repot cactus with (small) buds?

[ohugal]

Hi Everyone,

About 2 years ago I was given a cutting from a Cleistocactus Straussi at the local botanical garden. I noticed there are some buds forming (still very small) and only visible upon close inspection. The plant is on my 'repotting list' for the upcoming weekend. I watered it last Saturday. I've read you should not repot or rotate a cactus in bloom. Since I grow cacti in front of a southern facing window of my bedroom they don't get a good winter sleep, so flowers are rare. Do I postpone repotting after it has (potentially) bloomed? What are your experiences? Thanks!

Oscar

[Steve Johnson]

Hi Everyone,

About 2 years ago I was given a cutting from a Cleistocactus Straussi at the local botanical garden. I noticed there are some buds forming (still very small) and only visible upon close inspection. The plant is on my 'repotting list' for the upcoming weekend. I watered it last Saturday. I've read you should not repot or rotate a cactus in bloom. Since I grow cacti in front of a southern facing window of my bedroom they don't get a good winter sleep, so flowers are rare. Do I postpone repotting after it has (potentially) bloomed? What are your experiences? Thanks!

Oscar

Hi Oscar,

I saw from one of your earlier posts that you live in Palermo, Italy. Not a bad idea if you do the following for reasons explained here:

http://www.cactiguide.com/forum/viewtop ... 25&t=43820

Whenever I buy cacti, I repot them immediately. For the ones that came with buds, I never had a problem seeing them go into bloom. With that said, some species may be better about it than others, so I don't know if your C. strausii's buds would be happy about the repot. Unless there's an urgent reason to do so, my feeling is that you should wait until the plant is done blooming.

By the way, here's a helpful hint I recently got from one of our members -- hit the Ctrl button on your keyboard when you click on a link, and it'll open in a new tab.

[jerrytheplater]

By the way, here's a helpful hint I recently got from one of our members -- hit the Ctrl button on your keyboard when you click on a link, and it'll open in a new tab.

Thanks for the reminder. I need reminders. I like being able to click Ctrl and then the link. I do notice that you have to open that new tab. It does not open on its own. You stay in CactiGuide till you click on the opened tab.

[ohugal]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the advice.
I'm actually based in Antwerp, Belgium. My previous post was in connection to cuttings I gathered while on holiday in Sicily.
I'll wait with repotting and hope it will bloom. If it does, I'll try to get pictures!

[Steve Johnson]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the advice.
I'm actually based in Antwerp, Belgium. My previous post was in connection to cuttings I gathered while on holiday in Sicily.
I'll wait with repotting and hope it will bloom. If it does, I'll try to get pictures!

Happy to help, and your detailed location info is perfect!

[ohugal]

Hi Everyone,
An update on my budding Cleistocactus Straussi. I eventually (carefully) replaced some of the top soil. Summer decided to arrive here in Belgium, so the buds are growing. I think one of them will bloom tomorrow or the day after. Since I grow my succulents in my bedroom with no winter rest, every flower is a victory.

IMG_0036web.jpg (87.64 KiB) Viewed 1660 times

[greenknight]

It's blooming now, the style is projecting from the end of the flower. It may open a little bit more, but the flowers don't open wide - the name Cleistocactus is derived from the Greek Cleistos, meaning closed. There are some exceptions within the genus, but this species isn't one of them.

[ohugal]

Thanks for the information!