CactiGuide.com

Hello Everyone.

Yesterday I took this Cacti from a friend as they were going to throw it in the bin. It was buried in soil up to the healthier looking part. I was wondering if there was anything I could do for it, or is it a lost cause?

Thank you in advance.

of course you can save the cactus, look at this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8Ru8GYfYIk

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Fri Sep 09, 2022 10:37 pmYesterday I took this Cacti from a friend as they were going to throw it in the bin.

Sorry to be picky-fussy about it, but cacti is the plural of cactus -- your photo is showing 1 cactus.

Pd1973 wrote: ↑Fri Sep 09, 2022 10:50 pm of course you can save the cactus, look at this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8Ru8GYfYIk

I should have mentioned that the diameter of the cactus is around 6" at the healthy looking part. Interesting video, thank you.
If I have to cut it with a knife to save it, I will.

Steve Johnson wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 1:20 am

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Fri Sep 09, 2022 10:37 pmYesterday I took this Cacti from a friend as they were going to throw it in the bin.

Sorry to be picky-fussy about it, but cacti is the plural of cactus -- your photo is showing 1 cactus.

One cactus, two cacti. I've got it now. Thank you.

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 7:55 am

Pd1973 wrote: ↑Fri Sep 09, 2022 10:50 pm of course you can save the cactus, look at this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8Ru8GYfYIk

I should have mentioned that the diameter of the cactus is around 6" at the healthy looking part. Interesting video, thank you.
If I have to cut it with a knife to save it, I will.

when you cut off the rotten part of the cactus, you will need to put it in a shady place to dry the wound. After that, you can put it in the substrate, which should have a lot of mineral content. And don't water it. It will most likely take root next year.
cutting a cactus is done either to save it or to propagate it, so you will eventually use the knife in this hobby.

You might want to check first, whether it's rot or corking.
Echinocactus (Kroenleinia) grusonii if not growing in ideal condition, it can look like in your photo.

Pd1973 wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 8:12 am

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 7:55 am

Pd1973 wrote: ↑Fri Sep 09, 2022 10:50 pm of course you can save the cactus, look at this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8Ru8GYfYIk

I should have mentioned that the diameter of the cactus is around 6" at the healthy looking part. Interesting video, thank you.
If I have to cut it with a knife to save it, I will.

when you cut off the rotten part of the cactus, you will need to put it in a shady place to dry the wound. After that, you can put it in the substrate, which should have a lot of mineral content. And don't water it. It will most likely take root next year.
cutting a cactus is done either to save it or to propagate it, so you will eventually use the knife in this hobby.

I think doing the slice through might be okay, but it's the trimming of the edges that I might find difficult because of all the spines!?
1) When it's drying, should it be upside down with the cut in the air or do I try to balance it on something the right way up?
2) Do I use a rooting hormone on the fresh cut or not, or after it has calloused, or not at all?

Sorry for all the questions but it's the only way I'm going to learn.

BryanT wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 9:03 am You might want to check first, whether it's rot or corking.
Echinocactus (Kroenleinia) grusonii if not growing in ideal condition, it can look like in your photo.

I know what rot is, but I don't know what corking is yet? It looks like a cork? Is Echinocactus grusonii it's real name? What does Kroenleinia mean?

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 10:07 am

Pd1973 wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 8:12 am

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 7:55 am

I should have mentioned that the diameter of the cactus is around 6" at the healthy looking part. Interesting video, thank you.
If I have to cut it with a knife to save it, I will.

when you cut off the rotten part of the cactus, you will need to put it in a shady place to dry the wound. After that, you can put it in the substrate, which should have a lot of mineral content. And don't water it. It will most likely take root next year.
cutting a cactus is done either to save it or to propagate it, so you will eventually use the knife in this hobby.

I think doing the slice through might be okay, but it's the trimming of the edges that I might find difficult because of all the spines!?
1) When it's drying, should it be upside down with the cut in the air or do I try to balance it on something the right way up?
2) Do I use a rooting hormone on the fresh cut or not, or after it has calloused, or not at all?

Sorry for all the questions but it's the only way I'm going to learn.

1. leave two to three weeks for the callus to form, in a horizontal position, so that the air can circulate freely. When the callus is formed, you can put it in a mineral substrate, do not water it.
2. The hormone is applied when the cutting is fresh, when the callus is made, there is no excessive reason to apply the hormone for rooting. A much better option is to put powdered sulfur to protect the cactus from rotting, but you don't need either hormone or sulfur, the cactus will root in time with or without rooting hormone.
3. What Bryan T. wrote is wise advice. Before cutting, check if there is any rotting. If the tissue is soft, it is rotting, and then use a knife. If the tissue is firm, just transplant it into a suitable substrate and do not water it for ten days.

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 10:11 am

BryanT wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 9:03 am You might want to check first, whether it's rot or corking.
Echinocactus (Kroenleinia) grusonii if not growing in ideal condition, it can look like in your photo.

