Let Cacti Conquer those Winter Blues
Cacti in the Winter
As the end of the gardening season approaches, gardeners can generally be divided into two types: those who look forward to having a break from gardening over the winter and those who need to stay connected with growing things.
A perfect solution for the latter group is to shift their focus to growing houseplants. There are a lot of interesting houseplants one can grow but a particularly fun and easy one is the cactus.
Cacti make great houseplants because there are so many different varieties, shapes and colors. They bloom reliably in the wintertime and a collection of them makes a nice focal point in the home.
Here are some easy to grow cacti;
Rat’s Tail Cactus, Peruvian Apple Cactus, Sea Urchin Cactus, Red Top Cactus, Easter Cactus, Power Puff Cactus, Ball Cactus, Crown Cactus and Christmas Cactus.
Cacti are highly refined flowering perennials. Cacti evolved in the Western Hemisphere as a result of some major climate changes that occurred about 40 million years ago. The accompanying dry conditions caused the plants to develop prickly spines instead of leaves – to keep from getting eaten – and interesting structures to help them retain moisture.
Cooler month care basics;
There are two cardinal rules to follow, first give them as much sun and warmth as possible because they don’t like to get cold. This means you should move them away from any windows or doors. Second, they detest having cold feet,. Cut back to watering them once a month. And never, ever leave water standing in the pot’s saucer. Nothing will kill a cactus faster than giving them too much water.
Use room temperature water and water them once a month during the winter. If you are watching your cacti and they are starting to shrivel a little they’re telling you that they’ve used up most of their water storage and need a drink.
Because cacti need good drainage, you should consider purchasing a cactus potting mix. You can make your own mix by combining one part sand to three parts regular potting soil. Placing small rocks or pebbles in the bottom of the pot will help with drainage.
Unlike other housepoants, humidity is not an issue with cacti. That’s because they have a different type of leaf structure that doesn’t transpire moisture.
They also don’t need to be fertilized during the winter; spring and summer are the best times for this. There are special low-nitrogen cactus fertilizers available at garden centers.
Because cacti have such specialized leaves and thorns, insects have a hard time taking a bite out of them. The only problem is root rot caused by too much moisture, which is a cultural issue rather than a disease. The great thing about cacti is that there are so many different ones to choose from.
It really depends on what a person likes to look at. But if you have small kids in the house, you should stay away from the ones with a lot of thorns on them because kids will want to touch them. Aloes come in a lot of different colors, shapes an sizes, but all cacti have the same basic care so it’s really whatever appeals most to you.
Cactus plants are available just about anywhere; check with your favorite garden center to see what’s in stock. Specialty mail-order cacti businesses on the Internet are a good source for unusual types. Since cacti are so tough, they are easy to ship.
For a fun project, you can even start them from seed. The seeds are easy to find – just look in the houseplant section of any garden center’s seed department and spread them out on some sandy soil. It takes the seeds about a month to germinate and then you’ve got a lot of little cactus plants.
