How to Care for a Cactus
A cactus is a good starter plant if you want to learn about how to take care of plants. They can look pretty cute and they are literally neat plants to take care of. Here’s how you can care for a cactus.
Tools
New cactus pot
Well-drained potting soil, including gravel and sand
Small hand-held sprayer (For more information on sprayers, read The Guide to Sprayers)
Low-nitrogen fertilizer
Procedure
The first thing you need to do is to transfer the cactus to a new pot. This is because your cactus will have most likely stayed in the pot for a while before you bought it, and is due for a re-potting anyway.
cactus care
Choose a pot only slightly bigger than the one you bought it in. Make sure that there are many holes at the bottom to ensure good drainage.
Get cactus soil from the gardening store. If it’s not available, make your own cactus soil by combining one part potting soil with one part sand, with some gravel as well.
Remove the cactus out of the old pot by breaking the pot. Do not dig the cactus out of the soil as this may cause root damage.
Layer the bottom of the pot with cactus soil before putting the cactus in. Fill up the rest of the pot with the rest of the cactus soil. Do not pack the soil too loosely or too tightly.
Use a hand-held spray to spray the cactus with water every other day for a week. Keep the cactus away from the sun for a week as well. One week is adequate time for the cactus to adjust in its new position. After re-potting the cactus, do not re-pot it again unless you absolutely have to.
When the cactus has successfully adapted, you can now go about with the day to day care of a cactus. The cactus only has two seasons: Active growing season during spring and summer and dormant season during fall and winter.
Care for the cactus during active growing season by providing them the right amount of water most days of the week. The amount of water depends on the type of cactus that you have, so make sure that you ask a gardening expert or look up tips on the Internet. A rule of thumb is, water your cactus until there is only half an inch of dry soil left.
Don’t water the cactus again until the soil is completely dry. To check, you can insert a pencil in the soil and if it comes out clean, it means the soil is completely dry.
During the dormant season, water your cactus once every two or three weeks. Proper watering schedules are important to prevent over-watering your cactus, which can cause it to rot and die.
Contrary to popular belief, cactus do not necessarily need to be exposed to the sun as much as possible. Depending on the type of cactus you’re taking care of, your cactus may only need to be in a shady area for it to grow healthily.
Use a low-nitrogen fertilizer on your cactus once every three months.
For more information regarding this article, read how to grow a cactus.