Cacti for Wet Cold

[BeyondTheGarden]

That's right, it's a cactus' favorite combination, being wet and cold. 

Well half the fun of  "exotic" gardening is problem solving, making things work that seem like they shouldn't. 

I'd like to compile a list of Cacti that can handle cold and wet.  I don't know of many, I'll list the few I have experience with.  I know there are more out there. 

The following did great this winter which was WETter than normal.  Low of 21F but we spent a lot of time in the 20's, soggy. 

Echinocereus reichenbachii pictured above

Echinocereus dasyacanthus above. Both of the Echinocereus are putting on new growth this year.  None of my cacti were protected, except a few I had inside in pots.

Trichocereus grandiflorus hybrid, took some damage but did OK. It's making pups.

I've tried various Opuntia, a couple have died and most took some damage.  The best performer so far is the unknown species that I snapped off a patch growing in Clovis NM.  Damaged this winter but 3 or 4 new growth points. 

Opuntia macrocentra did OK but it didn't grow at all last summer. Opuntia azura, below did OK and is growing slowly.

I tried a bunch of cylindropuntia and unfortunately it all died.  Need to do more experimenting.

Edit: i can't seem to delete this picture below, it's a nice cactus anyway so I guess I'll leave it here.

Edited June 18, 2023 by Jesse PNW

[BeyondTheGarden]

For the record, I should add that none of my cactus get as much sun as they deserve, which definitely contributes to their lack-luster performance.  Most of my plants are lucky to get 4-5 hours of direct sun during summer, and virtually zero during winter.  Low sun angle and tall douglas firs, combined with perpetual gray mist... not a very friendly place for cacti and desert plants....

[Silas_Sancona]

1 hour ago, Jesse PNW said:

For the record, I should add that none of my cactus get as much sun as they deserve, which definitely contributes to their lack-luster performance.  Most of my plants are lucky to get 4-5 hours of direct sun during summer, and virtually zero during winter.  Low sun angle and tall douglas firs, combined with perpetual gray mist... not a very friendly place for cacti and desert plants....

Depends on the species... Many, esp in Mexico,  grow in woodland settings on mossy rock outcrops vs. out in 8+ hours of sun in a 2-6ft deep layer of  1/3" -1" sized grit. Most native cacti here prefer morning sun, and indirect light cast  by something taller growing next to them, esp. in the afternoon. Only a handful of cacti that come to mind that will survive punishing all day sun in the flatlands where vegetation is sparse or completely absent.

As far as a list?  ..If you're doing alright w/ both E. reichenbachi and E. dasyacanthus,  look for other sps in the same sections of Echinocereus ( ...E. dasyacanthus = Section Erecti,  E. reichenbachi = Section Reichenbachia )

Other N. American Genera worth researching:


** Any Mammillaria sps that grow at mid/ higher altitudes in Mexico, or here in the Southwest.. That are also cold tolerant..

** Pediocactus

** Coryphantha and Escobaria.. Mountain-dwelling sps esp.

** Any Opuntia / Cylindropuntia sps  that grow north of a line stretching from TX -AZ. Those sps will likely be more adapted to colder winters / wet -in winter ( and/ or summer ) ...compared to those that grow where it is warmer -in winter-  and drier ..either in Winter or Summer.


There should be a bunch or other sps from higher / cooler areas of  S. America, but, aside from Echinopsis, Trichocereus, Lobivia, and Rebutia..  drawing blanks on other specific Genera atm.. Some may withstand more cold than others..

Growing any of the above as you're growing the ones you're trialing, provides a distinct advantage there..  ( Excess runoff can quickly percolate below root level, so the plants aren't sitting in water, which can lead to rot.. )  Many cacti need a cool rest in winter to flower well the following spring.  That said, in some cases, some sps / Genera prefer  that " rest " period to be dry..  ...So you may not see a ton of flowers on some of the " winter dry loving " species.

[BeyondTheGarden]

@Silas_SanconaI have only tried one Echinopsis which was terscheckii.  From what I have read it is cold hardy enough.  But it is not cold&wet hardy, unfortunately; it's a beauty.  Until you kill it.  Then it's just a pile of needles. If gardening has made me good at anything; I'm pretty good at killing plants now.

[BeyondTheGarden]

I guess I need to look into grafting cactus.  I know there are many limitations to this, but I wonder if grafting a non-wet-tolerant cactus onto a more wet-tolerant one would allow for more wet tolerance, since it would be up off the ground.

