My Cactus is Dying... Please Help!

[MyCactus96]

Hi guys. Lately, my cactus began to get softer so I tried to solve the issue with the help of a buckle and a stick. However, today I noticed that it began to wrinkle! Any advice is more than welcome.

[ElieEstephane]

It looks dessicated and very etiolated. Etiolation isnfrom the lack of adequate light and dessication is probably because of a root problem (granted you are watering)

[MyCactus96]

Thank you so much for your answer. Well, I water it every two weeks. Isn't that enough? What should I do to revive my cactus? Or is it already dead...

[Aiko]

It might help to free this plant of its terrible fake flowers so the wounds might heal...

And please, place this plant in some light. It is severely etiolated. It needs much, much, much more light. Too little light is a health risk for succulent plants, and a reason for deformed growth.

And there is the thing of whatever is below soil level. I suspect the pot itself does not have any drainage holes. So chances are whatever water you are giving this plant might accumulate on the bottom of the pot. Watering too much too often is usually the main reason for a dead succulent. So no drainage holes is a big risk. Then there is the question if the plant has any roots at all. No roots means it cannot take up any water at all, the soil will dry out less fast (as all water needs to evaporate instead of being sucked up by the roots of the plant) and it will not stay firmly into the ground (I suspect the sticks are there for a reason).

Does this plant have any roots?

[MyCactus96]

I have removed the fake flowers right now... What's next? What should I do to heal my cactus? I took a clear photo showing it's pot and roots, so can you please make a comment on them?

[greenknight]

It has a good chance of recovering - it's an Opuntia, they can shrivel quite a lot without harm. It does have roots, so it may be ok.

The soil it was potted in is not good. Looks like it has peat around the roots, the rest of the soil looks like clay. Both of those hold too much water when they're soaked, and don't re-wet easily when they get dried out. Wash the roots clean of that stuff. Pot it in a gritty, free-draining mix. Don't water right away - put it in a cool place and wait a week. Then move it to a warmer spot and give it a good watering. With any luck it should plump up.

Normally in winter it's best to keep them in a cool place and leave them dry: http://www.cactus-art.biz/note-book/Dic ... r_rest.htm . This one is all ready too shriveled, though, so it needs some water before long. In the spring (assuming it does recover) you need to gradually get it used to stronger light.

[hegar]

I would have helped, if you could have washed the "soil" of the roots, because the root color will also indicate their state of health. Roots could still be attached, but be nonfunctional, i.e. dead. Also, the stem part above the roots, is it rather soft or still firm?
Sometimes, there is an internal rot present, which moves from the root system up the stem toward the top of the plant.
I am also a bit worried about the color difference between the lower part of your cactus and the rest of the plant.
It seems to me like your cactus also shows nutrient deficiency. It is overall too pale looking. It could have, however, also been bleached out by exposure to sun light, but then it would not show the unnatural elongation of its growth (etiolation), which is a result of a lack of light.
If the plant does not survive, at least it is not expensive to replace it.
As greenknight already mentioned above, prickly pear cacti are generally fast growers and easy to cultivate. I will have to thin them out by the wheel barrow load in a few weeks and there is nobody in my local cactus club, who would take any of the material off my hands. Is there a local club near where you live? If so, that would be a good source for getting free plants or cuttings, just in case your plant does not make it.

Harald

[7george]

Jast removing the nails will not save your martyrs. I would cut off the etiolated parts of the stem and give those cacti much more direct sun. Time will show as will they live or not.