Tag: succulent plants

Growing Cactus Plants from Seed – The EASY way

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Hi Cactus & Succulent Growers,

Well spring is almost here and soon we will be back in the swing of things or I should say ‘spring of things’ haha with all the spring plant jobs to do with our plants, all the repottings and thinking about giving our cacti their first watering after the winter, this time of year is also the best time of year to sow any cacti seeds that you want to sow this year, growing cacti from seed can be so rewarding and there is something extra special about watching cacti grow over the months and years from seeds we have sown ourselves.

Image above: My Cleistocactus seedlings I have grown from seed, I often use small plastic trays used for cherry tomatoes in supermarkets for containers for cactus seed sowing.

I have grown many cacti from seed over the years and in this blog I will be sharing how you too can grow cacti from seed the EASY way.

I have a few different ways I grow cacti from seed including the ‘Baggie’ method, this involves sowing cactus seeds in a ‘sterile’ type of environment by sterilising the soil first by microwaving the soil for 3 minutes to get the soil as sterile as possible and then once the seeds have been sown they go immediately into the ‘Baggies’ ( clear zip lock bags ) I have made a few videos on How I do this on my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon but I have also had great success by sowing the seeds without sterilising the soil first and this is how I am going to be explaining it here.

Image above: my Parodia cactus seedlings that are now large enough to pot on individually into their own little 5cm pots, Cactus seedlings can take many months or a couple of years before they are ready to be transplanted individually.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME OF YEAR TO SOW CACTUS SEEDS ?

The best time of year to sow cactus seeds is in the spring and summer, but you can sow them at any time of the year including the Winter if you have additional heat and LED Plant grow lights.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

1, Cactus seeds.

2, An empty container with some holes in the bottom. I often use recycled small plastic trays often used for fruit and cherry tomatoes in supermarkets, these can be very good for sowing cactus seeds as they also have holes already in the bottom, another option is to use small Tupperware containers used for packed lunches and put some holes in the bottom of them for drainage.

3, Well-draining soil. I recommend using a seed-sowing soil and adding extra pumice or grit (go for a 50/50 ratio of pumice or grit to seed-sowing soil). I like to use John Innes seed sowing soil but if you don’t have seed sowing soil you can use a commercial good quality cactus soil and use 50/50 ratio of pumice or grit.

4, A little bit of sand or vermiculite just to sprinkle over the top once you’ve sown the seeds.

5, A little piece of folded-up card or paper if the seeds are very tiny, this is to sprinkle the seeds over the top of the surface of the soil.

6, Water

Image above: Echinopsis cactus seedlings, aren’t they soooooooo CUTE haha!

HOW TO SOW THE SEEDS:

  1. Once you’ve mixed the soil, fill the container with holes in it up with the soil. Then tap it down gently.
  2. Water the soil in the containers thoroughly making sure all of the soil in the containers is thoroughly wetted. (Wetting the soil before sowing the seeds helps keep the seeds from floating off over the top of the soil.)
  3. Sprinkle the seeds as evenly as you can across the soil surface. If the seeds are very tiny (some cactus seeds can be almost dust-like), you can put them into a little folded piece of card and then tap it very gently with you finger across the soil to sprinkle the seeds evenly. If the seeds are quite large, you can just sprinkle them across the surface of the soil with your fingers.
  4. Lightly cover the seeds with a sprinkling of sand or vermiculite. (If the seeds are very very small, you don’t have to cover them.)
  5. Label your container with what type of cactus species you are sowing and the date it’s been sown (e.g., Gymnocalycium, March 21st, 2025).
  6. Keep the soil evenly moist at all times, its important to never let the soil dry out because when they have germinated and when they are still young seedlings their delicate root hairs can dry out.
  7. Keep the seeds warm at a minimum temperature of 70˚F in a bright window but avoid direct sunshine until the seeds have germinated, once the seeds have germinated you can move them to a position that receives more sunshine but still protected from all day direct sunshine.
  8. Cactus seeds can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 12 weeks to germinate and patience really is the magic key.

Image above: My Echinopsis subdenudata cactus seedlings that are about 18 months old.

