20 replies to this topic

[Eluna]

I've had this guy for about 6 months or something now, i water about once every few weeks..

For most of the time hes been in indirect sunlight, but i moved him along with a bunch of others to about 6 hours of direct sunlight a day in the last 3 weeks.

The others are doing great, but this guy went to this stage in the last week or so, i didnt notice until just now. Last time i watered was probobly 2 weeks ago

Im thinking its either root rot or sunburn, but i dont understand why it could be root rot i havent overwatered..

The other plants have only changed in that they went slightly less green to a little bit whiter but barely at all

Any ideas? Thanks!

[Eluna]

I'll also note that the shape of this cactus is mostly the same, it was thin and got bigger at the top

[jwerta]

looks like it might be rot to me but im no expert and as u said u havnt been over watering so ill wait and see what other people say what does the bottom half feel like?

[Eluna]

Not very firm..

[mac]

it dose look like its rotting at the base is that salt build up on the pot ?
if it feels mushy then its rot & the yellowing sorta confirms it

id lop the top off just above the yellowing & uproot the plant & sus it out

[CβL]

I agree with the rot prognosis. I'd take that pup off, dust with sulfur, and dry the pup thoroughly before potting in new mix (I'd use some fungicide if you can't figure out where this lot of rot came from).
Where did your plant and soil come from - Garden Centre?

And I'd also remove the base from the soil, clean the soil off the roots. Cut back the roots heavily (if not all off), and dust with sulfur. Then dry that out, and plant into a smaller pot with new soil. I reckon that your current pot is a tiny bit too big (this means the roots are not large enough to regulate the nutrient and moisture level of all the soil). If you're lucky, this base will root and throw out a few pups.

[bit]

It's rotten. I'd cut the pup off and throw the rest away, including the soil. Had the same happen to a plant when a cat peed in the pot.

[Eluna]

Ladies and gentlemen..

I believe "Mike" is dead :-(

I have over 20 cactus growing right now and this is my first goner :'(

I gave it a tiny water/fertilize after i posted this inital post (a few hours ago) so thats why theres a bit of dirt stuck to the cactus, i honestly dont think its from over watering.

Any ideas of what went wrong? This is the only cactus i have that i didnt pot myself, it seemed to be really firm and the pup grew really slowly.

Edited by Eluna, 12 March 2011 - 04:45 PM.

[Eluna]

How would you suggest i replant the pup? its only about 2 inches long.. Should i try or just ditch it all?

Edited by Eluna, 12 March 2011 - 05:01 PM.

[CβL]

Keep the pup! It can definitely root. I've rooted pups 10% the size of yours. And just where did that cactus come from? If it came from a garden centre, or very wet potting mix was used at any stage, then rot can quite easily occur.

[Eluna]

I got it from a store in WA that has alot of trich's.. and also sells loph seeds etc.

I have a peruv i got from ebay, i dug a bit down and it looks kind of the same but its alot firmer and not mushy.. i uprooted it to take a pic.. its not the same thing is it?

It was buried right up to the green bit. Its quite dry where its yellow and kind of flaky.

Do i need to worry about this one?

[CβL]

Hmmm, well a proper Trich vendor should have had good soil and good plants. So I don't see anything obvious which would've invited the rot in. I'd just use sulfur on your other plants though man, sulfur fixes everything. :D

It's normal for the plant to turn brown where it's underground. But I don't know if that plant is sick or not. It looks like it's had a hard life already, so it's probably just that.

What kind of soil are you using? Could it be a drainage problem with not enough pumice or so?

[Eluna]

Im just using cactus mix from bunnings

http://www.amgrow.co...l_succulent.htm

Edited by Eluna, 12 March 2011 - 06:11 PM.

[CβL]

I think you just had some bad luck perhaps. :/
The only thing that might have had something to do with it is the size of the pot. The roots when you pulled it out looked like they weren't big enough for that pot IMO. It's (almost) always better to have a small pot where the root structure can quickly dispatch of extra water. In a bigger pot where the roots are practically swimming in the sea, they have no chance of drying themselves quickly. I'd like to hear what other people think about this.

[Eluna]

Okay i dusted the pup with sulfer and blew most of it off its resting outside to cork then i guess i just pot it in a week or 2 really shallow?

Ditched the soil and the rotted mike cactus

Went down to bunnings and got myself some more pots for my caapi cuttings and a climber.

Also got a few more pots which im now mixing perlite + cactus mix in for all my new cactus that i pot :-)

Such a productive day never thought id become a gardener lol ^_^

Thanks for your help everyone

Edited by Eluna, 12 March 2011 - 06:39 PM.

[CβL]

Yep. I personally pot deep enough so that I don't have to use stakes or polystyrene, but yeah, deep enough and stable enough so that it is firmly in the soil. And then it should start pumping out growth. :D

[Eluna]

ive got alot of cactus in really big pots but with like 5 or 6 cactii in each.

I think tommorow i might buy a whole bunch of smallish pots and pot them all on their own, so if one rots its seperate from that others, and so that their roots arent swimming in oceans

I think ill add a bit of perlite into all the mix too to aid in drainage.

[hunnicutt]

hey guys, i've found the natural cure for all rot/fungal cacti problems is to stick them in full sun, and stop watering, full stop. and this goes for most cacti species.
cacti are very tough, and deserve more credit than we give them - last frost, i lost more than 50% of my cacti collection, columnars, button's, a million sorts, and i saved quite a few using this method - that being, cutting the part still firm and green, callousing, then rooting in full sun with only an initial watering. some of the cacti might get a little sunburn, but they will adapt a strong base, and core. once this happens, i've found you can then continue to water every day, etc, because the strong hardened core is established and much more water resistant.

it seems cacti have TONNES of water in their flesh, they just need the dry to stimulate survival sometimes.

just my thoughts, and observations.

Eluna, hope all your cacti go fine

[Bush Turkey]

I think "mike" is just prone to rot. I have had 2 cuttings of mike rot over the last 3 weeks. EXACTLY THE SAME ROT AS YOURS. I think its a "mike" thing to do

[Distracted]

bridges are the only cacti i've had trouble with both rot and sunburn. they don't like feirce waterings like pedros i've found.

[mattookay]

Im just using cactus mix from bunnings

http://www.amgrow.co...l_succulent.htm

i've used this cactus mix before but i gotta say i definately prefer searls cactus mix (you can still get from bunnings) over the amgrow one. just seems to dry out better after watering and doesnt look so gluggy