[BeyondTheGarden]

I completely forgot I had this little guy, it was behind a few other things on the windowsill.  Cactus are tricky for me to ID, but to me this looks very similar to the Echinocereus ridigissimus that @GregVirginia7 posted on a different thread.  The top looks redder in person; so very similar coloration, needle design, and overall shape profile. 

Edit ......   WHY do they glue fake flowers to cactus!??? Come on people!!!

Edited June 19, 2023 by Jesse PNW

[Silas_Sancona]

1 minute ago, Jesse PNW said:

I completely forgot I had this little guy, it was behind a few other things on the windowsill.  Cactus are tricky for me to ID, but to me this looks very similar to the Echinocereus ridigissimus that @GregVirginia7 posted on a different thread.  The top looks redder in person; so very similar coloration, needle design, and overall shape profile. 

E. rigidissimus ..or E .r. rubispinus..  They look quite similar.  Have 3 -for now, plus two of the white flowering var.  E. rigidissimus  is common above 4K ft in S. AZ / Northern Sierra Madre Occidental in Mexico where it drops below 20F / can be covered by snowfall a few times in winter ( S. AZ ).

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/162188-Echinocereus-rigidissimus

E. r. rubispinus







White flowered variety.. " albiflorus "

[DTS]

My Echinocereus fendleri x reichenbachii hybrid has survived my wet, mostly sunless winter with a low of 0f, and its about to flower

[ShadyDan]

I’ve only got one, Opuntia humifusa, and handles winters just fine here. Abundance of yellow flowers every spring. No special drainage needed. I’m planning on building a raised well drained bed in the future to try different species too. 
 

Picture of it in bloom taken today.  
 

[Axel Amsterdam]

Did anyone try notocactua warasii or leninghausii in wet cold? Or maybe oreocereus celsianus? 

[BeyondTheGarden]

5 hours ago, Axel Amsterdam said:

Did anyone try notocactua warasii or leninghausii in wet cold? Or maybe oreocereus celsianus? 

I had an Oreocereus celcianus in-ground this winter.  It died pretty early in the winter, due to the wet I believe.; i know they're supposed to be very cold tolerant.  Today it is just a pile of needles. 

[BeyondTheGarden]

12 hours ago, ShadyDan said:

I’ve only got one, Opuntia humifusa, and handles winters just fine here. Abundance of yellow flowers every spring. No special drainage needed. I’m planning on building a raised well drained bed in the future to try different species too. 
 

Gotta love opuntia.  I'm a fan of raised or mounded beds.   Not only does it improve draining but for smaller things, it elevates them and puts them closer to eye level and makes them a little more prominent. 

[Las Palmas Norte]

40 minutes ago, Jesse PNW said:

Gotta love opuntia.  I'm a fan of raised or mounded beds.   Not only does it improve draining but for smaller things, it elevates them and puts them closer to eye level and makes them a little more prominent. 

I've done the "SW desert" garden for more than 20 years and just started a new one at my new place. Here's a few pics from the new garden(s).

 

 

[BeyondTheGarden]

@Las Palmas Nortethat's exactly the kind of thing I envision for a desert  garden!  Great work!

Edit - what is the small cactus with the fuschia flowers?

Edited June 19, 2023 by Jesse PNW

[Las Palmas Norte]

3 hours ago, Jesse PNW said:

Edit - what is the small cactus with the fuschia flowers?

If you're referring to the second pic in the above post? ... Echinocereus reichenbachii var. albispinus

Despite it being native to the Chihuahuan Desert, it's been very hardy for me. None of the above receive any special attention or overhead protection. Decent drainage is the only requirement.

[Meangreen94z]

The amount of shade they will see, and duration of cool temperatures will obviously make a difference but here are a few things from Texas that may work for you:

Opuntia engelmannii var. lindheimeri and Opuntia alta are from wetter areas. Opuntia spinosibacca put on growth during cooler temperatures than other Opuntia

Cylindropuntia leptocaulis, kleiniae, davisii, and imbricata

Echinocereus coccineus should do well if reichenbachii does.

[BeyondTheGarden]

Thank you @Meangreen94z and @Las Palmas Norte. 

Not a cactus but I found a nice clump of neglected sempervivum in town today. 

