December 1, 1999 Winter Wednesday Garden Chat
Growing Cactus
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Marty's Christmas Cactus in bloom
Jim and cf seem to be our biggest cacti growers and answered a slew of questions from the Garden Folks.
Jim said there are two main types of cacti- both natives of the Americas:
1. arid & semi arid - desert plants, require little water.
2. jungle - forest plants, require loam, moister conditions.
Both types like cool night temperatures.
He grows many from seed, which he says is easy, but requires patience. Most of his seeds come from Mesa Gardens. cf's are Yates seeds, an Australian company.
Jim says that heated mats or coils aren't necessary to germinate the seeds - he grows his in the house in a warm place. He has some planted now that are starting to grow after 2 weeks. cf has had some that took a couple of months to germinate - in particular mammillaria.
Jim's growing medium depend on the type-
for arids:
1/2 fine sand
1/4 vermiculite
1/4 equal amounts of organic material
(peat, shredded cocoa hulls, leaf mold) & sterile manure.
forest types:
1/2 potting soil
1/2 the above mixture
He uses the same mix to start the seeds, but sifts it very finely.
Jim pointed out that good drainage makes for good root growth.
cf uses potting mix, sand & a bit of homemade compost in the sme mix for both arids and forest types and has had good luck.
Jim did not recommend covering the germinating seeds because they die easily from mold when small. The planted seeds get misted 3 or 4 times a day, until they begin to grow. Then he adjusts to the growing plants watering needs-
"Cactus store their water, so small plants do not have a large storage area and need a small amount of water frequently."
Everyone agreed that the one thing they did know was that overwatering was a cactus no-no! Jim waters his once a week in the summer & only ONCE during the winter. cf agreed that she waters once a week in the summer also.
One problem cf had: the tops of some cacti got mushy and slowly the plants died. Jim thought this might be from water drops on the plants, which act as magnifying glasses in the sun and can burn the plant and cause the rotting to start. Sometimes it causes scaring and does not rot the plant. To avoid this problem, he suggests watering in the evening.
He said that even desert plants need water and food during the growing season.
A rule of thumb to determine light needs:
White hairs = lots of sun.
No hairs or very few hairs = may need some sun protection.
There was a great deal of interest in the "Christmas Cactus" aka Schulmbergera and the Zygocactus Tacitus, which is similar. Almost everyone had questions or hints about these holiday favorites.
Here are some of the Questions and Answers:
Q. Is it normal for them to bloom several times a year.
A. Yes, it can happen
Q. Do they have a rest period?
A. Yes, before blooming. After blooming they need water and fertilizer.
Q. What do I feed them?
A. Water soluble fertilizer at half strength 1 time a month.
Q. Are the Christmas Cactus desert or forest type?
A. Forest
Q. Water same as Arids?
A. No, they are forest type and need more moisture.
Q. How often should they be transplanted?
A. (This is not exactly the answer looked for, but every little bit helps!) Transplant anytime except when in bud or bloom.
Q. What causes bud drop?
A. Big changes in heat or light.
Two tips:
Molly moves hers around - no complaints.
Helen has hers in an Eastern facing Bay window - same as african violets and they are all very happy.
Aloe Vera were discussed some, too.
Q. Can they take cold? Susie lives in zone 9, but gets some frost and has had some die.
A. cf says they should be okay with some protection - hers are under trees to protect them for the heat too.
Q. How much water? Sun?
A. Molly has an aloe in her shop that she hasn't watered for a year and it's doing fine. cf advised some protection from the sun.
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