Cactus and Succulents

Indeed you have a pretty cactus doing great on your windowsill. Suddenly, you notice that it’s gradually turning yellow despite being given the usual care. What might be the cause of discoloration? Is there any way to solve it? Cactus can get yellow due to 1) insufficient light source, 2) poor soil quality, 3) exposure…

Do you have this spiny plant that oozes with white liquid when poked? A lot of people have mistaken them as cacti, but indeed they are not! What are they, and what is that milky substance they shed? The white milky substance that some cacti-like plants produce when their stem or leaves are cut is…

Due to the scarcity of water and food in the desert, animals are adapted to eat just anything they can stomach, including the spiky cactus. How they manage to eat the prickly plant without getting hurt leaves us wondering. What animals are capable of eating a cactus? Camels in the desert usually eat cactus. They…

Ever happened to break your beloved cactus spines. Yes, quite a few times. Are they going to grow back? I tested and documented an experiment about broken cactus spines that will fascinate you. Spines arise from the areoles of the cactus. If a spine is broken, it will not regrow. However, if the broken spine…

Have you noticed some white powdery substance hiding on the crevices of your cactus stems? Did your cactus experience growth deformation and discoloration? Inspect your plant right away as it may be infested with mealybugs! Mealybugs are white, fuzzy insects, 2-3mm long with filaments around their body. A mealybug infestation looks like a cottony mass…

Cacti in their natural habitat look like tall trees emerging from random spots on a desert. Despite unattentive gardeners taking good care of them, they keep on multiplying. How do they continue their species? Can you propagate a cactus? Cacti in nature reproduce easily but take a longer time to develop. However, gardeners can propagate…