I know what rot is, but I don't know what corking is yet? It looks like a cork? Is Echinocactus grusonii it's real name? What does Kroenleinia mean?

If it's mushy, it's rot. If hard/solid, it's corking, just natural aging process of cactus.
Kroenleinia grusonii is another name for Echinocactus grusonii.

Pd1973 wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 10:21 am

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 10:07 am

Pd1973 wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 8:12 am

when you cut off the rotten part of the cactus, you will need to put it in a shady place to dry the wound. After that, you can put it in the substrate, which should have a lot of mineral content. And don't water it. It will most likely take root next year.
cutting a cactus is done either to save it or to propagate it, so you will eventually use the knife in this hobby.

I think doing the slice through might be okay, but it's the trimming of the edges that I might find difficult because of all the spines!?
1) When it's drying, should it be upside down with the cut in the air or do I try to balance it on something the right way up?
2) Do I use a rooting hormone on the fresh cut or not, or after it has calloused, or not at all?

Sorry for all the questions but it's the only way I'm going to learn.

1. leave two to three weeks for the callus to form, in a horizontal position, so that the air can circulate freely. When the callus is formed, you can put it in a mineral substrate, do not water it.
2. The hormone is applied when the cutting is fresh, when the callus is made, there is no excessive reason to apply the hormone for rooting. A much better option is to put powdered sulfur to protect the cactus from rotting, but you don't need either hormone or sulfur, the cactus will root in time with or without rooting hormone.
3. What Bryan T. wrote is wise advice. Before cutting, check if there is any rotting. If the tissue is soft, it is rotting, and then use a knife. If the tissue is firm, just transplant it into a suitable substrate and do not water it for ten days.

That is really helpful advice and I'll follow it closely. Thank you so much.

BryanT wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 10:26 am

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 10:11 am

BryanT wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 9:03 am You might want to check first, whether it's rot or corking.
Echinocactus (Kroenleinia) grusonii if not growing in ideal condition, it can look like in your photo.

I know what rot is, but I don't know what corking is yet? It looks like a cork? Is Echinocactus grusonii it's real name? What does Kroenleinia mean?

If it's mushy, it's rot. If hard/solid, it's corking, just natural aging process of cactus.
Kroenleinia grusonii is another name for Echinocactus grusonii.

Thank you for your help too. I will let you know how it goes.

PlantCrazy wrote: ↑Sat Sep 10, 2022 10:11 amI know what rot is, but I don't know what corking is yet? It looks like a cork?

That's right, but if you cut the base all the way through, you'll see a core of healthy green tissue. From what I notice in your photo, A. it appears that you have corking, not rot, and B. it also appears that you do have something of a root system to work with. That being the case, I would not recommend doing a chop-chop of the base. I'll suggest that you do the following instead:

• Clean the old soil out of the roots as thoroughly as possible. To do that, fill a container with clean water and swish the roots around to let the soil float out. Gently tease them out and dig through them with a blunt object like a knitting needle, ballpoint pen cap, q-tip handle, etc. You may need to do this a few times as you throw out the dirty water and fill the container with clean water. Be sure to dig up into the base so that you don't leave a "bolus" of soil behind in the plant when you repot. Years ago, I lost a few cacti to rot precisely because I failed to take that extra step. When you clean the roots, you'll lose some in the cleaning process, but don't worry -- your Echinocactus will grow new ones.

• After the roots are thoroughly dry, repot the plant in fresh dry cactus mix. From what I could tell, your friend was trying to grow the Echinocactus in regular potting soil -- way too rich for desert cacti, and new roots tend to be suffocated before they have the chance to grow into a healthy root system with soil-heavy mixes. What you can do here is lean out the mix with mineral gravel for better drainage and aeration of the roots. My mineral of choice is pumice, although I don't know if you can get it in Scotland. Perlite is okay, but it's a floaty pain that gets all over the plant whenever you water. If you want to add Perlite to your mix, a nice thick layer of gravel top dressing keeps the floaty stuff down. Your other options for the mineral component are crushed granite poultry grit and calcined clay cat litter. Default recommendation -- 50% mineral gravel and 50% soil. Mix the mineral and soil thoroughly, don't layer it -- layering causes a nasty problem called a perched water table.

Whenever I repot cacti, I let them settle in for 2 weeks before I water. However, that applies to the growing season, and yours is about to end, so I don't think watering would be a good idea until the Echinocactus comes out of its winter dormancy and starts growing in spring.

By the way -- as BryanT said, corking is a natural part of the aging process for many cactus species. With that said, premature corking is caused by mixes which are unsuitable for growing desert cacti. If you lean out the mix and repot your Echinocactus with the corked part below what I call the "soil line", you won't see any new corking above-ground -- when they're being grown well, E. grusonii won't cork on the meristem.

Comment for all to reply to.

When I've had plants that were corked just like this plant, I've potted them up in a deep pot with the rooted area in a good growing mix and then filled the pot with gravel up to the base of the spherical portion. This way the corky area is out of sight and the plant looks better. It has worked for me.
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