Is this normal? My leaves are really red....not the nice healthy green I am seeing in these posts. Mine was given to me by a friend and is pretty sad looking. It is in a pot on my front porch right now. Does it need sun or shade? Could the leaves be red because it was getting too much sun? The leaves are pretty scarred up and look pretty sad. What can I do to make it happy?
Night Blooming Cereus with red leaves
Can you post a picture of your epi? I have a rhipsalis that has red/burgundy leaves and it is normal especially when it is in high light. I have seen some people call it an epi. The plant has a really branching look to it.
I will try to take a picture tomorrow and post it. It looks really sad. Very scarred and scraggly.....I actually am very embarrassed about how bad it looks. Fortunately I can say it isn't because of me since I just got it from a friend who didn't know how to take care of it.
Yeah, a picture would help. I've got some red flowering epis and rhipsadolsis that turn reddish in high light. But you said scarred? hmmm... that's not good. But it can be brought back. Like you I inherited a near dead epi from a friend once, but after some tlc and proper growing conditions it turned right around.
Here is a picture, don't shoot me, I know it looks sad!
Here is another view........still looks as sad!
I honestly think the reddish coloring is natural due to high lighting, etc. That isn't a problem, but the poor thing does look like it needs a "pick me up" and some tlc. Maybe too much light in the past? and it looks a little parched...Maybe some Messenger, the plant health activator stuff will help. I have a dozen or so epis by I'm by far not an expert, so someone might have better advice than I do.
Oh, by the way, LOVE your patio. I wish I still lived in the tropics instead of the desert!
Jess
Thanks for the reply Jess. I think I am going to move it into a fairly shaded area, maybe even keep it on the porch for awhile. I water it regularly with the rest of my plants, I have orchids that I have to water daily. Do you think I should repot it into a bigger pot? What kind of soil does it like? After what it looks like it has been through it deserves to be babied now, so I plan on giving it a lot of tlc!
I love my porch too! It is a great place to sit and relax when it is just tooooo hot to do anything else. We are still in the high 80's low 90's here. It should start cooling down in the next month or so......I hope sooner!
When I lived in a more temperate area I kept my epis in a spot where they had about 3 hrs of sun a day, but the rest of the day they spent in shade. Now that Iive in searing desert temps I keep them in shade all day so that they don't wilt and they seem to like that. I use commercial cacti and succulent potting mix with my epis. I wouldn't water too much, they are cacti, so they might rot. Especially in the coming months as they go into natural dormancy. I water once a week in active growth and about once a month (or less sometimes) in winter when they go dormant.
I wish it would cool down more here! We broke 100 degrees in mid May and spent most of the summer between 105-115. It's cooled down to the upper nineties during the day and the lower sixties at night, but I can't wait until it gets cooler during the day. 85 would be a dream! LOL! We go through such extremes in weather. I used to live on the island of Guam in the pacific and I miss the 85 degrees year round.
I understand about the high temps! I just wish our evenings would cool down already. We can actually hit high 40's at night in our "winter". I love that time of year since then I can turn the ac off and pull out the comfy covers! I think I am going to repot the epi and stop the frequent watering. Maybe I will put it in a dark corner under a banana and just let it get rained on. Do you think that will be enough water?
Depends on the weather but when it is really hot we usually get a little rain every few days. We also have a sprinkler system that goes off every other day so it would get a little from that too.
Exactly. I think that is what I am going to do then. I really want to see what it can look like when it is cared for. Here is a pic of the side yard where I am going to put it.....it is a bit of a jungle right now!
I love your "jungle." I think it will be happy there. I'll take a picture of my oldest epi. Its about a year and a half now. When I got it from a friend, it was a withered half and dead in a six inch pot. Now it's in a ten gallon pot and huge!!! That way you can get an idea and know that it is possible to bring them back from the dead.