Piante grasse cactus spine

Tag: fusarium

New cactus species discovered: “Copiapoa invisibilis”! Exceptional photos of a plant… that no longer exists

For the avoidance of doubt: the title is ironic and here we are talking about rot, unfortunately. No new Copiapoa has been discovered, neither the one you see in this photo and in the other incredible images within this article. Simply, this is what remains of one of my Copiapoa cinerea that rotted this winter without me even realizing it. What we see now is nothing but the armor of thorns that the plant has left me. The quills are so compact and close together that they perfectly maintain the shape of the plant (complete with a dry flower at the apex). The stem simply no longer exists. It has rotted and “evaporated”, disappeared.

Here is what happened and, above all, here are the exceptional photos of this plant, whose fate, moreover, from time to time also touches the specimens in habitat, as I happened to see in some online photos and once, directly, with a young specimen of Ferocactus during a trip to Mexico. (…)

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Spots on the stem and rot, here’s what you can do to save sick succulents and cacti

Circumscribed dark spots, yellowish spots, dryness, discoloration of the stems, reddening, small cuts: over time, signs of various kinds and of varying size may appear on the stem of our cacti. In some cases there is nothing to worry about, because they are small wounds caused for example by the thorns of a nearby plant, or because they are simply the signs resulting from the aging of the plant. In other cases, however, it is necessary to intervene immediately, because that spot is perhaps due to some fungal pathology destined to expand until it seriously disfigures or kills the plant. But how to distinguish a harmless thorn prick scar, for example, from dangerous rot? How to understand if that discoloration of the stem is caused by the sudden exposure of the plant to direct sun or by a lack of nutrients, or by the beginning of a fungal attack? And how to intervene to contain the damage or save the plant when the damage has already been confirmed?

This is what we will see in this article, with the help of a series of photographs that portray different situations and different pathologies. Some photos were taken by readers of Il fiore tra le spine and portray their plants: I thank these readers for agreeing to share their photos with me, thus collaborating in the creation of the following article. (…)

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Diseases and pests of cactus and succulents: how to recognize them and how to prevent their attacks

As much care as we can give to our cacti and succulent plants, some drawbacks with parasites, pests, infections and fungi can always happen. Unfortunately, it must be considered, particularly if you have many plants. With proper cultivation, however, the problem can be significantly reduced and the number of losses caused by animal parasites and bacteria can be considerably reduced. It may seem obvious, but the first and most effective tool for the fight against pathogens and harmful insects is prevention. Prevention is done through a cultivation regime as natural as possible that respects the cycles and times of plants without forcing their growth. Just in this way cacti and succulents grow healthy and robust to the point of being able to cope with adversities on their own. In the last few years, thanks to natural cultivation and treatments based on pesticides reduced to a minimum, I have no longer observed any attack on my plants by animal parasites. Sometimes I may have some losses due to Fusarium, but they are single specimens, never large scale infestations.

In the following article, we will see in detail what consists of prevention; which are the pests and diseases that can affect cacti and succulents; such as the symptoms of their action on plants, and how to carry out treatment and care in case of problems. (…)

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