non-orchid photos.

I've had this rose carpet for years in a very small pot. It would give me a few blooms a year but nothing spectacular. After reading @porkpal's rose article, I repotted it (fresh dirt) fertilized and then put it in a bigger pot. Now it is very happy and has started producing multiple blooms.

This is the lil Texas spiny lizard who watches me water my outdoor plants. Over the past few weeks they've been inching closer and closer so they can properly inspect me. Now that it knows I'm not a threat it has posted up right outside our back door, comes close to watch me each time I'm outside and has even brought a friend (who's a bit more skittish) to hang out nearby. They're very curious, very fast and great for pest control

Yes, lizards are awesome for pest control. We haven't seen too many of them since some new neighbors moved in next door and their cats went on the prowl. But on the plus side, there haven't been a lot of ground squirrels out there, either.

One of the many reasons I keep my feline friends inside, gotta help protect the native species! I am pretty convinced that lizard buddy enjoys taunting Tsukiko though..

This is the closest they've let me get so far

Alright, catching up : PART 3!
So, within the monthly time span...I went places. Saw things!
First up: this would be the historically important region Mariovo. Its a highland encompassing several villages in the southern part of the country. The village that you see used to be a movie set for this one movie...







Second up:Lake Prespa. There are a few beaches(not as popular with tourists as Ohrid), site of the only lake island in the country(Zmisky Ostrov/Golem Grad , lit snake island or big town) and site for the...most apple orchards..in the country.
Not sure how your take on that would be, but apple trees stretching for kilometers is a tad intimidating.





But thats not ALL!
I rockhounded. Quite . A . bit.

Calcite point cluster. Massive, yet light. Now partially cleaned. Found near Aivatovtsi village(but not native there)

Found garnets in mica-schist by accident(next few are from Mariovo)




And this was sus, but specific gravity and hardness led to staurolite




Its not cross shaped, and in terrible condition(these things weather a lot or so im told) but it does have a weird uniform luster



Biotite crystals



These are asbestiform minerals, green one being Antigorite, and possibly chtsotile. Yeah, cant cut or polish these, and not gonna fiddle with them too much. Sealed in a box.








bonus:marble from near sivets, Europes only ruby mine. But mainly for white dolomitic marble . Has this nodule(or fossil?) in it.

To keep this plant and succulent friendly..


Here is a rather poor photo of a flower. Ive not seen it before, found it near where i found the 3 crystals in Mariovo.

And a photo of a bud on the second begonia that bit the dust.

Thanks for sharing Stefan, personally I like beaches that are not popular with tourists.

And great find on the stones, the one with possibly a fossil is quite cool!

Only thing I can share is my ginger with a volunteer "mother of millions". Truly a mother of millions, I am finding babies everywhere!




And as you can see, we have Lizards everywhere too! They are not afraid of me, I am afraid of them. Can you see the one taking a claim of one of my defoliated adenium

Fascinating unexpected tidbits by everyone!

Stefan, I was in the western part of the US last week and saw some similar sights.

And I think I saw millions of Cylindropuntia (?) with bright pink flowers in Colorado & New Mexico:



High in the Rocky Mountains!




This adorable little fella has the most amazing view, at a lookout point said to be over 11,000 feet up



Supposed to be the biggest shovel in Texas:


Thousands of windmills:


"Cadillac Ranch" in Amarillo Texas:


A pool shaped like Texas (sorry I could only get a pic from the upside-down side) @ the Big Texan in Amarillo, where your meal is free if you can eat a 72 oz. steak. None of us tried that.:


A beautiful pot at Denver Botanical Garden:


...need to figure out why not all of my pics sync'ed to cloud drive... more amazing plants @ that Bot garden, will post 'em as soon as I can make them behave.

That mountain prickly pear in bloom!

I bet there are tons of pics of that particular cactus "out there". I was shocked to see how many people want to walk straight up for a couple of hours on a hot day to a lookout point. I'm just glad I could catch my breath enough to go back down. What a workout!

Roadside sunflowers adjacent to Cylindropuntia, far western Oklahoma. The darker green bumps are Cylindropuntia.



Succulents adjacent to each other @ Denver Botanical Garden.


This gorgeous 'Kent Beauty' oregano was growing adjacent to the gorgeous cactus pictured below it.



Palms & friend adjacent to suculents.



If being inside the building, on the other side of the wall from the last 2 pics can qualify as a very loose adjacency, this cool vine was shingling up a rock loosely adjacently to the succulents.


As far as the info I could find, this may be the world's tallest bear, in Denver. Reportedly 40 feet tall. I don't know if that is when he is standing all the way up or when he is, so very obviously in the pics I got, looking for succulents!


ETA: This is a volcano, Capulin.

No vacation for me this year. Thanks for letting me vacation vicariously with you both.

Thanks for sharing Tiffany! I love all the stuff adjacent to the cacti and succulents

Love the pics of the scenery too and great description. I feel like I was there too!

pod said:No vacation for me this year. Thanks for letting me vacation vicariously with you both.

Same here :)! No vacation last year and this year. I only started going back to gardening this spring after several years of hiatus. And in such a short period this year alone my plant collection quadrupled in number.

My passion is growing plumerias mostly from seeds (hence the name). Here are few of my very own seedling grown plumerias that bloomed this year, most are under planted with succulents or sedum:







I do have known cultivars, this year's blooms:
Confetti

JJ's Piccadilly

Giant Aussie Orange



Singapore White

Thai Mango Brush/Blush

Dwarf Pink Singapore


And the bloom of my very first plumeria Trimark that started it all:

(Mine has not bloomed yet this year. This is a bloom of cutting I gave my neighbor).

I admire your passion, and I adore your Plumeria flowers, Gigi. Please keep sharing more on this project. We have one Plumeria on the patio in the bud stage. Summer usually hits late here because there isn't any heat.

Baja, it takes a lot of patience to grow them from seeds, my earliest bloom was 5 years. I have a few with buds now, mostly first time bloom germinated in 2012. My plumerias 60+ and counting are mostly in pots because they are seedling grown, I have to keep their height somewhat "contained". Also I am in a deed restricted community.

Would love to see your plumeria when it blooms.

9 years to flowering? Wow.

Yes, I have a lot more that have no plans of blooming yet. but I'm keeping them until they bloom. I have a handful seed grown that blooms every year.

What I noticed, once Mature And they have multi tips, there is higher likelihood of getting blooms every year. They bloom on mature tips/branches. So it is worth the wait. (That's what I tell myself anyway.)

I might have to get your advice on what to do with my plant. It's in a 3 gallon pot but maybe it needs an upgrade. When there's daylight, I'll try to get a decent pic.

Somebody got a package in the mail this afternoon.

Two interesting Haworthias, a couple of aloes, and a Pachyphytum. Which lost a couple of leaves in transit, and I potted those up as well. Plus bonus gifts: a Tillandsia and a Euphorbia.


I am very excited about the Haworthias, including an exclusive hybrid made by the nursery itself. Now that's something I will support with my hard earned pesos.