Mastering Cactus Care: Winter Dormancy & Watering Tips
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 พ.ย. 2023
- Explore the fascinating world of cacti and succulents as we delve into their unique winter dormancy habits and watering strategies. Join us to learn when and how to care for these plants during the colder months and discover the exceptions to the rules. Whether you're a cactus enthusiast or a novice, this video is packed with valuable insights to help your plants like Ariocarpus, Lophophora, Turbinicarpus, Copiapoa, and others thrive. Don't forget to leave your questions in the comments.
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This is interesting. I know all this stuff but you know how when you learned something and then you don't use it for a while and then it's winter again and you have to relearn it? Yeah, that's me today.
Great point! I know exactly what you mean 😅 It happens to me all the time!
hi there,cactus grower in the uk here.found your channel by chance.very imformative.just wanted to say thanks.
Welcome! Thanks so much 🌵
Great info, and gorgeous specimens 👌🏼 I’m relatively new to cacti, and I’m trying to learn as much as I can. Currently living with over 100 cacti inside, because I’m in zone 7b. With lights, watering, heat etc, it can be a little overwhelming when they all have different needs. Grateful for TH-cam and videos like this
Thanks Danny! I haven’t tried my luck yet with indoor growing but I know many people all over the world with outstanding collections all grown indoors. I’d also like to start some seedlings indoors soon 🤓
Thank you for your excellent channel! I love cacti!
Thank you!!! 💚💚 And thanks for visiting 🤓
Once again, great video and surely helpful to many.
As you said, it's important to take any information with a grain of salt, since most of it is based on relatively subjective experiences within environments that may differ to the ones in your area or in your greenhouse.
One aspect that I think is disregarded too often is the latitude of your location. Certain areas in Alaska and in Colorado have similar temperatures in winter, but Alaska gets 5 hours of daylight, while Colorado gets 9 hours. Those 4 hours can make a huge difference for your plants.
While, in Colorado, you may be able to get your cacti through most of winter without going into dormancy in a heated environment; in Alaska, it would definitely require grow lights to keep photosynthesis at a high enough rate.
This is just one of many variables to consider while planning for the cold season.
Thanks for sharing that because altitude is something I don’t consider often living on the coast, but it’s definitely a huge factor. Besides the sunlight hours which you mentioned and temperature, sunlight is much more intense the higher you go. I recently took a light meter on my trip to Chile (I’ll be sharing those videos soon) and it’s astounding just how intense the sun is at higher elevations even a couple miles apart! Thanks for watching 🤓
I enjoyed watching Miguel😊🙏🌵It gets down to 17℃ at night in midwinter here and about 30% humidity. The days are 50℃ with bright sunshine, it's very warm actually, but the air is what causes the freeze and frost. The cacti actually love it. They go 100% dormant and shrink dramatically. Echinopsis need a drink every 2 weeks with a spritz. We have on average 2 rainy days a month from November until April. For growers that have wet winters with temperatures below 30℃, then cacti keep trying to be hydrated and rot easily except some Cereus like Jamacaru and the Trichocereus peruvianus that like some winter rain. What I have learnt is that a lot of Notocactus can take much more cold than is said, but only if you have the same dry winters and a lot of sunshine like in their habitat.
Thanks for watching! It’s so interesting to read the wide range of environments these beauties are able to thrive in! Who is Miguel? 😆 - Manuel 😮
Just found your channel!,very informative, I'm a new cactus mom best one I've seen. I'm in the west coast ...thank you for sharing
Hi Gloria congratulations and welcome to an amazing hobby! Thanks for your kind words 💚🌵
Love the way you explain very good information and easy to understand thank you
Thanks so much and thanks for watching!!
Thank you - I have A. asterias and a couple other Astros. I'm always looking for good info on the individual needs of cacti during winter. I'm in Houston so it's not consistently cold here yet, and I'm trying not to just water everything 'one last time' before the temps drop, just those who need it.
You’re welcome! They’re beautiful and do better with a little less water than a little more haha
Thank you for such a thorough explanation. Very helpful!
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching 🙂
I overwinter mine outdoors wrapped in paper next to the house wall. Stopped watering a month before. Coldest temperature they had to endure was -2 Celsius. Coldest temerature this winter was -7 Celsius. They al survived! I read about a guy who successfully overwinter his in even colder temperatures. Most important seems to be dryness of the soil and air circulation. Thank you for your videos. I enjoy them a lot.
That’s very interesting thank you! Do you have Copiapoa? Or mostly Mexican cacti? Thanks for watching!
Great information! Thank you!
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching
Thanks for sharing, great advice!!!
Glad it was helpful! Thank you
Thank you for your knowledgeable post! I appreciate your explanation and detail.
