FredBW wrote: ↑Sun Feb 12, 2023 10:09 pmI probably should have stayed out of it. But the horse is out of the barn ,and I will say no more
Among other things, the forum is there to share knowledge, information, and opinions. There's no one right or wrong way to grow cacti that works for everyone in the world. There's certainly nothing wrong with being an "average" grower either.
For whatever it's worth, I'm relaying my personal experience to help other growers who might benefit from it...
ohugal wrote: ↑Sun Feb 12, 2023 7:40 pmI don't think a soilless mix is applicable to every species, but I think Steve's collection of cacti is a good candidate.
Exactly, and I'll give you an example of the difference between tinkering and testing:
- Tinkering = throwing things up against the wall to see what sticks (figuratively speaking), no thought behind why changes may or may not lead to better results.
- Testing = clearly identifying problems, and coming up with thoughtful solutions based on experience.
Sometimes testing has to be a matter of trial and error by the grower observing changes that are good, bad, or indifferent. In the pre-Internet days, the only way to go from beginner to expert was by killing lots of cacti in the process. Back then if you had a local expert to guide you when you entered the hobby, the trial-and-error process wouldn't be so painful. Unfortunately there were no local experts around when I fell in love with cacti at the tender age of 12 in 1970. I spent the next 20 years going through trial and error (mostly error) as a tinkerer without knowing why I was having so many problems. What I'm doing now is light years ahead of what I was doing before circumstances forced me out of the hobby in 1991 -- thanks entirely to what I started learning when I built a new collection in 2011 and joined the forum that November.
Here's the "custom" mix I got when I purchased my first round of cacti from the California Cactus Center in June 2011:
- CCC_soil_sample.JPG (123.25 KiB) Viewed 125641 times
The owners of the CCC recommended that I lean out the mix with pumice, but
only for some species. By the end of 2011, I instinctively knew that most (if not all) of the cacti wouldn't do well in their mix. Getting opinions from various forum members in early 2012 led me to a recommendation from Darryl Craig of CoronaCactus Nursery -- go with a soilless pumice and granite gravel mix. Once I took all of my cacti out of the CCC mix, I was shocked by the poor root systems coming out of the pots. At that point I wasn't tinkering, I was testing. And because I was being guided by an expert grower, the trial-and-error process was almost painless, ending the 2012 growing season with results that were better than I could've imagined. However, I say "almost" because there were a couple of cacti that didn't do well in the hydroponic mix...
Tephrocactus articulatus papyracanthus from the CCC -- unpotted after a year of being in pumice and granite gravel mix (3/16/13):
- Tephrocactus_articulatus_var_papyracanthus_Jr03162013.jpg (128.64 KiB) Viewed 125641 times
Tephros grow taproots only if they're grown from seed, but their preferred method of propagation is by dropping segments that root. Whenever you buy Tephros, you'll most probably be getting rooted segments like the "paper spine" cactus you're seeing. Problem: No taproot, and those thin scraggly fibrous roots wouldn't support growing in a soilless mix hydroponic or otherwise. Solution: When I moved it to a 50/50 mix with pumice and soil from the CCC, the "paper spine" finally started growing new segments because the roots were growing too. That experience came directly from another member who suggested it.
Another Tephro which I got from the CCC in 2012 -- articulatus inermis on 5/26/12, and unpotted on 3/17/13:
- Tephrocactus_articulatus_var_inermis05262012-03172013.jpg (133.09 KiB) Viewed 125641 times
Also a rooted segment, although the "pine cone" cactus didn't mind being in a hydroponic mix. With that said, it has been doing a lot better once I moved it into the same 50/50 pumice and soil mix I used for the "paper spine". The only other cacti that needed soil in the mix for better growth -- 2 Eriosyce senilis, and experience coming from the same member who suggested it for the Tephros.
Truth be told, I only have direct experience growing 66 species, all of them desert cacti, so I can't tell you about other desert species that really need soil in the mix. If you're already an experienced grower doing well with a soil-based mix, more power to you. For good or ill, everything starts out in the roots -- if you're inexperienced and/or you're having problems with your cacti, chances are good that a soil-based mix is the cause of your trouble.
Not sure if you should go soilless? When in doubt, ask for advice on the forum and more widely-experienced members than me can help.