How to water your Succs and Such!
Hey there, #GregGang 👋🏽
I’ve been seeing #Greggers struggling with their #Cactus recently and wanted to make a post to help y’all out with watering!
To start, Cacti are like #succulents! They drink and hold water in their their “leaves” or cactus pads, allowing them to use over time. Because of their amazing way to store water, frequent watering is not needed. It is recommended to water cacti every 8-14 days. In the summer, you may need to increase water, but rarely. In the winter, watering frequencies will decrease. This is just a rule of thumb and it varies based on location, pot type and medium used to pot/repot, but it’s a general estimate of when to water.
Many people use different ways to help them know when their cactus needs watering. The ways I suggest is to use the look of your cactus! When cacti are thirsty, they will start to wrinkle a little. If your cactus starts to look a little deflated or wrinkled, this is a sign that your cactus is thirsty (see second image). Another way is by making sure the soil is dry! A great way to check if your soil is dry is to take a wooden skewer, pencil, or something alike, stick in soil and if it comes up dry, your cactus is ready for water (see third image). If not, wait a couple more days before watering, or when your cactus shows signs of underwatering.
With cacti, it’s recommended to keep the soil dry between waterings as they’re hardy plants and survive in the desert (where water is scarce). If the soil holds moisture for too long, this can cause root rot and/or cactus flesh rotting. To avoid this, make sure your soil is dry before you water. The medium you use to pot/repot your cactus is key! You want to make sure it’s somewhat gritty for aeration and excellent drainage! I recommend mixing regular potting mix (I don’t recommend MiracleGro) and other mediums such as perlite, pumice, or vermiculite. If you don’t want to use soil, you can sub for gravel, coco coir, sand, and or perlite!
The way you water your cactus is *extremely important*. I personally suggest bottom watering or #ButtChug. This is a method of watering cacti that prevents cactus flesh from rotting due to overhead watering. I take a big plastic container, fill it with water and place my cactus in there for 8-10 minutes, letting it soak up as much as it can. Others suggest leaving it for 20-30 minutes, it all depends on the size and pot. My cactus is in a 4” terracotta pot (I suggest to pot these types of plants in porous pots) so it’ll suck up the water faster than most. I do not overhead water cactus. If you do this, look into bottom watering your cactus! It will thank you. 🌵✨
I think underwatering is better than overwatering as damages caused by too much water tend to be irreversible, or a tough battle to fight. If you’re unsure of when to water, either ask #CactusClique for advice or try to find a way to check if your soil is bone dry before you water. Good luck, y’all! 😁🤞🏽✨
#HappyPlants #PlantsMakePeopleHappy #PlantAddict #NewGrowth #GregGang #CactusClique #BunnyEarCactus #TipsandTricks #Mammillaria #kscapedream #SucculentLove #SucculentSquad #Euphorbia
I’ve been seeing #Greggers struggling with their #Cactus recently and wanted to make a post to help y’all out with watering!
To start, Cacti are like #succulents! They drink and hold water in their their “leaves” or cactus pads, allowing them to use over time. Because of their amazing way to store water, frequent watering is not needed. It is recommended to water cacti every 8-14 days. In the summer, you may need to increase water, but rarely. In the winter, watering frequencies will decrease. This is just a rule of thumb and it varies based on location, pot type and medium used to pot/repot, but it’s a general estimate of when to water.
Many people use different ways to help them know when their cactus needs watering. The ways I suggest is to use the look of your cactus! When cacti are thirsty, they will start to wrinkle a little. If your cactus starts to look a little deflated or wrinkled, this is a sign that your cactus is thirsty (see second image). Another way is by making sure the soil is dry! A great way to check if your soil is dry is to take a wooden skewer, pencil, or something alike, stick in soil and if it comes up dry, your cactus is ready for water (see third image). If not, wait a couple more days before watering, or when your cactus shows signs of underwatering.
With cacti, it’s recommended to keep the soil dry between waterings as they’re hardy plants and survive in the desert (where water is scarce). If the soil holds moisture for too long, this can cause root rot and/or cactus flesh rotting. To avoid this, make sure your soil is dry before you water. The medium you use to pot/repot your cactus is key! You want to make sure it’s somewhat gritty for aeration and excellent drainage! I recommend mixing regular potting mix (I don’t recommend MiracleGro) and other mediums such as perlite, pumice, or vermiculite. If you don’t want to use soil, you can sub for gravel, coco coir, sand, and or perlite!
The way you water your cactus is *extremely important*. I personally suggest bottom watering or #ButtChug. This is a method of watering cacti that prevents cactus flesh from rotting due to overhead watering. I take a big plastic container, fill it with water and place my cactus in there for 8-10 minutes, letting it soak up as much as it can. Others suggest leaving it for 20-30 minutes, it all depends on the size and pot. My cactus is in a 4” terracotta pot (I suggest to pot these types of plants in porous pots) so it’ll suck up the water faster than most. I do not overhead water cactus. If you do this, look into bottom watering your cactus! It will thank you. 🌵✨
I think underwatering is better than overwatering as damages caused by too much water tend to be irreversible, or a tough battle to fight. If you’re unsure of when to water, either ask #CactusClique for advice or try to find a way to check if your soil is bone dry before you water. Good luck, y’all! 😁🤞🏽✨
#HappyPlants #PlantsMakePeopleHappy #PlantAddict #NewGrowth #GregGang #CactusClique #BunnyEarCactus #TipsandTricks #Mammillaria #kscapedream #SucculentLove #SucculentSquad #Euphorbia
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I feel like we need a hash tag to save really detailed posts with images and such good suggestions. Maybe #GregLibrary - what do you think?
@kaleena uhhh yes! I absolutely love this but fear that people may use it because it’s just trending or show up on their feed, and not actual suggestions/informational posts.
@AwesomePlants BAHAHAHA I LOVE THIS 🤣🤣🤣🤣