Cactus question

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

Why am I not surprised

CACTI PICS.

 

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

CACTI PICS.

Also I may learn something

 

[fluffycrow]

So, this is the burnt prickly pear.
View attachment 4061228View attachment 4061226
You can see how bad it looks, but there is the new growth, which is encouraging. The main part I’m worried about is the open spot right here where it broke off…
View attachment 4061225

And these are the mystery cacti, though one of them had a tag on the ground next to it, and I’m pretty sure one other is some type of opuntia like cacti.

This one I didn’t get a great photo of. It bloomed last year and had dark pink blossoms, it was really pretty.
View attachment 4061221

This one looks similar, but its little segments aren’t shaped like pads, they’re more cylindrical. This one is the one that had a tag.
View attachment 4061222View attachment 4061223

And then there’s this thing that’s been sitting with no growth for about three years. It’s got maybe two roots, is planted in a horrible place in full shade, and it probably dead at this point
View attachment 4061227

Edited because I forgot to add the last one…pretty sure this is another prickly pear, unfortunately it looks really bad. I’m thinking maybe frost damage? It’s laying flat on the ground and is squishy to touch…
View attachment 4061220

Ok, you’re right, things aren’t great, but they aren’t bad either!

The most encouraging part is the new growth (photo two). That will most likely take root right into the ground and be the start of your new opuntia.

Any pads that are half burned can go either way: if their base is burned, then you can only hope that they have enough energy to put out one more pad, that you will later cut off, let callous, and plant directly into the soil. If their base is not burned, then there’s a slight possibility that if planted into soil, they will be able to continue growing normally. If not, they are likely to do what is stated above.

As the plant has tipped over, and pretty much all the pads are touching the soil, I’m going to go ahead and say to leave it like that; at least for some time. That being said, if you do feel like going ahead and removing all the burned pads, I also see no issue. Just make sure that any pads you keep are calloused over when planted in the soil.

Moving on to ID, seems like there’s a common theme here; Ouch!

The first one could be some kind of mammillaria, although not sure. Could also be a cholla, which is what your second one is!

You know those videos of people trying to get cacti off of them? Yeah, that’s cholla. I believe they are also called jumping cacti (because they are connected in such a way that each individual cylindrical pad can easily get detached from the mother plant), but I’m not 100% on that.

The last two are opuntia. What kind of variety, I don’t know. The one you say is dead isn’t actually dead, just super slow growing. Possibly because of the lack of sunlight. The last one…eh it’s definitely seen better days. I have absolutely no experience with frost damage, so I cannot say if that’s what it is (although I’d imagine frost damage would appear more like a burn?). This to me seems more like a very overwatered succulent. Whether it’s salvageable, I’m not sure. Given that it’s an opuntia, I won’t recommend you go touch it to find out. So really, all you can do on that one is not water it for a while, and see if any of the pads appear to be alive.

Hope this was helpful, although I’m afraid it’s more chaotic than anything

 

[TwoCrows]

So, this is the burnt prickly pear.
View attachment 4061228View attachment 4061226
You can see how bad it looks, but there is the new growth, which is encouraging. The main part I’m worried about is the open spot right here where it broke off…
View attachment 4061225

And these are the mystery cacti, though one of them had a tag on the ground next to it, and I’m pretty sure one other is some type of opuntia like cacti.

This one I didn’t get a great photo of. It bloomed last year and had dark pink blossoms, it was really pretty.
View attachment 4061221

This one looks similar, but its little segments aren’t shaped like pads, they’re more cylindrical. This one is the one that had a tag.
View attachment 4061222View attachment 4061223

And then there’s this thing that’s been sitting with no growth for about three years. It’s got maybe two roots, is planted in a horrible place in full shade, and it probably dead at this point
View attachment 4061227

Edited because I forgot to add the last one…pretty sure this is another prickly pear, unfortunately it looks really bad. I’m thinking maybe frost damage? It’s laying flat on the ground and is squishy to touch…
View attachment 4061220

The burned pads look pretty bad and the burning may have killed the entire plant. BUT cacti are pretty resilient and I'd leave the plant alone as new foliage could start growing in the spring. You will be able to tell because the growth will be a bright green. Cacti are still dormant right now but should start to wake up sometime in April or May.

These might be savable...

As might those pads that are laying in the ground, they look very thirsty hence the wrinkled soft texture. What is the weather doing in your Territory? If spring is starting to lurk in your area, you might put on some leather gloves, and carefully so you don't get prickled, bury those pads pointy end down, about 1/3 of the pad in the ground. One week from today Id gently water them down, get the dirt good and wet. Then leave them alone, as long as it rains occasionally, they hopefully will start to grow roots!

The plant with all the arms is a Cholla (pronounced choh yah).

