A Detailed Guide to Propagating Night-blooming Cereus by Cuttings and Its Four-Season Care
As a member of the cactus family, the night-blooming cereus is of course perfectly suited to cactus-style propagation. Cuttings are a method commonly used for cactus-family plants, with a very high survival rate, so the editor here is going to teach you a thing or two. Read on with the editor to find out exactly how the night-blooming cereus should be propagated by cuttings!
Propagation Methods for the Night-blooming Cereus
1. Choosing the cuttings
Most often, fleshy stems at least one year old are used; cut a 5 cm to 6 cm or longer section from the tip of the fleshy stem to use as a cutting. Alternatively, cut the night-blooming cereus into sections for rooting, in which case the cutting should be 20 cm to 25 cm long. Yet another option is to take small branches from the stems of the night-blooming cereus for rooting; take care that the branches are not too tender.
2. Cutting medium
When rooting night-blooming cereus cuttings, use a mix of vermiculite, perlite granules and pure river sand, without any soil added. You can root a single plant per pot, or root several plants together in one container. When rooting several together, pay attention to the spacing between the plants.
3. Taking the cuttings
The cut stems of the night-blooming cereus should first be dried in a cool, shady spot for a week, and only after the cut surface has fully dried and the wound has healed should rooting begin; this makes it easier for roots to form. Since sap oozes out when the stems are cut, you can seal the cut with plant ash and leave it in a cool place for 7 days to 10 days. Then insert it into a sand bed or soil, at an angle, and let it root. During the rooting period, water as little as possible, and do not water unless the medium is dry; after 30 days to 40 days, roots will have formed. Once the roots of the night-blooming cereus have grown to 3 to 4 cm, it can be transplanted into a small pot or planted directly in the open ground.
Four-Season Care Methods for the Night-blooming Cereus
1. Spring care for the night-blooming cereus
Spring is the main growing season for the night-blooming cereus; in spring it needs thorough watering, once every 10-15 days is enough, keeping the potting soil slightly moist with no standing water. However, you should spray the plant with water every day to increase air humidity.
In spring, apply decomposed liquid fertilizer once every half month.
Spring is the season for propagating the night-blooming cereus by cuttings; the temperature is fairly suitable, and since it is in its growing season it grows quickly and roots fairly easily.
2. Summer care for the night-blooming cereus
In summer the night-blooming cereus begins to enter its flowering period; apply a set amount of fertilizer before flowering to ensure an adequate supply of nutrients when it blooms.
The night-blooming cereus needs plenty of light, but under strong direct sunlight the plant will turn yellow, affecting its ornamental appeal. Therefore, in summer the night-blooming cereus should be kept in a semi-shaded environment.
During the summer growing period it grows vigorously, and because transpiration is high and water loss is severe, it must be watered and sprayed thoroughly. Water once a day, preferably in the morning or evening. Fertilize once every half month, but do not overdo it, to avoid root rot.
3. Autumn care for the night-blooming cereus
The flowering period of the night-blooming cereus generally lasts until November, and the flowers can be harvested after they bloom. In autumn, harvest the night-blooming cereus flowers in the early morning after they open, and simply leave them in a ventilated spot to dry.
4. Winter care for the night-blooming cereus
The suitable growing temperature for the night-blooming cereus is between 25~35°C. The night-blooming cereus is not cold-hardy; at temperatures below 5°C, the stem segments rot easily. The best overwintering temperature is above 13°C, so in winter it is best to move the night-blooming cereus indoors, but since it requires plenty of light, it can be kept in a sunny spot indoors.
In winter the night-blooming cereus enters dormancy and stops growing, so watering should be reduced and fertilizing stopped.
Can the Night-blooming Cereus Be Grown at Home
The night-blooming cereus is fairly well suited to being grown indoors, because it can absorb harmful substances such as formaldehyde, ether, radon, ammonia and TVOC to purify indoor air, making it a natural air filter.
As an ornamental succulent, the night-blooming cereus has its own ornamental value, and growing it at home makes it easy to enjoy; moreover, its day-to-day care is simple and low-effort, making it a lazy gardener's plant. Compared with plants that are hard to grow and die easily, it is simpler to care for and very suitable for growing at home.
The night-blooming cereus also has edible and medicinal value, and growing it at home means it can be used as food and medicine; although reaching the point of being usable as medicine and food ingredients takes more time, once the night-blooming cereus flowers and fruits, it is fairly convenient to harvest on the spot.
The Flower Language of the Night-blooming Cereus
The flower language of the night-blooming cereus is an endless future; watching it grow ever upward, toward the sky, it is as if an endless future awaits it to explore.
The reason the night-blooming cereus is called "the ruler that measures the sky" is that its plant keeps growing upward, as if it wants to measure just how high the sky is, seemingly meaning to compare heights with the sky. So in the night-blooming cereus's constant growth, a kind of meaning is revealed to us: this growth will not stop, because the sky has no end, and so the growth of the night-blooming cereus has no end either.