If you want to see a video on How to grow cacti from seed using the ‘Baggie’ method then here is a video I have made for my You Tube Channel Called Desert Plants of Avalon on How To Grow Cacti From Seed: and you can watch this video below:

Keep your eyes peeled for lots more Blogs coming up on my website and remember guys not long to go now till spring is here and we can get to enjoy all of those beautiful cactus blooms again.

Happy Growing everyone and do check out my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon for lots of growing tips and tricks on how you can care for your Cacti and Succulents.

How to keep your cactus Alive over winter

How to keep your Cactus ALIVE over Winter ?

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Hi Guys,

The Winter holiday season is almost here and with that brings the cold temperatures, frost and snow and short winter days and long winter nights.

One of the biggest challenges cactus growers have is getting their cactus/cacti through these dark and cold winter months, in this Blog/Article I will be sharing my tips and tricks on how you keep your cactus ALIVE over the winter.

How to keep your cactus Alive over winter

KNOW YOUR CACTUS

The most important thing is to know what type of cactus you have, this is really important because many different varieties of cacti are more cold tolerant when it comes to their minimum temperatures than others, where Desert cacti need to be kept dry with little or no watering over Winter, most of the Rainforest cacti will still need to be watered over the winter months especially the winter flowering species like Schlumbergera, ( Christmas & Thanksgiving Cacti ) and some of the Winter flowering Rhipsalis Cacti.

There are two main groups of cactus, the Rainforest Cacti and the Desert Cacti. Rainforest cacti are cacti that grow in Rainforests in Central and South and North America and look very difference in appearance to the Desert group of cacti ( See photo above ) these cacti grow on trees as Epiphytes and have flattened segments that are modified leaves, these Epiphytic cacti need more moisture and often more winter warmth than many of the Desert group of cacti do, examples of Rainforest cacti would be Schlumbergera, commonly known as Christmas and Thanksgiving cactus and the Rhipsalis group and Epiphyllum group.

Desert Cacti are cacti that have adapted to survive in hot and dry and arid conditions. Desert cacti grow in the dry arid regions of Central, South and North America and well and the Southwestern U.S, they store water in their thick stems to survive long periods of drought. Many of these cacti can tolerate cold temperatures if kept absolutely dry during winter due to their natural habitats dropping as low as -15c /5F during the night.

However there are some Tropical Desert cacti that definitely do need more winter warmth over winter especially the cacti that are from Brazil, such as Melocactus, Uebelmannia, Pilosocereus.

Once you know what type/s of Cacti you grow this will help you with how to provide the right care for your cacti over the winter months.

Uebelmannia

Some Tropical Cacti such as this Uebelmannia above are not cold hardy and need a winter minimum temperature of 10c /50F, very different to many Desert cacti that can tolerate much colder temperatures.

TEMPERATURE

Many cacti can survive cold winter temperatures but ONLY if they are kept dry with no water given to them from mid September until early to mid April, this is an absolute must because cacti have a winter dormancy period during this time, watering cacti when they are dormant may cause cacti to rot, their roots and soil needs to be dry during their winter dormancy, and the drier the cactus is kept the more chances the cactus has of surviving the cold winter months.

The minimum safe winter temperature to overwinter your cacti would be 5c /41F.

I keep my cold hardy Desert cacti in the polytunnel at an absolute winter minimum of 5c /41F, this is the overall safe winter minimum temperature for all of the cold hardy varieties for the types of cacti that I grow, but if you live in a dry arid desert climate then many cacti can tolerate lower temperatures than this especially when kept dry, but I keep my polytunnel at an absolute minimum of 5c /41F due to the fact that I live in Ireland where the humidity is always high ( I will be talking about humidity in this Article too )

I use a special electric heater by Biogreen that is for greenhouses and polytunnels, it has a special thermostat setting that sets the heater to come on if the temperature inside the polytunnel drops below 5c /41F this keeps the air temperature inside my polytunnel at a minimum of 5-6c /41 44F making it safe for my cacti over the cold winter months.

cactus greenhouse

My Cacti are kept at a minimum temperature of 5c /41F with a Biogreen electric greenhouse heater with a thermostat setting.

