Grafting Schlumbergera onto a cactus, step one: how to grow a thick and sturdy cactus

How to grow a cactus with thick, plump pads that is tall and straight, and how to care for it so it becomes so solid that it is very suitable for grafting, and can be used to graft Schlumbergera; only with thick, plump pads will the grafted Schlumbergera grow well, so how do we care for a solid cactus

1. Grow it in a large flower pot

After the cactus cuttings have taken root, move it into a separate flower pot to grow, and build up its root system fully; only when its roots can spread out fully can it absorb enough nutrients, and then its pads will be thick, plump and grow fast

2. The soil must be loose and airy,

Because the cactus's original environment is the tropical desert, where the soil is all very loose, airy, sandy soil. When we care for cacti at home, the soil must be loose and airy, and must be mixed with half or more granular soil, for example using large-particle river sand or coal cinders, mixed with half leaf mold, or peat soil; if you do not have those, mixing in half garden soil is also fine,

3. Light must be sufficient

The growth of the cactus requires sufficient light, so be sure to put it in a place with sufficient light and let it bake in the sun; even at noon in summer there is no need to shade it. Sufficient light can make the cactus grow vigorously and solidly

4. Watering must be timely

The cactus is very drought-tolerant, but if you want it to grow fast, once the soil dries out you must water it thoroughly in time, and do not leave it short of water for a long time,

5. Fertilizing must be sufficient

The cactus is fairly tolerant of poor soil, but its growth also requires sufficient fertilizer. When we fertilize the cactus, do not give it concentrated fertilizer; give it fertilizer mainly based on nitrogen and potassium, and be sure to apply thin fertilizer. You can use your own fermented cake fertilizer water, soybean water, or some farmyard manure, and you can also use some slow-release fertilizer; each time you water, a little can seep in. If the fertilizer is too concentrated, it will easily burn the roots

If you want it to grow upright, when it has just been planted from cuttings, set up a wooden stick for it so it grows in an upright direction, and when it produces side shoots, break them off in time so that only the top shoot is allowed to grow. In this way, by autumn you can get a tall, upright and thick, plump cactus tree, which can be used to graft Schlumbergera and grow up to the roof, which is especially great