You’re very welcome Tara thanks for watching! Good luck with the new cinerea 🌵💚
I hear a lot of advice on benefits of inducing winter dormancy. Unfortunately I don’t have a greenhouse and all I can do is bring them inside. I made mistake of leaving out my Mexican fence post when it got to 36 and suffered cold damage (brown marks). So I’ll just play it safe and bring everything inside (do have a nice grow light set up).
Same here. I induce it because not doing so has killed some of my plants due to rot 😞
Just subscribed to your channel. Thank you for the info. Question: I live in El Paso and there’s a desert area slated for construction. I’ve asked the workers if I can dig up plants and/or grab some cacti pads (mostly prickly pear varieties). Would propagation for these pads be stressful at this time of year or will they bounce back and produce roots in the spring if I plant them in pots, keep indoors? Our winters are mild but surprises can happen (snow and teens temps). Thanks again for your content.
Welcome! I don’t ever recommend removing cacti from the wild, but opuntia is very fast growing and not endangered and should definitely survive the transplant. Good luck
ECOLOGY CACTUS COOL AND WARM
Yes that’s what they love 🌞
Great video. I grow under lights year around, and my coldest nights are 60° F. To water or not is a hard decision. I noted your Brazil comment. Thanks for expressing your thoughts.
Thank you! And you’re very welcome 🤓
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Thanks for watching!
I live on the west coast of Florida, I should stop watering as temps lower to what temp . I’ve been growing them from seed since 2018 and my prized plant is a Texas nipple cactus . It flowers, I cross pollinated them and have been getting little red peppers for months . At what point will they stop producing fruit and start to flower again like last year , nice collection, wish I had more space . Thanks Greg
Thanks Greg please watch the video for temperature ranges. Usually after fall they stop flowering 🌵
tellement de conditions de cultures différentes et de climats différents ...,du coup les arrosages ..... c’est vraiment a adapter .
Definitely, I made sure to mention exactly that because no rule is universal.
I’m in west Texas, where is snows and gets well before 37° for extended periods. Would you offer some insight into watering plants over the winter that you have brought indoors. House usually around 68-70, but sunlight is greatly reduced. Much appreciated! Love your work
I would let them rest unless they’re seedlings, in which case I would experiment giving them very little zips of water once each 10 days to experiment. Thanks for watching!
They are mature plants. So no water even at 68°? These are south texas/mexico carpus & lophs…
@@wesleymccabe7841 you can definitely experiment, but if sunlight is reduced and your plants are mature and have a taproot, any water is more likely to do harm than any good.
Thank you!!!
Just wanted to follow up on this. Definitely do not NOT water your ariocarpus for months on end as he suggested to me. I lost multiple ario’s doing this. I recently spoke with Gene at Plants of the SW in Tucson, he assured me you need to water about once a month. Tough losses but you live you learn.
Great information!
I would like to know if europhobia plants are also not watered during winter months. I live in Canada where winters are cold. My cactus and eurphobia plants are indoors under grow lights in front of South facing windows. Thanks.
Thank you! I do stop watering my euphorbia when temperatures drop as well! But I have no experience growing indoors to be honest 😅
Very nice guides , how about living in tropics here in Philippines , I also have lophophora williamsii , turbinicarpus , copiapoa , ariocarpus just all of them in my collection , does they require dormancy ?
Thank you! Since your winters are pretty warm, it’s not obligatory to allow them dormancy and they can grow year round. You just have to shield them from rain like I do and I would recommend you pick one month in the winter to stop watering and induce dormancy as an experiment. You will see more blooms the next spring 🤓🌵 Thanks for watching.
Thanks for a great video. Is dormancy a kind of on/off thing, or does growth just slow down gradually with decreased temperature? I've got some mostly Trichocereus yearlings indoors under artificial light, but it's a house that's difficult to keep warm so typically will be around 17°C (62°F). I'm wondering if I'd be better off drying them out completely and putting them in the dark, cold cellar for proper dormancy and saving the electricity.
Thank you! I’ve heard some people over winter in the dark but honestly I’ve never tried it. I think your best bet is to experiment with little water on one or two seedlings and waiting a week or two to see how they react, then try the same method with the others. Trichos tend to love water but not too much cold.
So I moved, and the only south windows I have are downstairs (not a great option) and my daughters room.
Also, my house is not 50 degrees in the winter.
I'm scared of etiolating.
How do I keep them Dormant in the winter if I have to move them inside?
What about rain? I live in California and I cover them with tarps during the rain
That’s a good idea, mine are also covered year round
I have a question, if you don't water at all, some plants, the Echinocactus Grusonii for example, they will lose their roots. Wouldn't you want to just greatly reduce the watering instead, say to 30%?
Definitely, some species will benefit from a little water. But it all depends on just how cold it gets in your area.
What do you do about cacti that are outside and receive rain during the winter months; like in TX?