Please note that there are some succulents that look very ‘Cactus alike’ such as the Euphorbia group, many newcomers to the hobby will easily mistake a Euphorbia for a cactus due to their ‘cactus looky likey’ appearance to them, but most Euphorbia are not cold hardy and will need a winter temperature of at 10c /50F. If you are unsure of what cactus/cacti you have its best to be on the safe side and bring them indoors for winter.

WATERING

watering cacti

Desert cacti naturally have a rest period and go into dormancy over the winter months, its important to stop watering completely from mid September until early to mid April, this is important even if you overwinter your cacti indoors in the house in room temperatures, this is because once the daylight levels begin to fall from Fall/ Autumn cacti enter their winter dormancy period, and by late Fall /Autumn cacti will be in their dormancy rest period, watering cacti when they are dormant may result in rot due to the cactus resting and not needing water during this stage, the only time you can give your cacti a light watering in winter is if you have them indoors and they are clearly showing signs of too much shrivelling, this is often the case during the later part of the winter such as late January/Feb/March, there are times I will give my cacti that I overwinter indoors for winter a light watering late winter if they start too show too much shrivelling. I have made a video for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on ‘Should you water your Cactus in Winter’ and I explain in a lot more detail in that video and if you want to know more then please go and watch the video below:

Rainforest cacti like the Schlumbergera ( Christmas & Thanksgiving Cacti ) and Rhipsalis are epiphytic and don’t need a winter dormancy like the Desert cacti do, the Epiphytic cacti especially the Schlumbergera that are winter flowering do still need to be watered regularly over winter, but I do cut back on giving as much water to my Schlumbergeras once they have finished flowering from late December /early January, and with my other Epiphytic cacti like my Rhipsalis I will give a light watering once a month, my Epiphyllums aka ‘Orchid Cacti’ I overwinter cool in my polytunnel at 5c/41F because Epiphyllums do flower better with a cool and drier winter rest than the other Epiphytes like Schlumbergera and Rhipsalis, and because of this I keep my Epiphyllums ‘Orchid Cacti’ more on the drier side than my Schlumbergera and Rhipsalis over winter, but I do give my Epiphyllums a light watering over winter once every 6 -8 weeks just enough watering to prevent their hanging long stems from shrivelling too much.

Epiphytic cacti

My Epiphyllum ‘Orchid Cacti’ I overwinter more on the drier and cool side compared to my other Epiphytic cacti such as my Schlumbergera and Rhipsalis, but I do still give my Epiphyllums a very light watering once every 6-8 weeks in winter just enough water to prevent their hanging stems from shrivelling too much.

LIGHT

A lot of growers often worry about the lack of light over the winter for their cacti especially as many growers have to move their cacti indoors for winter to protect them from cold and rain if they don’t have a greenhouse or other protective structure to overwinter their cacti in, but the good news is when cacti are resting over winter then light is not a necessity, I know many growers who overwinter their cacti in dark rooms, garages, cellars, and basements with very little or even no light and they overwinter their cacti with no problems and have done this for years, however I personally have had no experience of this myself, but as cacti are dormant over the winter rest period I can see no problems with overwintering cacti in low light levels as long as the temperature is kept cool ( below 15c / 60F ) and they are kept absolutely dry with no watering at all, as low light and warm temperatures and not being kept dry at their roots can encourage problems such as etiolation ( thin stretched out growth ) as well as rot issues. If you do overwinter cacti in low or very little light over the winter months then its extremely important that when you move your cacti back out to their Spring and Summer positions that you acclimatise them to the higher light levels very slowly, moving cacti from dark positions into a bright sunny position will result in your cactus getting scorched and scarred from the higher light levels even if you don’t move them directly out into the sun. Cover your cacti with a few layers of sun shade cloth, you can use garden plant fleece cover for this, cover the cacti loosely to still allow air to the cacti and keep your cacti away from the heat of the sun for the first 10 days, remove a layer of fleece cover every 3 days to slowly acclimatise your cacti to receiving more light, by the end of the 10 days your cacti will have acclimatised to the higher light levels of the outside.

