Space Grant Consortium - University of Wisconsin - Green Bay

Cpyr is amended to JSC-1A because it has been fertile for hundreds of years with no crop
rotation and still produces sustainable fertile soil. Three questions and concomitant experiments
were performed to answer these questions.
1. Can Cpyr amended soils heal, mend, or bring back to life seemingly dead plants?
Answer: In Indian Fig Experiment 12, on September 27, 2008, seemingly dead cacti
plants were planted in the St. Norbert College greenhouse. The experiment showed that
Cpyr cannot bring seemingly dead plants back to life.
1. In Star Cacti Experiment 18-C (Cold Tolerance Testing), during 4-LNC, Star went into
freezing temperatures for the first time. Starting on May 13th cold temperatures reached
27°F for two days consequently, Star appeared to have freezer burn.
Answer: The damaged pad produced a bud showing the potential to overcome the frost
damage. However, the bud soon regressed and the pad stopped growing altogether
whereby a younger bud soon surpassed the growth of the damaged pad.
2. Can Cpyr amended JSC-1A increase plant growth while night cycling?
Answer: In Star Cacti Experiment 18-B, on July 5, 2009, 6-hour time lapse photographs
were taken through a modified plate-glass porthole (cut into the refrigerator) while Star
was night cycling for 14 days. The beginning photograph was compared to the ending
photograph taken on July 19, 2009. On July 20, 2009 the following email was sent to the
team, “I have attached a combined photo of two Star photos one at the beginning of
night cycling and the other at the end of night cycling. I used a photoshop program
to overlap them to see if the last one was bigger than the first one... indicating...
possible growth while Star is in night cycling mode for 14 days of cooler
temperatures and darkness. The results from the photo; very little if any growth
while in night cycling mode.”
Reproductive or Vegetative Organs? Nobel 22
describes some comparisons between temperatures
and the likelihood of what kind a new organ (Opuntia growth) might be. Nobel writes, “How
low day/night temperatures favor initiation of reproductive organs and high temperatures
favor vegetative organs is not clear, but future investigation using unrooted cladodes
maintained under various temperatures, thermoperiods, and photoperiods may help
elucidate the mechanisms underlying such environmental responses.”
Nobel’s description of day/night temperatures, thermoperiods, and photoperiods are exactly the
kinds of long-term experiments our team is now investigating. Currently Star
22 Nobel P.S., Recent Ecophysiological Findings for O. ficus-indica. J. PACD – 1997.
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