How Do Cacti Survive Winter? A Detailed Guide to Winter Care Methods

After the beginning of winter, indoor temperatures drop sharply. Potted cacti grown at home should be placed near a south-facing window with ample light, long sunshine hours and higher temperatures. Generally, ground-dwelling cacti do not require very high temperatures during their winter dormancy. While keeping the potting soil relatively dry, a temperature no lower than 5-8°C will promote dormancy and allow them to overwinter safely. In this way, their growth and flowering the following year will be better than those overwintered in a warm place. Epiphytic cacti, however, do not show obvious dormancy in winter; their overwintering temperature should be kept between 10-12°C, with watering as appropriate, and they will grow better.

Put a coat on your cactus. Many friends have probably seen that in winter, sanitation workers wrap the trees along the streets with a thick layer of straw mats to prevent the trees from frost damage, and this method works just as well for cacti. In winter, cacti are in their dormant period, and all kinds of life activities are weakened. At this time, you can spread a layer of straw or cotton over the cactus to provide insulation and prevent frost damage.

An important point in helping a cactus through winter is to keep the ambient temperature around the cactus within a relatively warm range, so that its roots and stems can maintain a slow state of growth, and once the weather warms up, it will awaken full of vitality.

To grow cacti, choose sandy loam soil with good drainage and aeration; water more in summer and strictly control water in winter; fertilize once every twenty days or so in spring and autumn; the temperature is best between 20 and 30°C, and above 5°C in winter; light is generally needed in especially large amounts. It is susceptible to rot disease; once it occurs, the diseased parts must be cut away, and the pot changed and water controlled.