On Sun, 10 Aug 2003 15:30:37 +0100, "g00se"
wrote:

How much room should cacti have in order to feel comfortable? Should some
compost be visible?

Also, shall I bother feeding the cacti plant food? Or just water them once a
week or so with normal water?

I prefer to put cacti in terracotta pots, partly for better drainage,
but also because they tend to become top-heavy as they grow, so need
the extra base weight to keep them stable. If I can get a suitable
size, I also like half-pots rather than the standard ones, for extra
stability. If they are quite small, I allow a little room for growth -
they are not my favourite potting on job (ouch)!

Try to water 'as needed' rather than rigidly sticking to a routine
'once a week'. Cacti grow better when the compost is kept about as
moist as ordinary pot plants in the growing season, but quite dry in
the winter (just enough not to start shrivelling). I like to put the
pots in a plastic saucer or tray, and water into the tray until they
don't soak up any more - I am not sure how well this would work with
plastic pots. Mine have definitely done better when I have remembered
to keep up the feeding (in the water).

Regards, VivienB