Opuntia Santa Rita Rot??

Trouble shoot problems you are having with your cactus.
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nycactus
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Sep 14, 2017 12:47 pm

Opuntia Santa Rita Rot??

Post by nycactus »

Hi

new here and pretty new to cacti -- live in New York where we have been having 60-80 degree weather with a mix of rain and sun lately. When it is not raining I leave all the plants outside.

I bought this Opuntia Santa Rita from a grower I have bought a few cacti from. It was a sunny day and I was really excited about it and didn't really give it a good look apparently. What is going on with this cactus? I have yet to water it at all since the grower told me it was in the rain a few days prior to buying it. The soil seems to be a good mix of rocks and sand etc. Moisture meter indicates there is still some moisture. The cactus seems well established (around 18" tall)

Is it rotting? Thanks
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whole cactus when bought
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hegar
Posts: 4596
Joined: Mon Jan 23, 2006 4:04 am
Location: El Paso, Texas

Re: Opuntia Santa Rita Rot??

Post by hegar »

The damage your cactus is afflicted with does in my opinion not resemble the typical "cactus rot". The darker lesions are most likely the result of physical (mechanical damage) and the wounds have formed a scab lesion.
The lighter-colored splotches could be either sun scorch damage or the result of feeding by mites or insects. If the epidermis is gone and was replaced by scar tissue, it could even be snail or slug feeding damage.
It is very difficult, if not impossible, to make a good diagnosis based on digital images without enough resolution and magnification. So I had to take a "good guess" and cannot claim, that what is stated above is 100% accurate.
However, based on what I could see, your plant overall is in decent shape. Fortunately, prickly pear cacti are some of the most resilient members of the cactus family. Even if a rot were to develop - usually at the base of the plant - you would still be able to save the plant by cutting off any healthy cladodes (stem pieces or pads).

Harald
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