How to Keep a Cactus Happy
by Louie Jerome on Oct 05, 2009 with 16 Comments
The cactus is a succulent and needs special care if you want flowers.
Cacti come in many different guises. There are the huge ones that can grow up to twenty metres tall and miniature ones that never get any bigger than three centimetres. In all there are three thousand known species. They all have different styles and colours of flowers, grow at different rates and live for different periods of time, so the study of cacti is quite a complex one. Those people who keep three small cacti in a fancy bowl on a bookshelf and don’t do anything with them month after month are very slowly killing them.
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All varieties of cactus need daylight, preferably sunshine, to keep them healthy and to encourage them to flower. Contrary to popular belief, cacti do not require warmth all year round. During winter the plant sleeps and should be kept dry, cold and out of the sun. It is only the cacti that come from the tropical rainforests (hygrophilous) that need warmth all year because they continuously grow.
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Cacti plants need to be paid attention to frequently. Watch out for wounds or signs of stress in the plant and attend to it before it gets worse. Many people believe that the cactus does not require very much water because it is a desert plant but this is not true. During the growing season it needs water for nutrition, and because it uses water to cool itself via evaporation.
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It is usually best not to move a cactus too much. The plants do not like to be put in different places or to be touched and they can react by losing their thorns and flowers. However, they should be re-potted every year as this encourages growth. The best way to maintain your cacti is to have a strict watering regime and to re-pot at the same time each year because these plants do perform much better if they have a routine.
Image via Wikipedia
Where plant food is concerned, a cactus will die if you over feed it but not if you starve it. This is an adaptation from the wild. If you over feed you may also promote rapid growth which make the plants very thin and frail and eventually kill it. It is always best to allow these sensitive succulents to grow at their own pace.
Source: Flickr Creative Commons
Most cactus plants will flower each year but it may be necessary to remove some of the berries that may form because too many berries can sap the energy of the plant and exhaust it. If a cactus plant does not grow during the summer there is a chance that it will die off during the colder weather. Re-potting, positioning in a warmer place and washing may help to prevent this.
Source: Flickr Creative Commons
Cacti are fascinating plants and cannot be simply left to fend for themselves. They need attention and anyone wanting to keep a collection of these needs to learn as much as they can about them.
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Published in: Gardening
raman13 | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
good
Katien | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
Not entirely true – I have several cacti which have lived for over twenty years with very little maintenance. They very rarely flower, but continue to grow and multiply. So don’t be put off having a cactus!
Louie Jerome | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
A healthy cactus should flower each year, so you might be missing out on those gorgeous flowers, Katien. You must have a species that doesn’t mind being left to get on with things. When it comes to collecting cacti they do need some attention as some species can be very expensive and quite temperamental where flowering is concerned. There are enthusiasts out there who are extremely serious about their collection.
Avaxier | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
Hmm.. I thought Cactus doesn’t need much care… but this gives me new knowledge about it. Thanks for sharing!
cardy | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
Thanks for this share I never know what to do with one, and I always get one as a gift. Good read and write from you.
Vikram Chhabra | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
There is an ethereal beauty in cacti. Something about their shape that brings life to a dead desert. Thanks for this informative piece. I really enjoyed it!
Aleena | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
Thanks for the article, you just inspired me to go out and buy a cactus!
sunshine926 | Oct 5, 2009 | Reply
I really enjoyed reading your article. You provided very useful tips for maintaining a cactus plant.
overwings | Oct 6, 2009 | Reply
Nice article. Mine live almost wild with not more care than some rain and occasional watering. And they bloom every year.
Louie Jerome | Oct 6, 2009 | Reply
I wish I could leave my cacti outside but it is rarely warm enough here!
overwing: you are lucky that you can grow them wild!
athena goodlight | Oct 6, 2009 | Reply
I learned a lot from your article. I was considering to plant cacti, but now, knowing it needs a lot of maintenance, I’m rethinking my options. They’re very beautiful. Maybe when I retire, when I have more time, I’ll have my own cactus garden.
Paul Okediji | Oct 6, 2009 | Reply
Nice article!
rikejuca | Oct 6, 2009 | Reply
Thx for this article. I gave one to my girlfriend as a gift (I know some might prefer roses, but she loves her little cactus), and she got a little shaken up because the former one died a little ago. I’m trying to encourage her to tend a little better of the new one, and you gave her nive tips
Anne Lyken Garner | Oct 7, 2009 | Reply
Thanks for this, Louie. There are so many cacti these days on the market. There are some with very beautiful flowers, but I’ve only got one because I’m never sure what to do with them. This is a very helpful article.
martinpm | Oct 8, 2009 | Reply
nice article, i love gardening, as a child i used to collect a variety of cactus, but slowly i lost the passion this is inspiring. i will go get one.
Jane Benitez | Oct 11, 2009 | Reply
Very well done article. I love the beautiful flowers and your photos were awesome.