I overwinter my cold hardy cacti that can take 5c /41F in my polytunnel that is light and bright, but my non cold hardy cacti I move indoors for winter and I overwinter these in my Grow Room, I do use special LED Grow lights in the corners of the room where there are no windows to give my cacti a boost of light over the winter, and although this is not a necessity when cacti are dormant in winter I personally find the additional grow lights in winter help to boost the cacti for producing buds and flowers the following spring, if you do have a bright and ideally a sunny position to overwinter your cacti in winter such as a sunny window, greenhouse or sun room/ conservatory then this will help to boost your chances of getting more flowers in the spring and summer, but if you only have a dark position to overwinter your cacti it does not mean you won’t still see flowers on your cacti in the spring and summer, I know plenty of growers who get lots of flowers on their cacti in spring and summer who overwinter their cacti cool and dark in basements, garages, cellars, sheds etc.

Grow Lights for plants
Although not a necessity LED Grow Lights can be an extra boost for your cacti over the winter.

DAMP & HUMIDITY

Believe it or not its not the cold that is the biggest challenge for cacti in winter but the damp and humidity that is a problem for cacti in winter especially if you live in a climate that has high humidity such as the U.K or Ireland. I live in Ireland and the humidity is always high here, during the summer its not an issue when the cacti are actively growing, but in winter high air humidity can cause damp and black spots and even base and stem rot on dormant cacti, indoors this is rarely a problem especially with indoor air being drier due to central heating in winter, but for cacti that are in greenhouses, polytunnels, unheated sun rooms/conservatories, sheds etc then high humidity can be a killer for cacti, the best way to deal with this is to open up doors, windows, vents on the dry and cool winter days to ventilate and change the air as much as possible, use large circulating fans in greenhouses etc to keep the air circulating on the days its too cold or windy or wet to open up doors, I always try to open up the polytunnel door by half a metre for at least 4 hours a day on the days its not too wet and windy to circulate the air inside my polytunnel as much as possible, its the cold stagnant non moving air that is the biggest challenge for cacti, a large circulating fan is ideal to have on for a few hours each day if doors cannot be opened, there are also special dehumidifiers that are made especially for cold rooms such as basements, sheds and greenhouses, I have a dehumidifier especially for my polytunnel that works well at low temperatures, I use one by ProBreeze and have it on a few hours during the days it is exceptionally wet and it helps to lower the inside air humidity inside of my polytunnel to about 50%, they can however be expensive to run if used daily and because of this I alternate between using a circulating fan which is very economical and opening the polytunnel door on the non windy days as much as possible.

PESTS & DISEASES

Those annoying ‘Beasties’ like Mealy Bugs, Spider Mites, Scale insects are always around even in the winter, but they do slow down during their activity during the colder months of winter if cacti are overwintered cool in greenhouses, polytunnels etc, but indoors in winter when the central heating radiators are on encourages ‘beasties’ to still attack cacti, Mealy bugs and especially Spider mites love the dry warm air of indoors and when cacti are dormant they are less resistant to pests, its very important to be extra vigilant with pests on cacti during winter, any signs of pests should be dealt with as soon as possible, use a tiny brush or q tip dipped in rubbing alcohol to remove any Mealy bugs and their woolly nests and any scale insects can be rubbed off with a brush and rubbing alcohol, but Spider mites and are not as easy to get rid of during winter when cacti need to be kept dry, normally I love to use Horticultural Neem oil in spring and summer to spray the cacti both to prevent and treat any signs of spider mites etc as its a natural pesticide, but during winter I don’t like to use Neem oil as I find it impossible to use without some of the Neem oil solution wetting the soil, so during winter I have to use the chemical method instead and use ‘Bug Clear Ultra 2’ concentrate on any spider mites I see because this dries fast on the cacti and does not tend to wet the soil, I also use Diatomaceous earth dusted on all the cacti both indoors and in the polytunnel as this will also help to slow down and prevent those annoying little ‘Beasts’ from attacking your beloved cacti.

