Saving Opuntia Humifusa

[Palmlex]

Hey everyone,

 

I have this cactus which was starting too look pretty nice but then it got rot.

I was wondering if I could cut the rotten part and reroot the bottom pad so I can keep the cactus looking the way it does or if my only chance is to break off the pads and root those.

 

Thanks,

Alex

[Silas_Sancona]

6 hours ago, Palmlex said:

Hey everyone,

 

I have this cactus which was starting too look pretty nice but then it got rot.

I was wondering if I could cut the rotten part and reroot the bottom pad so I can keep the cactus looking the way it does or if my only chance is to break off the pads and root those.

 

Thanks,

Alex

😬  Hate when this happens to a nicely balanced specimen like this.. 

Yes, unfortunately, you'll have to cut off all 4 sections above the rotting pad and re-root those.  Would advise doing so asap since rot at the base like this can travel up/ outwards pretty fast.

[Palmlex]

2 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

😬  Hate when this happens to a nicely balanced specimen like this.. 

Yes, unfortunately, you'll have to cut off all 4 sections above the rotting pad and re-root those.  Would advise doing so asap since rot at the base like this can travel up/ outwards pretty fast.

Thanks! I actually did that right before you answered, but I wasn't sure that it would root with all the pads attached. I was worried I would have to root them one by one and lose the current progress they had.

[Silas_Sancona]

3 minutes ago, Palmlex said:

Thanks! I actually did that right before you answered, but I wasn't sure that it would root with all the pads attached. I was worried I would have to root them one by one and lose the current progress they had.

Opuntia are pretty tough ..I've had to " rescue " a few doing exactly the same thing w/ stems that had multiple pads growing while the base was rotting.. Never skipped a beat after planting the rescued section. In fact, my new neighbor cut up a couple of the " Texas NSOID " Opuntia i'd planted that accidentally got run over ( Needed to be moved / reduced in size anyway ) 

She stuck a few of the sections just outside their back gate in our Alley and left them to do their thing (  neighbors across from her took some other pieces she'd placed out there ) .. A little beat up from not getting much natural irrigation this summer, but otherwise rooted w/ out any extra help.

Nice thing about humifusa,  and some other Prickly Pear sps  is they can add new pads fairly quickly once rooted, so a set back isn't as disheartening as it can be with some slower-to-add-new-growth sps / other cacti that seem to take their time to get going again after being cut up.

[Palmlex]

13 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Opuntia are pretty tough ..I've had to " rescue " a few doing exactly the same thing w/ stems that had multiple pads growing while the base was rotting.. Never skipped a beat after planting the rescued section. In fact, my new neighbor cut up a couple of the " Texas NSOID " Opuntia i'd planted that accidentally got run over ( Needed to be moved / reduced in size anyway ) 

She stuck a few of the sections just outside their back gate in our Alley and left them to do their thing (  neighbors across from her took some other pieces she'd placed out there ) .. A little beat up from not getting much natural irrigation this summer, but otherwise rooted w/ out any extra help.

Nice thing about humifusa,  and some other Prickly Pear sps  is they can add new pads fairly quickly once rooted, so a set back isn't as disheartening as it can be with some slower-to-add-new-growth sps / other cacti that seem to take their time to get going again after being cut up.

Sounds great! I was actually very surprised, since I was expecting cacti to grow very slowly. Apart from a couple of Ensetes in my yard, I think this Opuntia has been my fastest growing plant this year. I planted it this spring with 2-3 pads and I believe it had close to 20 now.

[Silas_Sancona]

8 minutes ago, Palmlex said:

Sounds great! I was actually very surprised, since I was expecting cacti to grow very slowly. Apart from a couple of Ensetes in my yard, I think this Opuntia has been my fastest growing plant this year. I planted it this spring with 2-3 pads and I believe it had close to 20 now.

Even here where many things slow or go into a sort of heat- related period of hibernation over the summer, certain Opuntia can grow much faster than one would expect..  then again, i have a few others i wish grew just a bit faster too, lol..

What's interesting too is some will look a bit ragged through the worst of the summer, ( i don't water any of them since they'll cook in our heat ) but, as soon as it cools down this time of year and you give them a good drink, they're vibrant, plump and back to adding pads..

[Palmlex]

9 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Even here where many things slow or go into a sort of heat- related period of hibernation over the summer, certain Opuntia can grow much faster than one would expect..  then again, i have a few others i wish grew just a bit faster too, lol..

What's interesting too is some will look a bit ragged through the worst of the summer, ( i don't water any of them since they'll cook in our heat ) but, as soon as it cools down this time of year and you give them a good drink, they're vibrant, plump and back to adding pads..

That's interesting. Never heard anything like that before. Why do they cook if you water them?

[Silas_Sancona]

44 minutes ago, Palmlex said:

That's interesting. Never heard anything like that before. Why do they cook if you water them?

When overnight lows are above 80-ish, esp for weeks on end, most Cacti ..really a majority of succulent -type plants stop breathing ( C.A.M. Plants breathe at night )  When you water, since they are somewhat dormant,  they aren't taking most of it up, and end up rotting ..more like cooking from the base / inside.

Some cacti are tougher and will tolerate more heat before they shut down but, for example, we've had 20, 40, 80+ year old Saguaro dropping arms or completely melting / toppling over due to the extreme heat here this year both in developed areas ( more so, because of the UHIE factor trapping more heat ) and out in the desert.

i actually need to take a walk soon to check on a big Saguaro in the neighborhood.. As gross as it sounds, when a big Saguaro starts to decompose, they smell like ..large dead things, lol.. 

there's been a smell of death in the air at times when the wind blows from certain directions. After searching every nook and crany of my property, my neighbor's,  the street island, and landscaped areas directly across from me,  i couldn't find anything dead that would be responsible for the ..unpleasant smell that has been in the air at times since our July " roast fest "  this year.

Other Succulent stuff like Agave have been experiencing the same effects ..Literally melting because they too can't cool down enough to function and end up cooking in the heat..

Any knowledged and reliable cacti / Succulent grower will strongly advise, ( here where it gets as hot as it does this time of year  at least ) " When overnight lows are consistently ..say over 82-ish,  stop watering.. Though you can provide the occasional splash of water once the sun has set, once every week to two weeks, until it starts raining,  and / or overnight temps are out of the kill - zone "

I've rotted plenty of cacti, < and other Succulents >  learning this curve, lol..