I keep mine under cover from rain year round here in south Florida
If you have cactus indoors in a home that is on average around 70 degrees do the cactus go dormant in winter time and should I stop watering. I received a large cactus for Christmas.
Hi James! I’m afraid I have no working knowledge of growing indoors but if your plant has a taproot you can stop watering and induce dormancy for a month or two.
Hi Manuel. I've seen many videos advising abt d change in d seasons frm summer, autumn, winter affecting d cacti and succulents. Wld these plants react similarly in weather where I'm staying, Malaysia? Our weather generally is hot, very hot and dry wen its dry season, hot and wet with a bit cooler wen it's d rainy season.
I ask dis question because stimes a particular cacti seem to remain 'dormant' for a long period(I can't say which season it is), and then perks up growth suddenly( fortunate for d cactus I didn't think to discard it!).
Hi thanks for watching! If your winters are hot enough they can grow year round but you can still not water a few of your plants for 1-2 months and see how they do the following blooming season 😉
Always happy to see you post!
How about aspirin to help their immunity during dormancy? And maybe one last shot of nitrogen (instead of P/K)?
My plants are confused right now - they went from happy shade all summer (115 degrees), and now full sun for 8 hours lol
One thing I'm certain of is that cacti prefer shade over full sun lol
Definitely! Most of them prefer a bit of shade. I’ve never heard of aspirin being used and Nitrogen is not a good idea for most of the cacti I grow but of course trichocereus are quite different in that department.
Hi, how often do you water Astophytums over the winter?
I try to water as little as possible. Only asterias like a little water. About once each 3-4 weeks if any water at all. Other species of Astros, no water.
Thanks for the advice. I live in Austria and propably we soon get night temperatures below zero and I heard that kills cacti and sukkulents for sure. So I take them inside but I try to keep them not too warm (around 18 to 20°C) and while the cacti get totally ignored (I just check them for little pests) the sukkulents get water about once a month. You think that is okay? :)
That sounds good 👍 Have you done this previous years? If it works in your climate it works 💪🏽 Thanks for watching all the way from Australia 🌵💚
even if i wanted to i couldnt give them winter dormancy. its -30s here during winter and extremely damp. most people here (canada) during winter dont have anywhere thats 50F unless they are willing to spend 150$ month on heating bills for a heated greenhouse (to keep at 5 or 10c). so far 3rd year and ive only lost 4 cacti (not counting seedlings haha and actually not winter or cold related but at random or poor conditon rescues). not sure if i will ever have the setup for winter dormancy. tho its interesting, i want to see what effects it has long term.
Sorry but I didn’t understand your comment 😅 if it’s under 30 degrees they definitely could use the rest and aren’t doing much if any growing at all.
@@RareCactus you either bring ur plants in. Or leave em outside in a greenhouse with a heater on for 6 months costing upwards of 1000 dollars.
@@claudekim7876 oh yeah then they’re definitely getting their dormancy 🙂
Large cacti are easier the keep over winter here in Northern Europe than seedlings. You have to bring the smaller ones inside the house on the sunniest window so you can give them some water. Larger cacti I just stop in October and leave until April. They are fine but the winter humidity here is very high. This is can sometimes cause brown spotting on them so you just have to skip growing some types. Surprising Copiapoa seem OK with this more that the ones from the deserts on the US. Basically you will lose some and unless you are desperate to have that particular type just learn to live with the fact you cannot grow them all in the northern latitudes. You can only fight nature so much. Rare cacti are rare for a reason and it is usually because they have evolved for a very specific niche climate. I grow more than cacti and have been desperate to get those other rare beauties from the high alpine or arctic growing here in Northern Europe but they are even more temperamental than cacti and need to be grown in special alpine greenhouses.
That’s very interesting, thanks for sharing! It does make sense that “babies” (seedlings) are a bit more difficult since they’re not as strong yet. Have you had a chance to check out my videos on the habitat of Copiapoa? They do encounter more humidity than the Northerner genera so it makes sense they like your humid winters 🤓🌵 Thanks for watching!
@@RareCactus I have watched a lot of the filming you have done in the Atacama as you have the best content on this anywhere. I am working my way through the other areas you have filmed in as well. The only other poster who has done a good series in the Atacama is Crime Pays Botany Does Not. My Copiapoa Cinerea I had as a seedling nearly 35 years ago and boy is it slow growing! 5-6 inches high. Not for the impatient grower. It has grown with a distinct lean to the sun like those in the wild.
@@issigonis975 wow that’s amazing! I hope to one day have seedlings that old 🌵🤩 They definitely take their time but in my opinion that only makes them more special 💚 Thanks so much for the kind words, it’s an honor to be mentioned alongside Tony, he is a huge inspiration for my work and a dear friend.