How to Grow More Cactus

The cactus is probably one of the easiest plants to propagate. Divisions and cuttings are cheap and simple ways to increase the supply of your favorite plants.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. 
   This was grown from a single pad. It blooms in orange.

   You can make more of your favorite cactus in several ways. All members of the Opuntia family, or bunny-rabbit cactus, are made of of individual pads or cylinders, one growing out of the next. Any single pad can be detached, dried for a day or two, and stuck in well-draining soil with a lot of sand mixed in. Keep it dry for a few days before watering and let the soil dry out completely between waterings. Before long, the scarred tissue were the pad was removed will send out new roots and a new plant will grow.

2. 
   Pups

   Spherical cacti like the Echinops, Mammilaria and Rebutia (only a few of many) will form clumps with numbers of baby cacti clinging to the parent plant. Young offshoots can be pulled away, preferably with some roots attached and watered like the above Opuntia. These will grow on to adulthood and send out their own new pups.

3. 
   Columnar cactus branching

   The tall columnar cactus plants like Saguaro, Cereus and Cleistocactus (again, only a few examples of many) are best propagated like the Opuntia. Cut or break off a side shoot, dry and plant.

4. 
   A Cleistocactus with off-shoots at the base

   Some of these columnar cacti will also send up new shoots around the base that can be dug, pulled or cut off. Occasionally, you can get a piece of these cactus plants to root from a sliced piece that is dried and calloused over.

5. If you are very patient, you can grow cacti from seed. Many seed catalogs offer interesting mixtures. Most are easy to germinate if you follow the instructions and the little cactus plants are fascinating to watch grow.

6. 

   You can fill a whole garden by propagating just a few cactus plants! And a cactus garden can be both fascinating and beautiful.

Tips & Warnings

• Be careful when working with cactus plants
• Wear thick hide gloves
• Carry pieces wrapped in newspaper
• BE ESPECIALLY CAREFUL OF THE OPUNTIA FAMILY. Even those that appear to have little or no spines have 'glochids' -- fine stinging hairs that detach easily and lodge in skin. They are so fine they are hard to see and remove. And they get everywhere. Rub gloves in sand or soil to remove them when you remove your gloves or they can stick in your skin when you handle the gloves!

Resources

• How to grow cacti and succulents
• Gates & Croft Horticultural Design info and ideas
• How to grow a cactus and succulent garden

[QABumper]

on 10/6/2008 For years I never succeed growing them from the detached pad. They all dried out and never revive. Guess I just need to keep trying and wish me good luck!

[thesquirrelymom]

on 10/4/2008 My brother loves cacti.