help with broken root dilemma

[argonavt]

Hi all. Need your help.
Have been collecting cacti for 40+ years on and off. Even smuggled a dozen or so the most cherished ones when emigrated to America 20 years ago.
One of those, seems like a coryphanta or escobaria ( who recognizes it please let me know it has beautiful light purple flowers) which is about 25 year old, has got a problem.
I was repotting it ( probably should've not done so since it was feeling OK and was blooming last year). Something pulled me by the hand... Wanted to put it in a bigger pot.
It was graphted on to a cereus with large single root.
Few year ago I probably damaged the root a bit during repotting ( partially broke at the stem joint). This year I was carefull and yet it broke off completely.
See pictures attached.
What a disaster! I love this cactus. It lived with me for over 25 years and it has sentimental value.
I have to save it. It happened a week ago. Have it standing vertically on the empty pot for now. The brake area does not seem bad, but there is quite a bit of old dead tissue around it. There is a small void/cavity formed between cetral root/stem area and skin.
I cleaned a bit around it , removed very old spines and some dead flaking skin
The question is should I just leave it as is and put it in a pot filled with an inch of dry prelite with some soil below or should I do the surgery and clean cut it and then dry it and try to root? I do not want to risk with this cactus. Any use of root hormone advisable?
Thanks for sharing.
Argonavt

[DaveW]

That roots dead, keep removing all the dead stuff until you get to clean live green healthy tissue with no brown spots in it. Depending how far gone it may result in breaking up the clump and re-rooting the individual heads. If you leave it it may just continue dying up the stems. You can then dip the cut surface in sulphur or rooting hormone and leave it un-potted for the cut to callous over for a week or two, then pot it up.

[argonavt]

Thank you DaveW!
That was my felling that it may just dry out if I leave it this way. As you say breaking it up into separate plants could be an option.
Not sure how they would root themselves since there is still that mother plant base that it is grafted on.
I will keep forum posted how it goes.
argonavt

[george76904]

The individual pups have their own vascular systems and will be able to root themselves and survive on their own without the mother plant.

[greenknight]

Yes, most cacti root quite easily, though there are exceptions. I don't know about Escobarias (looks like Escobaria vivipara to me), but most likely no problem. Re-grafting one or more of them is another possibility, not hard to do either.

[DaveW]

The only cacti that you can't root down off their grafting stocks are the chlorophyll deficient ones like the red Gymnocalycium's which rely on the stock to provide their chlorophyll.

http://www.todayprimetimes.com/2014/12/ ... actus.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[greenknight]

The only cacti that you can't root down off their grafting stocks are the chlorophyll deficient ones like the red Gymnocalycium's which rely on the stock to provide their chlorophyll.

http://www.todayprimetimes.com/2014/12/ ... actus.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Yes, I just meant that some root more easily than others. Just did a search for cultivation info, there's no mention of any difficulty rooting these, so they should be easy.

[argonavt]

Thank you folks,
Seems like there is a chance. I already pulled one baby from the mother plant just in case and it sits in the rooting pot for 10-12 days. Just came back from a business trip. Have not looked at it yet. Will start cutting off the mother plant tomorrow to see where is this graft green tissue and what would be rooting the grafting stock or the grafted Escobaria. Would like to see its flowers again and not sure how it would behave on its own roots.
Thanks
Argonavt

[greenknight]

They're commonly grown on their own roots without difficulty, they have a wide natural range and are not particular about soil type - http://www.cactus-art.biz/schede/ESCOBA ... vipara.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.