I received several cutting but cannot plant for about two weeks. Is this too long? How long will they last? Thanks, Tim
cuttings
Several cutting of what?
All I know is that they are orchid cactus. They are flat cactus type leaves that have dried over the cut. I am a newbie to orchid cactus except for the Night Blooming.
The cuttings should be allowed to callous over for 10 - 14 days so that they do not rot, so you should be ok.
I have a follow up question...once you plant cuttings, how long should it take them to develop roots. I planted several leaves must be two months ago, and I've been faithfully misting them every day. One has a new growth (new leaf maybe) and a couple of the others have developed some air roots, but some are showing no activity at all. Any thoughts/suggestions?
Thanks.
Sarah
Winter cuttings can take awhile to root. This time of year is their natural rest period. So you have to be patient. I have a cutting of a Selenicereus I bought last January and it didn't start rooting for a couple months, it didn't start growing till June.
Yes there is not set pattern for the growth of the cuttings. If you give a light tug on the cutting and it does not move it is rooted. I have some cuttings from last winter than have little or now growth and some with a lot, in fact some that I get this summer have a lot more growth than some of last year.
Oh my count was off. Now that I can spread everything out and I did lose a couple but my count for the epis is 194 . LOL
Thanks for your information hayu and Sandy. I did not consider that they might grow slower over the winter.
Sandy, You've got an awesome collection. You could go into business selling cuttings with that many plants!
Sarah
To much trouble to sell them, much rather share.
Sandy the epi nut
Some seem to root very fast, others root slower. I agree about winter making them slower. I have a Mandarin Lady cutting that has not rooted in 2 mos. It is large and very healthy looking but being slow. The other Mandarin Lady just finally rooted last week.
I was wondering because some seem healthy even though they are not showing signs of new growth. A couple seem listless--the leaf is softer than the others, and a little puckered. I've never rooted this type of cutting so didn't know what to expect.
Thanks!
How much water are you giving them, They need a little more that desert cactus
Sandy, I'm only misting them. I read to not water them until they have developed roots or they will rot.
Are you misting daily?
Yes, sometimes twice a day because it's pretty dry where they are.
I've found that once the cuttings are sufficiently callous over. I can pot them up in cactus medium with ease, without worrying that they will rot. Once I planted them, I water them in to the point of saturation, and won't water them again until the soil is completely dried out to couple inches deep.
Here is one of mine - these consist of 3 cuttings from Sandy, 2 from Chantell, and two of my own that broke off from relocating the pots.
Sounds like they may need more water. I'll up that but make sure they dry out completely before watering again. Thanks for the info.
Sarah