Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Trouble shoot problems you are having with your cactus.
Post Reply
User avatar
Lupask01
Posts: 28
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2021 8:43 am
Location: Taiwan

Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Lupask01 »

Looking for your advice. What should I do?
There is one plant has rot at his base, so I managed to remove the infected part. ](*,)
Attachments
20220406_162717.jpg
20220406_162717.jpg (122.96 KiB) Viewed 1258 times
20220406_162909.jpg
20220406_162909.jpg (66.34 KiB) Viewed 1258 times
Jangaudi
Posts: 457
Joined: Sun Aug 04, 2019 2:21 pm
Location: Gent, Belgium

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Jangaudi »

What soil did you use for these ? Looks very organic. And Taiwan has a humid climate, so probably you'd do good to go for a very mineral and gritty soil. And I think you might wanna cut a bit higher up, as the tissue looks brown still.
User avatar
Lupask01
Posts: 28
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2021 8:43 am
Location: Taiwan

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Lupask01 »

Jangaudi wrote: Wed Apr 06, 2022 12:59 pm What soil did you use for these ? Looks very organic. And Taiwan has a humid climate, so probably you'd do good to go for a very mineral and gritty soil. And I think you might wanna cut a bit higher up, as the tissue looks brown still.
Yup. I agree that the soil is too rich for the organic material. I should change to more gritty one, like other pots in the image below.
For the rotten plant, because I detected it in the early phase of infection, so the brown patch is small. What you see is the part where the cactus most hardest tissues, not rotten, I believe.
But how can he grows his roots back, I am asking 🤔? Any special treatment.
Attachments
20220204_171157.jpg
20220204_171157.jpg (132.22 KiB) Viewed 1239 times
User avatar
Lupask01
Posts: 28
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2021 8:43 am
Location: Taiwan

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Lupask01 »

Jangaudi wrote: Wed Apr 06, 2022 12:59 pm What soil did you use for these ? Looks very organic. And Taiwan has a humid climate, so probably you'd do good to go for a very mineral and gritty soil. And I think you might wanna cut a bit higher up, as the tissue looks brown still.
Are the brown patches that you mentioned have pea-shaped spot? I think it is the plant xylem and phloem, I guess?
Attachments
20220406_162909.jpg
20220406_162909.jpg (88.35 KiB) Viewed 1238 times
User avatar
greenknight
Posts: 4815
Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2013 4:18 am
Location: SW Washington State zone 8b

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by greenknight »

The cut surface should be white when you cut it - it doesn't have to be rotten to carry the infection. Yes, that is the xylem and phloem - since that is the plant's water transport system, the infection will move up that quicker than the rest of the stem.

The color may darken a little from oxidization after it's cut, that's okay, but that color looks suspicious to me - better to cut a little too much than not enough.

I've never rooted an Astrophytum, but from what I've read they're slow to root. No special treatment, just let the cut heal, then pot it in pure grit and wait for roots to form before you water it - 3 to 5 months, according to one source.
Spence :mrgreen:
Jangaudi
Posts: 457
Joined: Sun Aug 04, 2019 2:21 pm
Location: Gent, Belgium

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Jangaudi »

To come back to your soil type, what I see in this one here, is what looks like a large chunk of organic material (possibly peat) stuck in the pot, with pebbles added over it. This would actually make things worse, as the water in the organic material will take even longer to dry out this way. If you repot them it's gonna be important to remove as much of the peat as possible from the roots. In warm water and with a soft brush you can take a lot of it out.
20220204_171157.jpg
20220204_171157.jpg (31.6 KiB) Viewed 1182 times
User avatar
Lupask01
Posts: 28
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2021 8:43 am
Location: Taiwan

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Lupask01 »

greenknight wrote: Thu Apr 07, 2022 8:49 am The cut surface should be white when you cut it - it doesn't have to be rotten to carry the infection. Yes, that is the xylem and phloem - since that is the plant's water transport system, the infection will move up that quicker than the rest of the stem.

The color may darken a little from oxidization after it's cut, that's okay, but that color looks suspicious to me - better to cut a little too much than not enough.

I've never rooted an Astrophytum, but from what I've read they're slow to root. No special treatment, just let the cut heal, then pot it in pure grit and wait for roots to form before you water it - 3 to 5 months, according to one source.
Thanks.
User avatar
Lupask01
Posts: 28
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2021 8:43 am
Location: Taiwan

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Lupask01 »

Jangaudi wrote: Thu Apr 07, 2022 1:17 pm To come back to your soil type, what I see in this one here, is what looks like a large chunk of organic material (possibly peat) stuck in the pot, with pebbles added over it. This would actually make things worse, as the water in the organic material will take even longer to dry out this way. If you repot them it's gonna be important to remove as much of the peat as possible from the roots. In warm water and with a soft brush you can take a lot of it out.

20220204_171157.jpg
Thanks for your advice. It has been over a year since I collected him from local shop and he still doing just fine until now. However, I will take a closer look.
From my perspective, a lot of cactus species are not that picky for soil, and because he grew in small pot like this, rotting is not a big issue (except for astrophytum, which like GreenKnight mentioned, need pure grit medium).
User avatar
greenknight
Posts: 4815
Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2013 4:18 am
Location: SW Washington State zone 8b

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by greenknight »

Actually, I meant you should root all desert cacti in straight grit, for less risk of rot and strongest root development. This wouldn't necessarily be their permanent mix, though it could be.

You're right about Astrophytums, though, they shouldn't have a very organic soil. In a humid climate like yours, especially, potting them permanently in a pure mineral mix is safest.
Spence :mrgreen:
User avatar
Lupask01
Posts: 28
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2021 8:43 am
Location: Taiwan

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by Lupask01 »

greenknight wrote: Thu Apr 07, 2022 8:49 am The cut surface should be white when you cut it - it doesn't have to be rotten to carry the infection. Yes, that is the xylem and phloem - since that is the plant's water transport system, the infection will move up that quicker than the rest of the stem.

The color may darken a little from oxidization after it's cut, that's okay, but that color looks suspicious to me - better to cut a little too much than not enough.

I've never rooted an Astrophytum, but from what I've read they're slow to root. No special treatment, just let the cut heal, then pot it in pure grit and wait for roots to form before you water it - 3 to 5 months, according to one source.
He grew healthy now. Thanks.
Attachments
Root has come back
Root has come back
20220421_120056.jpg (90.42 KiB) Viewed 1051 times
20220421_120041.jpg
20220421_120041.jpg (53 KiB) Viewed 1051 times
User avatar
greenknight
Posts: 4815
Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2013 4:18 am
Location: SW Washington State zone 8b

Re: Sad astrophytum face. Please help.

Post by greenknight »

Excellent!
Spence :mrgreen:
Post Reply