Comments on: Taking care of saguaro cactus

By: tina

tina — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 18:24:51 +0000

I have a saguaro cactus about 5 yrs in my yard. It has an inch crack near the base. Will that affect its growth or cause further damage and can you tell me what caused this to happen?

By: Roy

Roy — Sat, 22 May 2010 07:17:54 +0000

I have a saguaro it is appox 6ft high and 18 years old. It sufered a trumar when it was 6inches high and 2 years old, completly droped and smashed out of its pot. I repoted it and from then on the small knob it had on one side grew into what is now a 3 foot high branch. I tried to move it the other day and with its heavey weight the whole thing tipped out of its pot root in all . The root seemed to be very shallow for the size of the plant. I now need to repot it, have you any sugestions on how to do this and suport it from falling out of the pot ? At the moment it is leaning against the wall sitting in loose soil….really fond of it and dont want to loose it.

By: A Guide to the Miraculous Cactus World » Blog Archive » To save a dying prickly pear

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 11:24:02 +0000

[...] My friend explained me it was a prickly pear cactus and told that I should take care of it as of saguaro. But it wasn’t enough for me – I needed detailed information to save my dying prickly [...]

By: stardancer

stardancer — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 16:58:57 +0000

I need help with a saguaro cactus that came with my house. It is at least 11′ tall and for the 2nd time growing through the window in the ceiling. There is no other way to deal with it other than cut it I am afraid, but I don’t know how or where or anything. Please contact me if you have any help you can offer.
Thanks

By: fieria

fieria — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 22:08:17 +0000

Yes, you are probably right. Cereus peruvianus is a cereus cactus. I’ve already received several remarks like yours. The confusion occurred because of the difference between the English language and my native toungue, where saguaro and cereus have the same equivalent. Though it’s quite clear what I really mean in my posts, I promise to be more careful next time as concerns this aspect. Thank you for your comment.

By: kauderwelsch

kauderwelsch — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 18:33:44 +0000

I’m afraid to say this, but you are wrong. Cereus peruvianus is by no means called Sahuaro, and there’s not a single Sahuaro growing in the Caribbee.

Sahuaro refers estrictly to the species Carnegiea gigantea, that grows only in the Sonoran Desert. There is another giant cactus from the Sonoran Desert that resembles Sahuaro, namely Pachycereus pringlei, but this one is more often referred as “False Sahuaro” or “CardÃ³n”, in spanish.

Cereus peruvianus is just that: a cereus!

By: fieria

fieria — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 09:17:33 +0000

Itâ€™s a pity that I canâ€™t see your prickly pear to give you an exact advice. But anyways I would recommend you to change the soil in the pot. Usually sellers advice you to do it first when you come home. I suppose you can buy cactus soil in the same shop. Besides, I think that it canâ€™t get moldy if you donâ€™t water your plant. No drainage can help if you donâ€™t follow the main rules of cactus care. Do you remember that in winter your prickly pear cactus must rest in the dry soil and a cool place? Donâ€™t be afraid to stick to these rules and your cactus will say thank you.

By the way, when you change the soil in the pot, pay attention to the roots â€“ are they healthy?
If you think some rootlets look fishily, remove them. Hope it will help, but you can always ask questions if you need an advice.

p.s. if you think the situation is really sad, you can try to implant an upper cutting of your cactus, because the plant begins to rot from below.

By: Sheri M

Sheri M — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 23:03:39 +0000

Do you answer questions regarding the care of cactii?
If so, I have a problem perhaps you could help me with. I have a prickly pear cactus–like a beavertail, although I’m not sure of the exact name. to be honest I bought it from the store and just used the soil and pot I bought it in. also, I’m afraid I haven’t drained it very well. Mold has begun to form in the soil and I really want to rescue my poor cactus but I don’t know how, short of repotting it! If you could maybe address this issue in a future post I would appreciate it.
thank you!