[Las Palmas Norte]

@Jesse PNW don't forget to add one of these if you can find one. 😁

 

[Alex High]

Great thread! Here in zone 7 Washington, D.C., with our hot, humid summers and cold, wet winters, we can grow dozens of species. No idea what the total number is as many have not been tried here, but there are at least a couple dozen species growing just in the first garden below. And of course we have our trusty native eastern prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa). I recently got some videos of some wild specimens blooming along the Potomac River near D.C. Enjoy!

 

[Axel Amsterdam]

Thanks for these videos. I didn’t know Washington could grow these opuntias. I got one, unarmed. It’s taken from a large one growing in Holland and is very hardy. Could it be the same?

[Axel Amsterdam]

i mean Ellisiana?

[Axel Amsterdam]

The motherplant in winter

[Alex High]

On 7/3/2023 at 2:56 PM, Axel Amsterdam said:

Thanks for these videos. I didn’t know Washington could grow these opuntias. I got one, unarmed. It’s taken from a large one growing in Holland and is very hardy. Could it be the same?

 

On 7/3/2023 at 3:55 PM, Axel Amsterdam said:

i mean Ellisiana?

Yeah we can grow lots of cacti here, and Opuntia humifusa is native. Yes that one definitely looks like an Opuntia ellisiana. Very cool, you can grow lots of cacti in your climate, and some amazing palms, love it!

Here are two videos I filmed a couple days ago of wild Opuntia humifusa growing in coastal New Jersey by the way. They are native throughout the state and grow abundantly on the coastal dunes.

 

[BeyondTheGarden]

This was unexpected.  I dug up my Echinocereus reochenbachii and set it in my window sill. And it graced me with this. 

[Meangreen94z]

Opuntia strigil is another that has done well for me, and I’ve heard survives in places like Ohio, Michigan, and New Jersey.

[Silas_Sancona]

On 6/22/2023 at 1:39 PM, Las Palmas Norte said:

@Jesse PNW don't forget to add one of these if you can find one. 😁

 

😁

....No, i didn't bring it home.

[Calosphace]

What are we defining as wet cold,  is it any water during cold weather but still decent drainage? Though it is our dry season, it still rains here in the winter a lot of cold hardier cacti grown in-ground here seem to be good candidates.

Aside from various North American opuntia spp, I've found Mammillaria pretty flexible when it comes to our rainfall and Pilocereus as far more tolerant of rain than I expected based on its blue color.

I also bet there are some Andean slope species quite tolerant of such conditions in PNW as well (but probably not the heat we'd get here in FL!)

[Silas_Sancona]

51 minutes ago, Calosphace said:

What are we defining as wet cold,  is it any water during cold weather but still decent drainage? Though it is our dry season, it still rains here in the winter a lot of cold hardier cacti grown in-ground here seem to be good candidates.

Aside from various North American opuntia spp, I've found Mammillaria pretty flexible when it comes to our rainfall and Pilocereus as far more tolerant of rain than I expected based on its blue color.

I also bet there are some Andean slope species quite tolerant of such conditions in PNW as well (but probably not the heat we'd get here in FL!)

Here at least " Wet Cold " would follow the  " Constantly soaked, while nights drop to ..or below.. freezing" definition of that term, esp. for any " tropical " sps / Genera that grow where it rarely / never gets below ..say roughly the mid/ lower 30s....  Soil make up /  would definitely play into how well / not so well different species / Genera might handle the outlined conditions.

I myself water all mine very little during the winter, letting what rain falls do it's magic. Most of our native sps want it to be as dry -and cool-ish - as possible too. Specific things like many Echinoceri,  and Echinopsis will not flower well / as well /  at all  if it stays too warm during that time of year either. Some Mams. as well.

Regarding Mams, mid / high elevation sps from Oak / Pine woodland regions seem to be pretty flexible / will generally tolerate more moisture, though some may be more heat sensitive. 

On the opposite end of the spectrum,  Desert / Dry Forest sps ( Mams like M. grahamii, thornberii, sheldonii,  ...probably mazatlanensis,  dioica, .. others from Baja / low elevation areas of Sonora and Sinaloa,   and Eastern Mexican sps like M. Perez-delarosae,  pottsii, etc  )  will rot handily if they stay too wet ( or cold /  cold / wet ) in winter. 

I barely watered my Perez-delarosae after purchasing / potting them up and boom.. a gooey mess in no time flat. ..and that is after planting in a soil mix that mimics what they grow in in habitat.  Spectacular Mamm. btw.