Prickly!

[Vale!]

I've had a cactus for around thirty-five years. When bought, it it was about the size of my little finger. I re-potted it once - that was before we moved to MK in 1992 - when it looked uncomfortable in the tiny pot that it was in at purchase.

Since then, although quite a few bits have fallen off it from time to time, it has grown a little :





It's a vicious and vengeful thing and I learned years ago not to approach it without good reason and protective clothing. The time has come, however to allow it to perish, or to get bomb disposal to remove it, or to re-pot it. I'd like to see it flower again, so I've decided on the latter course of action. Searching for information on how to proceed, I've now even discovered at last what it is : Mammillaria elongata.

The 'branches' that currently overhang the present pot won't do so in a bigger one. If I simply break all of them off, will it kill the plant? My info search didn't turn up anything directly useful beyond the fact that one can take cuttings (as opposed to a mass cull of branches) and I can't be bothered to join a cactus forum to ask the question! So while I check that my life insurance is up-to-date and that A&E is open, I was wondering if anyone here has experience-based advice that they may be kind enough to offer?

[Chrisjj0686]

A nice specimen!
Indeed, an elongata. Very pretty little yellow flowers which look great when all the branches flower at once.
Gently “snapping” off unwanted branches will not kill the plant - try to snap them from as close to the base as possible. Easiest to do this when repotting.
Use leather gloves - the spines on this one aren’t too vicious, but the way they curve back makes them easy to catch, so some care will be required.

Alternatively, you could just repot a couple of well snapped branches and start all over again! just let the “wound” dry for a day or so before potting.

Good luck!

[keithmart]

Hi
Most cactus will root easily from cuttings. cut or break pieces off and let the cut part dry and callous over. About a week. Pot the pieces up in a sandy soil, and keep it damp. after a while it will root.

You will know when that happens as it will start to grow, and maybe send out new shoots.

BTW to get cactus to flower, give them a couple of good waterings, so they think it is the rainy season.

I hope this helps a bit.

[Vale!]

That's great! Thank you, both.

I eventually wrestled it out of its home then, with plant cupped in one hand and chopstick in the other began teasing the soil away from its roots. Some branches fell off when chopsticked - mainly the dead-looking ones. However it had one final trick up its spiny sleeve : it exploded! What I mean is, and I guess it was a function of the weight of its branches, it just fell apart. I was left with a relatively small portion cupped in hand while below on the table was a raggedy and disorganised pile of bits! To add to my chagrin, at that point it tried to snow ; that didn't last very long but I definitely had an "Oliver Hardy" expression on my face!

Anyway, I sorted through the bits and found some with long roots attached. So I set a couple of those in new soil and have discarded the rest - effectively, as Chris suggested, starting again. I presumed that as those roots were undamaged that would be OK since, so far as I'm aware, there weren't any bits to scab over? Or do I dig them up again and allow them to dry off? Here's what I ended up with :





The soil is a bag of cactus potting mix plus a couple of handfuls of peat and three handfuls of perlite. It isn't as deep as it may appear : there's a couple of inches of gravel in the bottom of the pot. Is this OK?


The watering thing is interesting, Keith. I've always shied away from drenching it at any point - I just gave it a syringe-full of tank water very occasionally when doing water-changes. I shall certainly try your method if-and-when the re-potted pieces start growing again!

If successful I may be tempted to get another cactus or two!

[Chrisjj0686]

excellent!
That will be fine - no need to dig up!
I think there’s various recommendations for watering.
Personally, I keep mine in the shed, on the window sill. I don’t water at all from September to March. March to august I submerge the pots in water for about half an hour every 2 to 3 weeks, depending on how good the weather is / how dried out it has become. If it’s kept inside, it’ll probably need a bit more watering, but unlike fish tanks, less water is always better for cacti!