URGENT:Cactus is leaning -- is it rotting?

[ekcayen]

So my cactus recently just starting leaning extremely over and it has been getting worse in the past few days. It had not been watered much, as it is winter. Is the bottom rotten? Or is it from lack of water?

I have attached some pictures.

What should I do? Should I cut it away?

Please help!

[Aiko]

Check if the bottom is soft. If so, yes, it might well be rotting. The colour of the bottom is not looking good from this point of view.

[ekcayen]

Check if the bottom is soft. If so, yes, it might well be rotting. The colour of the bottom is not looking good from this point of view.

thank you -- what do I do if it is rotting? Do I cut the top off and then what?

[hegar]

You need to sterilize a knife using either isopropyl alcohol or bleach. Then you cut off the stem where the discoloration ends. Most likely, the bottom has already gone into a rot. Keep on cutting the stem, dipping your knife blade or brushing it with the alcohol/bleach, after each cut, until you do only have healthy looking tissue. Then you can either supply sulfur or a growing hormone with a fungicide to the cut and let the cactus rest on its side for a week or two. If the rot has been removed, the cut end will callous over, forming a protective skin. After that you can plant your salvaged cactus in clean growing medium. For a desert cactus like yours, this should have no or very little organic matter (see instruction on growing help at top of this page). The plant should start to form roots within a month or so. Then it is OK to water.

Harald