Desert cacti and rain.

[lhb2444]

Just wondering how many of you here keep all of your cacti outdoors over winter. I've seen a lot of pictures on here of members hot houses and what not but obviously not everyone has the luxury of one, I've only got a few cacti that I know of that aren't to water friendly (a few gymno's and some ferocactus etc) and I've always just kept them outdoors but over winter their soil never really gets to dry out its always a little damp. It's a well draining soil mix so its never drowning but I'm just wondering whether I should find some sort of shelter to keep them dry during the rainy months?

What does everyone else do?

[dionysus]

i keep mine up on a veranda, i think a common manoeuvre. being elevated a little, under a roof edge and next to a wall generally keeps them safe from wetness, frost, cold (mild heat radiates from warm inner house) and damaging winds. a good spot.

[shortly]

I have pots anywhere & everywhere out of the constant rain at present under eves, carport & under jerryrigged solar-weave covers. elevated as much as possible to allow the humid air to circulate.

Considering it supposed to be our dry season now it seems a bit crazy that i have been out washing algae off my ute

[lhb2444]

Yeah I thought a lot would move them under cover, unfortunately I don't really have anywhere covered that gets any light, plenty of dark places under cover though. I moved them into a shitty old greenhouse thing which should provide some cover from the elements so that should do for the time being but I think i'll need to devise a more permanent solution for the winter months.

[dionysus]

they donmt need so much light over winter anyway ihb, no need to photosynthesize much whilst dormant

[2Deep2Handle]

I do as dionysus does, and have them under my back patio, lining the walls under the eaves. They get a few hours of filtered light a day, and all my grafts and seedlings are still growing away, and my fussy ones arent dying, so thats always good. If there is lots of sunshine, and im home, and know im going to be back in the arvo, or am not going anywhere, then they get dumped out in the sun for the day, and might even get a light spray in the top(not bottom fed takes too long to dry) carefully around the cacti(i never wet the cacti themselves, but have noticed on the frosty mornings, my Mam. bocasana's holding water in their cute fuzz of fur).

No miracle grow or seasol for them over winter for me. Trichos round the side of my house and bigger ones get watered once every 3-5 days still, as they are still under cover too.

[lhb2444]

I'm using this old greenhouse thats pretty banged up (you can't really see much of it in the picture though unfortunately) which appears to be doing a good job of keeping them dry.

I've had my most of trich's for about 18 months now and they've always been outdoors so I think I'll just leave them be as they all still appear to be growing well. (I don't have anywhere else to fit them all anyway)

[Stillman]

Its been raining all week here and alot of my plants are in the ground. Some have developed a little black spot which is a shame but what can you do. What lives and does well will be strong and good for seed. My nice stuff is safe in the Hot house but. lol.

[Paisano]

i dry my desert cacti out during the winter. if the temps go down and approach freezing many of them will rot if they are damp. Also a dormancy will promote flowers during the growing season.

[OPP]

Last year my cacti stayed out all year with no special attention and they are still pretty happy.

Recently there was a sale on greenhouses so I bought one for the winter months.

Although I do like the idea of the cactii being grown to withstand the climate of where they are grown.

Watch the cactii and If it works for where you live then keep doing it.

Edited July 30, 2012 by OPP

[zelly]

It really depends on the kind of cacti you're talking about.

Lophs, arios and other slow growers and most small globular cactus plants absolutely must be protected from over watering in the winter

[lhb2444]

Hey Zelly,

I was mainly referring to a few small lophs, some ferrocactus, gymno's and what not which have all been put into a makeshift hot house of sorts and they seem to be loving it!

[mutant]

Ferocacti are dogs! They even tolerate some frost with the winter rains.

I have experimented with leaving various genuses of cacti outside getting wet during winter.

Some genuses are pretty good at that. Of course it depends on temperatures during winter, and here it's not really cold...

some cacti that tolerate winter rain IME

Astrophytum myriostigma [you might want to have that in clay pot] , ferocacti, echinocerei,

of course a wide range of columnars, Trichocerei, Cerei, Myrtilocacti

even lophophoras and mammilarias, but depends on species too, and clay pots might be a better securing if you're going to experiment..

also climbers like selinicereus, hylocereus and pereskiopsis

some rebutias even

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examples of cacti that wont tolerate it is

Ariocarpi, one-head lophohoras, Stenocacti, tubinicarpus, Gymnocaclicium and all the real and more sensitive cacti in general.

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a general disadvantage getting cacti wet at winter is that they are supposed to flower less the next season after the winter they got wet. Havent really confirmed this , must be true to a degree.