Cactus disease. Peculiarities of cultivation of cacti at home

Cacti are amazing creatures of nature, capable of forming a special atmosphere in an apartment or office. The variety of their forms, the tender beauty of their buds, the healing properties of many of them and the unpretentiousness of their care - all this is a wonderful occasion to have a cactus in the house.

Types of cacti

The native land of cacti are arid regions of Africa, Canada and America. They are divided into forest and desert, and on the windowsills are well acclimatized, and those and others. Although there is a popular opinion among the people that these succulents are unpretentious, but before you get a prickly "friend", you should know that a cactus can suffer from this or that disease, it has enemies in the person of pests, and it requires the same attention , As well as other representatives of the flora.

Forest species include:

• Ripsalidopsis Gartner is a plant densely flowering with beautiful large flowers from pink to brick-red in color.
• Fillocactus Ackerman has long stems slightly wavy at the edges. Blossoms with large flowers in May-June.
• Cactus Schlumberger Buckley is better known among the florists as a "Decembrist". It has arcuate stems of curved shape, which are divided into small segments. Blooms from November to January with pink, white, purple or red flowers.

These are the most popular varieties of those found in homes. Similar cacti on the window look spectacular, since they have an unusual form of stems for these plants. This is due to the fact that they grow in tropical forests on tree trunks. Their main advantage is beautiful flowers. To achieve their flowering, you should know some nuances of caring for them, but in general they are not particularly whimsical.

Representatives of the desert

Their desolate "brethren" are more often found on the windowsills, and the most popular among them:

• Ariocarpus - have a low and flattened stalk, covered with downy. Blossom beautiful white buds.
• Astrophytums have a round shape with a rare ribbing. Sometimes there are specimens of this genus in the form of a star.

• Aztecums - in this genus only 2 species of cacti, having a rounded shape with pronounced ribs and practically without spines.
• Gimnokalitsiumy - the most numerous species of cacti, which have a common similarity: their flower tube is devoid of hairs.
• Kleistokaktusy hail from a mountainous hot terrain. They have cylindrical stems densely covered with small thorns. They give abundant flowering.
• Parodies are a kind of miniature cacti, differing by a large number of buds. Reminiscent of small fluffy balls.
• Echinopsis - the most frequent "guests" on the windows of flower growers. They can be either round or elongated, blossom in large, incredibly beautiful flowers.

This is far from all kinds of cacti, and usually it's worth one of them to appear on the windowsill, how one wants to get one more, but another form, and then the next and so on. This is due to the fact that growing cacti is a real hobby that brings special pleasure when, grateful for the love and care of the plants, they bloom.

Care for cacti: lighting and watering

Before you start growing cactus, you should know about the characteristics that are inherent in most representatives of this plant species.

• In house cacti, the growth time begins in the spring.
• Since March, and until the end of October, these plants need morning watering.
• In the summer, they need additional food, which should be done once a week with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.
• In winter, plants need rest, so they are recommended to clean in a dry, but cooler room.

Before planting a cactus, you should choose a suitable place for it or create artificial lighting, on which the well-being of this plant largely depends.

Cacti like well-lit places, but it is also necessary to ensure that plants do not get ultraviolet burns. This especially applies to young animals. If the cactus began to change its color, it should immediately be removed into the shade, and the affected areas should be sprinkled with a solution of magnesium sulphate.

Although desert species of succulents are accustomed to a hot climate, much depends on the species of cactus. For most of them the most optimal temperature in summer is +35 degrees, so do not keep them in the sun.

In winter, these flowers need additional lighting, for which you can use fluorescent lights.

Watering should also correspond to the needs of the plant, depending on its type, but more often it is more frequent in summer and limited to 1-2 per month in winter. Cacti prefer soft, dormant, boiled or filtered water.

Watering can be done from above and through the pallet, and on especially hot days it is recommended to spray the "pet" additionally.

Transplantation of the prickly "friend"

The transplantation of cacti at home should begin with the choice of capacity, preparation of soil and compulsory examination of the plant itself. It is believed that they can be transplanted at any time, but it is better to wait for the vegetation period, for example, May-June or August-September.

The need for this procedure arises if the capacity has become small or some diseases have appeared. The cactus, for example, stopped growing, its epidermis faded and lost its elasticity, and the roots tend to "run away" from the pot, which means time has come. Depending on the variety, this can happen in 2-6 years.

Before the beginning of the "operation" it is necessary to recall the safety technique and protect your hands from its needles.

To do this, thick mittens, folded in several layers of paper or a pair of pieces of foam rubber. Experienced growers use special forceps, which can be purchased in a flower shop.

It is important to know: you can not pull a cactus out of the pot! While holding the plant, the container should be turned over and gently shaken out. If necessary, you can knock on the pot.

Sequence of actions for the transplantation of succulents

The transplantation of cacti at home is the following:

• Peel the roots of the plant from the ground and remove all diseased or dead shoots.
• Leave it in an empty container for a couple of days without soil, so that the wound has taken root.
• To protect the plant from possible diseases of the root system, it can arrange a hot bath. To do this, you need to cut out the cardboard from the cardboard in the shape of the container, making it a hole for the roots. Pour water into the tub + 50-55 degrees and lower the roots into it, passing them into the hole and setting the cactus on the stand. The procedure lasts about 20 minutes, after which the plant should be allowed to dry, which may take 2-3 days.
• Ready soil for cacti or own preparation (to mix coarse-grained sand with universal earth and fine gravel 1: 1: 1) is poured into a pot on top of a layer of expanded clay.
• Gently put the plant in a container, spread the roots and fill it with soil.