Mealy bugs, mealybugs, mealybug on cactus, mealybugs on cactus, cactus mealybug, how to get rid of mealybug on cactus,
Mealy bug on cactus, Cacti are not as resistant to these little ‘Beasties’ during winter when Cacti are dormant.

The most common diseases of cacti in winter is basal and stem rot, molds and virus’s, its not the cold itself but the combination of the cold and damp and wet that causes these problems, wet and cold dormant cacti are a recipe for cactus death, even watering a dormant cactus indoors in a warm position can sometimes cause rot issues because the cactus is dormant and will not be taking up water via its roots, keeping your cactus dry and making sure the air circulation in greenhouses, sheds, sun rooms, conservatories etc is ventilated regularly as mentioned before with doors, vents, windows circulating fans etc is a fantastic prevention for molds, rots and other issues, also making sure your cacti are protected from frost and protected from any night temperatures that fall below 5c /41F.

I hope you enjoyed reading this Article and got some tips and tricks on How to keep your Cactus ALIVE over Winter.

I have made a video for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on ‘How to keep your Cactus ALIVE over Winter’ and you can watch this video below.

Wishing you all a wonderful Happy Holiday Season and New Year Cactus Powered 2025 and Thank you for your continued love and support throughout 2024.

LOVE and HAPPINESS and PLANT POWER ALWAYS.

Lyn.

Its been a BLOOMING AMAZING Summer for my Cacti

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Hi Guys,

I hope you have all had a wonderful 2024 growing Season with your Cacti and Succulents this year, I can’t believe that we are already into Autumn now and the growing season is almost coming to an end, I say it every year BUT I really do feel that this Summer has definitely gone faster than any other years Summer, but I think that may also have something to do with this Summer being the wettest, cloudiest and coolest and windiest Summer in Ireland that I can ever remember.

Despite the awful Summer in Ireland this year I am very happy to say that my Cacti have continued to bloom their beautiful flowers and this Summer has been one of the best for my cacti with their flowering.

My Parodia werneri in beautiful pink flower 2024.

I always love to take photos of my blooming Cacti every Summer and I love to share their beautiful flowers with you all in my Blogs and on my You Tube Channel.

I am often being asked how to get Cacti to bloom and it can depend on many different things, in general Cacti do appreciate a cool and dry overwintering period from late September until late March/ early April, In the Spring I like to give them a fertilising with a tomato feed used at half the strength that they recommend for tomatoes, I fertilise them with every 3rd watering I give them from April until late August.

The reason I like to use Tomato feed is because it is high in potassium which can encourage more buds and blooms, plenty of sunshine is a bonus for producing buds and blooms especially for Cacti that need a sunny day for them to fully open their flowers such as many of the Gymnocalycium and Astrophytum. Cacti such as Echinopsis and Epiphyllum and Cleistocacti will often still bloom in overcast weather and of course the night bloomers such as ‘Queen of the Night’ Selenicereus grandiflorus and Epiphyllum oxypetalum and Echinocereus gentryi don’t need the sun to come out at night, they do however appreciate sun during the days to encourage the buds to fully develop.

My Echinocereus gentryi var. cucumis is a night bloomer and the flowers close again midday the next day, this Cactus does still need a sunny position during the day to still produce the buds though.

If you feel a bit sad at the thought of waiting until next Spring until you see your Cacti bloom again then why not try growing the winter blooming Cacti too ? Schlumbergera Cacti more commonly known as Thanksgiving Cacti and Christmas Cacti are wonderful bloomers during the Winter and have long lasting exotic blooms that come in many colours of red, white, orange, pink, lilac, purple and even yellow and they also make wonderful house plants and are pretty easy to care for, these beauties will even flower in a north facing window meaning you can enjoy the beauty of their flowers inside your house at a time when all the other Cacti are having their Winter snooze.

My Schlumbergera buckleyi ‘Christmas Cactus’ These Cacti always help to brighten up the dark Winter months with their stunning blooms.

Here are some photos of my Cacti that have been blooming gorgeous over this Summer, I hope you enjoy the blooms and if you want to see a slideshow of all the blooms on my Cacti this Spring and Summer then do watch my video I have made for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on ‘My Cactus Blooms of Summer 2024‘

My Mammillaria hahniana in pretty pink flower 2024.

