When to start watering again

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Leandra
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When to start watering again

Post by Leandra »

Hi~

I have not watered my cacti since November (as advised) now and meanwhile, they have all been moved from their original peat bindings into more fitting compost and had time for their roots to heal.

When should I start watering them? All are currently bone dry.

Leandra
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Stuart
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by Stuart »

I gave everything a light watering a week ago, climate is fairly mild here on the Sussex coast though.

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Re: When to start watering again

Post by Sylv »

Hi,I have returned all of my cacti to the greenhouse today after their winter rest in an unheated cold bedroom and have gave them all their first drink of the year.

Sylv.
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iann
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by iann »

Depends what you grow, how warm your greenhouse is getting, and how cold you'll let it get, as well as what you're planning to water. I watered a number of cacti weeks ago, some won't be watered for quite a few weeks to come. Lithops likely even later than that. Conophytums may not get watered again late summer.
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rodsmith
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by rodsmith »

I second Ian's comments. If your greenhouse gets sun all day, I think you would be safe to give all cacti and most succulent non-cacti a modest water. If the greenhouse is in shade for part of the day, use your judgement. My plants are all in a conservatory as we don't have a greenhouse in our present house (garden!) and they get sun for about 3½ hours in the morning (when it shines). I watered all my cacti and some succulents a week ago and some are now showing signs of growth.
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Brian
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by Brian »

Before I start to water I will spray my plants. I do it selectively and the first spray was done about ten days ago in the morning of a sunny day. >:D<:gl: same again this weekend, weather permitting.
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by Nick_G »

My watering season in my unheated greenhouse in Essex is April to the end of August (Pediocactus etc excepted). I sometimes start a bit earlier if we're having a mild March, this year I watered everything over the last weekend. I don't introduce water gradually I just soak everything, a couple of plants may split but they're usually so nicely tightened from their winter rest that it's not a big problem.

November seems very late to me to stop watering.
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rodsmith
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by rodsmith »

Nick_G wrote:November seems very late to me to stop watering.
I agree. Depending on the species I stop watering in September or very early October.
Rod Smith

Growing a mixed collection of cacti & other succulents; mainly smaller species with a current emphasis on lithops & conophytum.
Peter A
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by Peter A »

I'd better preface this by saying that I live in North London, with its rather strange microclimate. Given that, it depends on the weather (and, of course, the plant!), but I usually water most cacti up until the first or second week in December. On the other hand, I usually don't start watering again until the second or third week in April. This year I started top-watering selectively with very warm water the second week in March. Some plants, such as the Echinomastus seedlings and Leuchtenbergia I began watering with a table-spoon - and they are now growing. Other plants of course you could water all year through and they'd be happy though they mightn't grow at all when the weather is cold - I'm thinking really of those that I grow in the garden: O.fragilis, T. lamprochlorus, Selenicereus spinulosus, Notocactus ottonis, etc. N. bruchii is hardy and doesn't mind being cold and wet, but for some reason they always get eaten by snails. The same applies to some epicacti.

I threw a branch of S. spinulosus onto a flower-bed last November, reckoning it would rot down. It appears to have rooted instead...
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Re: When to start watering again

Post by iann »

Same here, Peter. This winter was so warm that even the things I was testing for cold-hardiness and expecting to die are looking very happy. Nothing has died, but a pot of three Turbinicarpus lophophoroides look distinctly chapped and may not survive. I guess that means they'd have no chance below -4C which is about as cold as it ever got.
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