Comments on: Got Cactus Questions?

By: jeanne

jeanne — Mon, 31 May 2010 13:10:46 +0000

I have a cactus that is about 18 years old–it has grown from a few inches in diameter and height to about 10 inches in diameter and 3 feet high. It became top heavy and broke off—I have propped it up with a stick (it is in a pot on my patio). My son bought this plant for me when he was 16. He died 10 years ago, so this plant is very very important to me. Is there any way I can save it? Is there any way I can save the root system? I don’t know the name of this type of cactus, but it has very hard needles. Thank you for any help that you can give me.

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I’m sorry you have lost a very special cactus. I would suggest you contact your local extension agency and see if they can help you identify the type of cactus and see if they can give you tips for trying to propagate its variety. Some varieties, and most cacti, propagate very easily.

By: Neil Hindley

Neil Hindley — Wed, 19 May 2010 12:55:23 +0000

My cactus is growing inconsistantly and is thin in two places and would fall over if i left it unsupported. It has grown this way, i.e. consistant gurth, then sprouts up at the top but only filled out at the top of this section and looked like a pin (bowling), consistant growth then sprouted a thin bit again and only filled out at the top again, then consistant growth. It has just flowered which is the first time in about 7yrs. Would you be able to confirm why it has grown like this?

The cactus is a cucumber shape, fine spines and sometimes looks furry. Sorry thats not a brilliant description. Flowers are pink.

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A cactus goes dormant over the winter. During this stage, they need very little watering. Also, make sure your soil medium is still really light if you’ve had cactus a long time. Overwatering could be leading to the inconsistent growth. Also, make sure there’s enough sunlight.

By: lars

lars — Mon, 10 May 2010 19:41:55 +0000

@Rob

Outdoor prickly pear cactus is often very difficult to kill for people who want to get rid of it. It requires a really powerful kind of poison that requires a license.

I think you’d be safe if you used any consumer spray, as long as you were relatively careful when you apply it. I don’t think a little bit of overspray is going to hurt your cactus. I believe that Roundup doesn’t work on cactus, so that one might be safe. (Please double check the bottle though! I think you have to pierce the waxy coating for it to have any effect.)

By: Rob

Rob — Sun, 09 May 2010 17:23:36 +0000

I have an outdoor prickly pear cactus bed that I occasionally need to pull a handful of weeds from. Is there a spray that I could use on these occasional spots is safe for prickly pear cactus?

By: lars

lars — Mon, 03 May 2010 19:06:50 +0000

@penny

Did you keep your receipt?

In this case, I would unfortunately recommend taking advantage of the generous Lowes return policy. They might take it back, or they might not. But I think it’s probably not possible to save the cactus.

By: penny hartman

penny hartman — Sat, 01 May 2010 22:35:14 +0000

Bought a 10″ cacti asst. terrra from lowes on the way home it fell over and broke off the root how can I save this.

By: rich

rich — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 17:39:11 +0000

hey, i have a small cactus growing in my dorm room in a terra cotta pot. the top 1/4 of the plant is turning a light green color while the rest of it is a darker green,,, soft white tufts have replaced the longer sharper thorns which cover the ret of the plant. is the plant ok, dying or growing?

thanks

By: admin

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:15:50 +0000

Hard to say, not knowing which type of cactus.

But cactus in pots is typically very slow growing, so it could take years.

By: admin

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:04:36 +0000

Sounds like a classic case of overwatering.

Here’s a good link with some additional information for you.
http://www.alexandgregory.com/cactus_expert.html

If you overwater too much, the roots can rot and it can be irreversible. Hopefully, your cactus will be able to recover!

By: niall

niall — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:54:11 +0000

Hey there I have a small cactus indoors have had it for over 2 years and its being doing well – I fed it about once a month or so. And it seemed to be thriving and growing but recently it looked bloated like it got overfed but the soil was dry. Really dry. So I gave it a little water as i was worried if I had not fed it. Now the whole thing (all 6-7 inches of it) have fallen over the side of the pot and it looks very sad.
What have I done to little charlie? What should I do? thanks any assist is appreciated