skinny pachanoi growth

[dracos6]

hey guys, whats happening?

everything i've found says this is a result of not enough light, but this is not a possible factor. wondering if maybe nutrient levels/root space may also induce skinny growth? and by skinny i mean a couple of them are less than half the diameter at the base. they are still growing a fairly fast despite the weather. also just noticed that the ones growing more slowly have not lost nearly as much (if any) diameter.

a result of growing too fast possibly? although i have not done anything that would speed up growth at all. hmmmmm, any suggestions greatly appreciated

thanks folks

[teonanacatl]

a pic would be good. my guess is that you bought them and they have grown skinny since you got them??

[strangebrew]

Are the one's growing slowly the same type?

It'd be unusual to have the same type growing at different rates if they're treated the same IME.

Mine have pretty well stopped and shrunk now that they're not getting any/little water.

[planthelper]

yes they can grow skinny with a lot of light aswell, and in this case it's a nutrient thing as you say, most commonly those cuttings don't have any roots...

a reason for this could be that you left the cacti too long out of the soil for callusing.

[ 15. June 2005, 09:23: Message edited by: planthelper ]

[Rev]

yep as p/helper says unrooted or poorly rooted cuttings often grow on thinner than the original piece

[Torsten]

if we want to keep cacti skinny we just keep the pot small. cactus diameter usually doesn't exceed pot radius by much, no matter how much you feed and water.

[Gunter]

I too have found large pots to promote vigorous wide growth and strong branching.

[dracos6]

thanks everyone.

no these are not store bought

they have all been planted for some time and i would say all have quite nice root systems as i had to depot one the other day due to mold(i think) in the pot. this had only been planted about a year and a half and was pot bound(which suprised me, i though they would prob grow roots slowly) which may explain the mold, the pot was about 30 cm diameter and 40cm tall,

i would say this is due too nutrients/root space and can recommend debco cacti and succulent mix for nice fat root growth

thanks again

hey what size pots do you guys use?

[dracos6]

and yes they are all pachanoi most are even from the same mum, i would say the diff growth rates are prob from : age, time planted, rootspace, nutrients, size, # of branches

[planthelper]

skinny groth is an advantage if you want to save space at transport!

aswell i asume that skinny groth roots very well as it sort of represents a juvenile form of groth...

[Rev]

dracos6:

hey what size pots do you guys use?

200mm as standard issue

for a 20-45cm cactus

long n skinny can be good if you are hoping to propagate as you have more units when you slice it up and thinner chunks heal faster

[dracos6]

ok

how long till you need to repot, or dont you go any bigger?

does growth slow down?

cheers

[teonanacatl]

yeah i use 20's as well for anything that is growing fast over 15cm. hmm its hard to say when i repot, i just do lol i know when they need new pots i like to give mine lots of room :)the first pots my seedlings go into is 10cm squat ones (i think) and i do that when i feel it suits and when i have the money for pots and soil at the moment im trialing growing larger plants in foam boxes more then one to a box as it gives more root room over a smaller area.

[apothecary]

teo, also straight edged "pots" can be stacked closer together which saves heaps of room. Those little hyperbole of unused space with circle pots waste so much space. Especially on the heat mat.

[Rev]

yeah im gonna get square squats for all my seedlings

teo u are right - cram eme in till they nearly burst when small - they grow faster and its economical on spavce and soil

then repost with excellent soil and lots of room and they take off

but u know this

[teonanacatl]

fuck i never thought about square squats!!!! they would be tha best. not the tiny ones you buy cacti in at bunnings though, i will use the next size up thanks for that. i will try take some pics of my cacti soon i promise

[apothecary]

The only thing that's stopping me is humidity domes.

I currently use the top and bottom of all the soft drink bottles in the house, and they seem to fit into my round clay pots perfectly. I can germinate 8 loph seeds a pot.

What can I use as a humidity dome for a square pot?

[teonanacatl]

seriously use a foam box and a sheet of glass i havent had any trouble with fungi or rot, the algae is showing up now, i planted in december, the algae isnt that bad. the foam boxes seem to hold the right amount of water, they dont dry up as fast as pots and they dont hold water to long. though all my foam boxes are cut to size with larger drain holes in the bottom.

[Mecrhino]

I'm interested in growing trichocereus and have read different reports on the net about how fast they grow. One was that they grow a foot every year and theres an experienced fellow on ebay that is selling a 30cm pachanoi that he says is 6 years old. I would like to find out if seeds are worth while or should I get a cutting or rootred

plant. Thanks for any responses.

[Gunter]

Well that might merit a new thread but, in my opinion you should start them from seed and order cuttings.

They grow fast once they are a good size and established, 1 foot a year is realistic, but there are legitimate reports of 2-3 feet a year too.

From seed they can get to a rather good size in around 4 years.

[teonanacatl]

my about 2 year old peruvianus are around 30cm. my established cuttings grow 1+cm a week. unfortunatly i havent been able to match my peruvianus growth from seed on this batch yet, im still trying to figure out what needs to be changed. i have a feeling that the soil in the foam box has turned into concrete.

[faslimy]

Are you only bottom watering still?

[teonanacatl]

nope i switched to top watering, at first they get knocked around a little but now it doesnt bother them. i checked the soil its not concrete. i just ferted them as i havent done that in ages

[faslimy]

I started top watering myself too, the top layer of soil wasn't soaking up the water efficiently anymore. I switched them to a 250W MH because they were still getting a bit on the thin side.

[teonanacatl]

nice:) im seriously considering repotting into individual pots to try and induce a growth spurt, the nursery i work at just got in some 5cm pots they dont want so i might buy them thought i would rather my normal 10cm