My Mammillaria bocasana in cream flower 2024

My Mammillaria ID Unknown in Pink Flower 2024.

My Parodia chrysacanthion in canary yellow flower 2024.

My Rebutia heliosa in Flower 2024.

My Stenocactus multicostatus in flower 2024.

My Aporocactus flagelliformis ‘Rats Tail Cactus’ in shocking pink flower 2024.

My Mammillaria ID Unknown in flower 2024.

My Rebutia ID unknown in beautiful bright orange flower 2024.

My Mammillaria ID unknown in flower 2024.

My Epiphyllum ID unknown in pink Flower 2024.

My Mammillaria longimamma in yellow flower 2024.

My 30 year old Lophophora williamsii in pale pink flower 2024.

My 30 year old Astrophytum ornatum in golden flower 2024.

My Echinocereus gentryi and Chamaelobivia ‘Wendy’ in flower 2024.

My Aporocactus mallisonii in Flower 2024.

My Thelocactus hexaendrophorus in twin flower 2024.

My Neoprteria paucicostata in pink flower 2024.

My Mammillaria camptotricha ‘dolichothele’ in flower 2024.

My Epiphyllum ID unknown in twin flower 2024.

My Mammillaria ‘Magic Baby’ in flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ‘baldianum’ in twin flower 2024.

My Neoporteria paucicostata re blooming again with multiple blooms 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ID Unknown in flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium baldianum in flower 2024.

My Epiphyllum ‘Pegasus’ in shocking pink flower 2024.

My Epiphyllum ‘Ackermannii’ in red flower 2024.

My Copiapoa in golden yellow flower 2024.

My Epiphyllum ‘Mrs G Bheam’ in pastel pink flower 2024.

My Parodia ottonis in triple flower 2024.

My Pilosocereus pachyclaudus in Flower 2024.

My Echinopsis eyeresii in flower 2024.

My Epiphyllum ‘Madeline’ in twin flower 2024.

My Echinopsis oxygona in flower 2024.

My Rebutia ID unknown in canary yellow flower 2024.

My Parodia ID Unknown in golden flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ‘saglionis’ in quadruple flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium saglionis in quadruple Flower 2024.

My Trichocereus scopulicola in flower 2024.

My Astrophytum capricorne x senilis in stunning flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ID Unknown in flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ID Unknown in Flower 2024.

My Chamaecereus ‘Rose Quartz’ in pink flower 2024.

My Echinopsis ID Unknown in big white flower 2024.

My Epiphyllum ‘Fantasy’ in deep pink Flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ID unknown in flower 2024.

My Parodia warasii in flower 2024.

My Astrophytum myriostigma ‘nudum’ in golden flower 2024.

My Astrophytum ornatum in flower 2024.

My Echinopsis ID unknown in twin flower 2024.

My Trichocereus grandiflorus ‘Red Star’ in STUNNING red bouquet of flowers 2024.

My Echinopsis sudenudata in quadruple flower 2024.

My 7ft tall Trichocereus pachanoi in flower 2024.

My Lophophora williamsii in twin flower 2024.

My Cleistocactus colademononsis ‘Monkey’s Tail’ in flower 2024.

My Parodia magnifica in twin flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ID Unknown in flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium mihanovichii ‘variegata’ in pink flower 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ‘Root Beer’ in pale pink Flower 2024.

My Parodia/Notocactus lenighausii in flower 2024.

My Strombocactus disciformis flowering for the first time 2024.

My Gymnocalycium ‘root Beer’ in beautiful Flower 2024.

My Clesitocactus winterii ‘Golden Rat’s Tail’ in flower 2024.

I hope you enjoyed the beautiful blooms and if you want to know ‘How to get your Cacti to Flower’ then check out my video I have made for my You Tube Channel called Desert Plants of Avalon on ‘How to get Cacti to flower’ and you can watch this video below:

Thanks so much for reading Guys and wishing you all a fantastic Plant Powered Autumn/Fall.