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Old 20-06-2005, 12:26 PM
DBB
 
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Default My cactus is not doing well

I have a small green cactus that has a red flower on the very top of it. It
almost looks like a cactus version of a rose. It is doing very poorly,
turning brown, sagging, and getting soft. Heres the conditions:

Its in a 6 inch plastic pot.
I am using a combination of potting soil and compost manure for the soil.
I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week.
Light is provided by an aquarium light.

When the plant first started doing bad, I put a bunch of fertilizer tabs in
the soil to give it a boost. When that didnt work, I sealed the hole in the
bottom of the pot so it would retain water better. I know plants need lots
of water to remain turgid.

My dad is never going to let me run his garden nursery if I cant even take
care of a cactus, help!!!!!


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Old 20-06-2005, 02:14 PM
enigma
 
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"DBB" wrote in
news:GRwte.70540$x96.14310@attbi_s72:

I have a small green cactus that has a red flower on the
very top of it. It almost looks like a cactus version of a
rose. It is doing very poorly, turning brown, sagging, and
getting soft. Heres the conditions:

Its in a 6 inch plastic pot.
I am using a combination of potting soil and compost manure
for the soil. I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week.
Light is provided by an aquarium light.

When the plant first started doing bad, I put a bunch of
fertilizer tabs in the soil to give it a boost. When that
didnt work, I sealed the hole in the bottom of the pot so
it would retain water better. I know plants need lots of
water to remain turgid.

My dad is never going to let me run his garden nursery if I
cant even take care of a cactus, help!!!!!


troll alert

lee
--
war is peace
freedom is slavery
ignorance is strength
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Old 20-06-2005, 03:55 PM
Stephen Henning
 
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"DBB" wrote:

Its in a 6 inch plastic pot.
I am using a combination of potting soil and compost manure for the soil.


They do best in a mixture of soil and sand. They need very good
drainage.

I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week.
Light is provided by an aquarium light.


They do need light, but they don't need much water. In the wild they
may only get watered a couple times a year.

When the plant first started doing bad, I put a bunch of fertilizer tabs in
the soil to give it a boost.


Cactus have very slow metabolism and don't need much fertilizer. In
fact fertilizer may stimulate new growth which a stressed plant can't
sustain.

When that didnt work, I sealed the hole in the
bottom of the pot so it would retain water better. I know plants need lots
of water to remain turgid.


That is a sure way to kill a cactus. They don't need much of any water.
Water will kill them. I have a dozen cactus in a room where they sit in
direct sun light and I only water them once a month. And if I am on a
trip, they don't get watered at all. Some cactus don't like water to
touch the above ground portion of the plant. It can cause rotting if
the humidity is too high. In the wild they grow in low humidity places.

The major killer of plants is too much water. The second major killer
is too much fertilizer. Cactus basically do best under the worst
conditions: sandy soil, seldom watered, seldom fertilized, full sun.

--
Pardon my spam deterrent; send email to
Cheers, Steve Henning in Reading, PA USA
http://home.earthlink.net/~rhodyman
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Old 20-06-2005, 05:17 PM
Rev \Fragile Warrior\
 
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"DBB" wrote in message
news:GRwte.70540$x96.14310@attbi_s72...
I have a small green cactus that has a red flower on the very top of it.
It
almost looks like a cactus version of a rose. It is doing very poorly,
turning brown, sagging, and getting soft. Heres the conditions:

Its in a 6 inch plastic pot.
I am using a combination of potting soil and compost manure for the soil.
I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week.
Light is provided by an aquarium light.

When the plant first started doing bad, I put a bunch of fertilizer tabs
in
the soil to give it a boost. When that didnt work, I sealed the hole in
the
bottom of the pot so it would retain water better. I know plants need
lots
of water to remain turgid.

My dad is never going to let me run his garden nursery if I cant even take
care of a cactus, help!!!!!


Dad sounds pretty sharp. Good for him.

In case this is not an obvious troll:

You might want to start he "I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week" and
think about what the natural habitat of a cactus is compared to what you are
providing.


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Old 20-06-2005, 07:41 PM
Felice Friese
 
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Default


"Rev "Fragile Warrior"" wrote in message
...

You might want to start he "I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week" and
think about what the natural habitat of a cactus is compared to what you
are providing.


A friend grew cactus quite successfully in the NYC suburbs by keeping an eye
on Arizona weather and watering the cactus whenever it rained there.

Felice




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Old 23-06-2005, 03:32 PM
Cereus-validus.....
 
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Default

Is this some sick joke for a troll wannabe?

YOU KILLED IT.

You did everything the opposite of what you should have done.

You aren't even competent enough to accurately describe the plant.

If I were your dad, I would get a restraining order so you would stay away
from any plant nursery.


"DBB" wrote in message
news:GRwte.70540$x96.14310@attbi_s72...
I have a small green cactus that has a red flower on the very top of it.
It
almost looks like a cactus version of a rose. It is doing very poorly,
turning brown, sagging, and getting soft. Heres the conditions:

Its in a 6 inch plastic pot.
I am using a combination of potting soil and compost manure for the soil.
I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week.
Light is provided by an aquarium light.

When the plant first started doing bad, I put a bunch of fertilizer tabs
in
the soil to give it a boost. When that didnt work, I sealed the hole in
the
bottom of the pot so it would retain water better. I know plants need
lots
of water to remain turgid.

My dad is never going to let me run his garden nursery if I cant even take
care of a cactus, help!!!!!





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Old 23-06-2005, 03:36 PM
Cereus-validus.....
 
Posts: n/a
Default

I've heard that silly little chestnut many times and its absolute bull crap.

Most of the succulent plants in cultivation aren't from Arizona and abiding
by their weather would not provide accurate info about how to care for them.


"Felice Friese" wrote in message
...

"Rev "Fragile Warrior"" wrote in message
...

You might want to start he "I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week" and
think about what the natural habitat of a cactus is compared to what you
are providing.


A friend grew cactus quite successfully in the NYC suburbs by keeping an
eye on Arizona weather and watering the cactus whenever it rained there.

Felice




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Old 23-06-2005, 03:39 PM
Cereus-validus.....
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Just three times a year is not enough for a barrel cactus.

The plant is barely surviving.

Don't be surprised if one day you find you have been watering a dead husk.


"Rick" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 20 Jun 2005 13:41:00 -0400, "Felice Friese"
wrote:


"Rev "Fragile Warrior"" wrote in message
...

You might want to start he "I water that plant 3 to 5 days a week"
and
think about what the natural habitat of a cactus is compared to what you
are providing.


A friend grew cactus quite successfully in the NYC suburbs by keeping an
eye
on Arizona weather and watering the cactus whenever it rained there.

Felice


Yes, I water my barrel cactus about 3 times a year. Others get a bit
more. Just wait until the are shriveling up, but still green of
course.

-Rick



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Old 23-06-2005, 10:11 PM
Stephen Henning
 
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Default

"Cereus-validus....." wrote:

Most of the succulent plants in cultivation aren't from Arizona and abiding
by their weather would not provide accurate info about how to care for them.


It would depend a lot on which part of Arizona, the high mountains or
the low desert or in between.

However some of the world's greatest succulent gardens are in Arizona:

Arizona Cactus Botanical Garden, Brisbee
Tucson Botanical Gardens, Tucson
Arboretum and Desert Arboretum Park at Arizona State University, Tempe
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson
Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix

also, they raise a lot of roses and don't have any black spot.

--
Pardon my spam deterrent; send email to
Cheers, Steve Henning in Reading, PA USA
http://home.earthlink.net/~rhodyman
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