 

[fluffycrow]

As might those pads that are laying in the ground, they look very thirsty hence the wrinkled soft texture. What is the weather doing in your Territory? If spring is starting to lurk in your area, you might put on some leather gloves, and carefully so you don't get prickled, bury those pads pointy end down, about 1/3 of the pad in the ground. One week from today Id gently water them down, get the dirt good and wet. Then leave them alone, as long as it rains occasionally, they hopefully will start to grow roots!

Seems like we disagree there, but I think you might be right!

I was leaning overwatering simply because while both over and under watering present themselves very similarly, some of the middle pads look a bit orange-y. That’s usually a sign of overwatering. Given the time of year, I also assumed that it’s easier for a succulent to absorb too much water, rather than too little.

At the same time, though, the pads at the top seem to be presenting sun stress, which can also happen with extreme cold. I have only noticed my plants showing this kind of stress colour in the winter if I have left them without water for too long; never the opposite.

Your one week advice sound very fair. If it is under watering, they should all do great. If indeed some of the pads have gotten too much water, then in one week’s time it should even clearer

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

Thanks so much for all your advice! I will leave the burnt one alone for now then, as some part of it is probably alive under there. We'll see what it does come spring.

As for the one on the ground, are you advising that I cut the pads off and try replanting them? They're still green and attached, but I did touch them against Fluffy's advice, and they're pretty floppy. I'm leaning more towards over than underwatering, as we've gotten more rain than usual this winter, and quite a few inches of snow as well. There are actually two cacti doing this, same kind and everything. They're in relatively the same spot in the yard, and have been here for probably 3 or 4 years with nothing like this happening. Do you think being choked out by grass could have anything to do with it? The grass got really bad last year because we kind of forgot about the cacti...

It's still freezing during the night here, (Washington state) so I'm wary of replanting anything right now.

 

[TwoCrows]

Seems like we disagree there, but I think you might be right!

I was leaning overwatering simply because while both over and under watering present themselves very similarly, some of the middle pads look a bit orange-y. That’s usually a sign of overwatering. Given the time of year, I also assumed that it’s easier for a succulent to absorb too much water, rather than too little.

At the same time, though, the pads at the top seem to be presenting sun stress, which can also happen with extreme cold. I have only noticed my plants showing this kind of stress colour in the winter if I have left them without water for too long; never the opposite.

Your one week advice sound very fair. If it is under watering, they should all do great. If indeed some of the pads have gotten too much water, then in one week’s time it should even clearer

I am DEFINITELY no expert on any cacti, for sure! And with my own indoor cacti, I have learned it's hard to tell if yellow pads mean they are over it under watered. And @HorseGirlAbby do these prickly pears naturally grow in your area? If not and you have planted them there yourself, it's possible your territory is too wet for these guys. Too dry and they can yellow and wilt too. The Pear in my yard are a reddish, purplish, green right now, quite wilted. Cold will definitely color them a deep red or purple. Fluffy you are certainly correct, orangish colors are a sign of over watering, fungus and rotting. And they don't respond to over watering really fast, this is probably a product of too much water over the summer or fall, if they are indeed over watered. Listen to Fluffy.

So @HorseGirlAbby my advice is still I would try to propagate the healthy green pads by standing them up in the dirt. Once a month watering should be all they need for now to get roots growing, growing season they may need water every other week.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

So, I went out and uncovered the other prickly pear, it doesn't seem as bad as the one flat on the ground, but it's still wobbly and kind of flopped over.

This is another photo of the flat one. It is more purpley than yellow...

And the mystery cacti, it isn't cylindrical, its pads are flat and oval shaped. It's got a ton of spines, and the spots where its flowers were last year are coming off now, and they're little balls of spines.

 

[TwoCrows]

So, I went out and uncovered the other prickly pear, it doesn't seem as bad as the one flat on the ground, but it's still wobbly and kind of flopped over.
View attachment 4061331
This is another photo of the flat one. It is more purpley than yellow...
View attachment 4061330

And the mystery cacti, it isn't cylindrical, its pads are flat and oval shaped. It's got a ton of spines, and the spots where its flowers were last year are coming off now, and they're little balls of spines.
View attachment 4061332View attachment 4061333

The first prickly pear looks pretty good! It should be fine and continue to grow.

The second photo looks like it's definitely had more water than it needed, the yellowing, and that white stuff could be powdry mildew or maybe Cochineal scale (bug) which prickly pear are prone to. The red color is probably due to the cold of winter.

I think the mystery cactus is some sort of prickly pear too, I think Fluffy said this above? I am not all that good with cactus ID, just ask my own plants...(Names....prickly 1, prickly 2, prickly 3...)

 

[TwoCrows]

Oh and it's common for them to flop over in winter, my out door pears are all laying down too. They should perk up come spring.