It is important to know: when planting the ground, it is necessary to compact the ground well with either hands or knocking on a pot. If the plant is high, then until it takes root in a new place, it needs a support.

During the transplant, the cactus babies, if any, are separated and planted in separate containers. It is important not to damage their young roots.

How to choose a cactus container

Choosing pots for cacti, it is necessary to focus on the fact that the new "houses" should be 3-4 cm larger than the previous ones. Plastic is considered to be the best material due to its low cost, large choice of colors and light weight. Who prefers natural materials, buy ceramics, but plastic containers have a greater choice of shapes, which is very important for this kind of plant. Depending on which root of the cactus, you can buy a tall and narrow pot (for a thick base) or low, but wide (with long and thin roots).

If the cactus is injured

Sometimes a cactus gets sick because of a mechanical trauma. For example, it can be obtained from exposure to ultraviolet, with improper transplantation or when the plant pot falls to the floor.

In this case, violations of his health will be indicated by such "symptoms":

• Redness that occurs when exposed to direct sunlight;
• The wrinkled surface of the plant speaks of its supercooling;
• On the surface appeared brown spots, it means that the soil for cacti is oversaturated with fertilizers, or it is in a highly humid environment;
• Stopping bud growth indicates that the plant is watered with cold water for it.

In case of mechanical damage, it is sufficient to change the conditions of the cactus or to treat its wound with a disinfectant solution.

Diseases in case of physiological disorders

Disease cactus can get due to metabolic disorders. Such deviations include:

• Etiolation - occurs when there is a lack of lighting and manifests itself in the form of discoloration of the epidermis and stretching in height;
• With a shortage of macro - and microelements, the diseases manifest themselves in the form of:
  • Inhibition of growth, which causes a lack of nitrogen;
  • The color of the cactus varies with fluoride deficiency, without which nitrogen absorption is impossible;
  • The formation of reddish spots causes a lack of sulfur;
  • The root stops growing when there is little calcium;
  • If the flowering of the plant is delayed, then it needs magnesium;
  • Excessive child-care can be caused by a lack of zinc;
  • The plant ceases to grow if it lacks copper, boron, molybdenum, iodine and chlorine.

These are the health problems that can have cacti. Diseases and treatment of these plants most often depend on the level of care for them, which include timely feeding, compliance with temperature, lighting and irrigation standards, soil composition.

Fungal infections

Before planting a cactus, it is better to burn the earth to avoid possible infectious diseases caused by fungi, bacteria or viruses. This category of diseases includes:

• Phytophthorosis is a fungal disease, from which the root system of the plant and the base of the stem are damaged. Disputes to the cactus can get from neighboring plants, vegetables and fruits. Treatment is carried out with the help of fungicides by treatment every 3-4 hours of damaged areas. It is useful during the treatment to hold the plant on a "dry ration". The absence of moisture will not allow the fungus to spread, and the damaged areas themselves will disappear.

It is important to know: the neglected state of the disease leads to the death of the plant. In this case, it must be destroyed with the soil, and the container must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected.

• Fusarium fungus is a fungus that occurs when the plant is over-watered or in a very humid environment. Externally, the disease manifests itself in the form of shrinkage of the stem and its fall. He first turns yellow, then acquires a brown color at the root neck, and in a neglected state, black "fruits" form on the body of the cactus. For preventive maintenance, it is possible to conduct foundation treatment, monitor the quality of irrigation and prevent water stagnation. Treatment is carried out in the form of removing damaged areas and treating the wounds with green, gray or charcoal.
• Gray rot is another fungus affecting the sides of the stem or the place where the grafts were made. In this case, the diseased areas become mushy and covered with a gray bloom. Avoid excessive moistening of the soil, and remove damaged areas and sprinkle wounds with nystatin or sulfur.
• Alternaria (black rot) - this fungal disease manifests itself in the form of black moist spots and shiny brown streaks on the body of the plant. Treatment is solely the removal of all damaged areas right up to healthy tissues that need to be treated with sulfur.

This is far from all fungal diseases of cacti, but most often the cause of their occurrence is a strong moistening of the soil and air in the room where the plant stands. To avoid problems, it is better to water the cactus with a fungicide from time to time and make sure that the land between waterings completely dries.

Pests and parasites

Ironically, cacti can be affected by parasites, like other types of indoor plants. The cause of their disease can be:

• Powdery mulberry leaves a noticeable white lump, similar to cotton wool. When it appears, you should remove the uninvited "guest" with tweezers or a brush, and then treat the surface of the flower with an alcoholic solution of garlic. After this, the plant should not fall under the sun's rays for a month. If the lesion is very large, then the use of fufanon and actinic will be required.
• The spider mite is less noticeable, but appears on the cactus if the air in the room is too dry. He literally sucks all the juices out of the plant, while his stalk turns yellow. You can fight with soapy water.
• Nematode is an extremely unpleasant kind of worm, which can be difficult to handle. If a nematode is found, all damaged roots should be removed, and the plants should be transplanted into new soil and pots for cacti.

These are the main parasites that can harm a prickly pet. It is important to find the problem in time and eliminate it, until the plant is seriously endangered.