What to do if a cactus breaks: don't throw away the plant, it can be saved
It often happens that a cactus breaks off at the base under its own weight. Or falls and breaks. In this case, do not rush to throw it away. The plant can be saved.
What to do when a cactus breaks
A broken cactus can be re-rooted using it as a cutting. The most common on windowsills is Echinopsis, and representatives of this species are very tenacious. They re-root perfectly, you just need to do some simple manipulations. This method is also suitable for other species. Although some of them root worse, you can still try. After all, there is nothing to lose, and there is a chance to save your prickly pet.
The top of the broken cactus should be cut off evenly at the break point with a sharp knife. Often the plants have a thin bottom and a thick top. Therefore, it is recommended to cut where the thickening occurs. Otherwise, the plant will break again at the thin spot.
After you make a straight cut, the cactus needs to be "sharpened" like a pencil, cutting off the skin with thorns along the edges. Later, the cut will begin to dry out and will be drawn inward, as a result of which the skin will become something like the walls of a "well", and the pulp will go deep. New roots will form in the middle of the pulp, where the central "threads" pass, acting as a trunk.
If the core is pulled into the walls, it will be inconvenient to plant the cutting. And the peel, immersed in the ground, can rot over time.
After the cactus is cut, it should be laid down for a few days to dry the wounds. The cut area should become dry, hard and turn whitish. To disinfect the wound, sprinkle it with crushed coal or ash.
After the wound has dried, the cactus can be planted in a slightly damp substrate prepared in advance. No need to water. The plant will quickly take root. If this happens in the spring, the process will go faster, so you do not need to water the soil much, but regularly.
Especially after it becomes noticeable that the cactus has started to grow (its top will become light, young soft needles will begin to appear).
Some people stimulate root growth before planting the plant in a permanent pot. To do this, wet sand is poured into the bottom of a narrow container, and the cactus is placed on top so that the cut line does not reach the sand by 2 cm. Due to the increased humidity, active root growth will begin. In this case, you need to be very careful when planting, since it is very easy to break off fragile roots. New ones will form in place of the broken ones with difficulty or will not form at all.
