Should I be concerned? Strange marks on cactus

Trouble shoot problems you are having with your cactus.
Post Reply
Fluffy
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Jul 07, 2016 9:46 pm

Should I be concerned? Strange marks on cactus

Post by Fluffy »

Hello everyone :) I am new to this board and I joined because I really need your expert help!

Around 2 weeks ago now I purchased this cactus from a florist. Admittedly (and unusually for me), I didn't give it a thorough check before I bought it - I just liked it, it looked healthy from a close enough distance and I just went for it because it was relatively cheap. However, when I got it home and had a good look at it I noticed these strange marks on some of the stems which got me worried. I was wondering if anyone could help me out with what they are? The only positive thing that I can say is that they don't appear to have got worse since I bought the cactus.

Image
As you can see, this looks like grey-white discolouration (but there is also a black 'spot' which I am also concerned about!). It looks really dry if anything, certainly not mushy which I read almost always means rot. And also, the grey-white area looks like there are a couple of small holes in that area too.

Image
Same area but taken from further away.

Image
This area is more white, again looks dry but also looks slightly shiny and also has a small hole.

Image
This strange thing is around the area where the spikes emerge from. Any ideas what this is?!

Image
A guide on this website suggests that these are marks from overwatering in the past, is this correct? And should I worry about them if I water the cactus carefully?

And one final thing, can anyone tell what type of cactus this is and suggest how often it should be watered? I am in the UK and while the cactus is in a bright, south-facing window the amount of sunshine we get here is dismal to say the least (even in summer!) so it takes a while for the soil to dry out.

Thanks a lot everyone!
Fluffy
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Jul 07, 2016 9:46 pm

Re: Should I be concerned? Strange marks on cactus

Post by Fluffy »

Anyone?
User avatar
teo
Posts: 1720
Joined: Sat Jul 25, 2009 5:30 pm
Location: Lund, South Sweden

Re: Should I be concerned? Strange marks on cactus

Post by teo »

Given the source (a florist) I would guess some kind of mechanical damage - maybe in transportation or to close to other spined plants - I would not worry if it's not spreading unless you plan to enter it in a beauty contest.
Post Reply