Many flower lovers wonder: are cacti watered at all? Briefly answering this question, we can say that you should not be overzealous with this procedure for these, but there is a large number of subtleties, observing which you can preserve and significantly extend the life of your pet. This article is intended to answer questions about house cacti and how to water them.
Principles and methods of irrigation
In general, there are two methods of watering any indoor plant: from above and from below.
The first implies the usual moistening on which the plant grows, using a watering can or some other container containing water, and the second, often, watering into a pan when the moisture is placed in bottom part pot and is drawn in by the soil as it dries.
Did you know? The Californian cereus is considered the largest cactus in the world. Its height can reach up to 20 meters, age - up to 150 years, and the stem can accumulate up to 2000 liters of water.
It's hard to say which way would be better suited for your plants. Experienced cactus growers do not make a significant difference between these methods and claim that it is only a matter of taste and experience.
Answering the question about how to water so that they bloom more often, some gardeners suggest next way: You need to take a tube or part of a dripper and immerse it in the soil to about the middle of the pot.
Watering is carried out by injecting water from a syringe. However, it is worth considering that when using this technique it will be quite difficult to control whether the soil has dried out or not. 
Classification of cacti
Cacti are a family of plants that belong to the order Cloveaceae. They are, in turn, divided into 4 subfamilies.
Among these plants you can find a variety of plant forms, ranging from low deciduous trees and ending with habitual xerophytes adapted to long-term dry conditions.
The first subfamily is called Pereskiaceae and has only one genus of shrubs, which bears leaves and stems of a non-succulent nature. Scientists believe that this plant is a link in a chain that connects with various deciduous species.
Did you know? In the city of Bunarg, located on the Australian continent, there is a monument to the Argentine moth, which at one time saved the local livestock industry. She limited the spread of prickly pear cacti, which killed livestock when eaten.
The subfamily Opuntiaceae includes plants that bear reduced leaves, clearly visible on young shoots, stems and specific spines called “glochidia”. 
Despite the large number of this subfamily, they are very easy to identify by the specific structure of the flowers and the similar morphology of large seeds.
Mauchiaceae is a subfamily that includes only one genus, the habitat of which is limited to Patagonia. Their morphology resembles the structure of opuntiaceae, but glochidia are absent.
All remaining species are combined into the subfamily Cactaceae, distinctive feature which is the absence of leaves in any form, as well as the absence of glochidia.A consultant at the store where you made the purchase can help you find out what species your pet belongs to.
Plants located in rooms with central heating, high air temperatures and dry rooms should be watered more abundantly than those that are exposed to low temperatures and high relative humidity.
It is worth less watering cacti growing in clay soil with high density, and accordingly, those planted in soil with high drainage properties are larger.
The older your plant, the more developed its root system is - it is more branched and penetrates into deeper layers. Such plants can absorb moisture from a pot of the same volume much longer than those whose root systems have not reached a similar level of development. The conclusion follows from this: the older the cactus, the less often it is watered.
Irrigation water quality
The water needed for irrigation must be at least settled for several days or filtered. It’s even better if you have the ability to collect rain or melt water.
Distilled water is also suitable, but the method of its production is quite expensive, and you are unlikely to want to use it as a source of moisture for irrigation if it is available. 
Watering and applying liquid fertilizers, their advantages and disadvantages
It is worth keeping in mind that these succulents require very small amounts.
The homeland of thorny plants is arid desert regions. Cacti have adapted to unfavorable conditions: during rare rainfall, moisture accumulates inside the leaves and trunk, and then is used economically for a long time. To grow at home, it is important to properly care for the plant and know how to water the cactus so that this does not lead to rotting of the roots.
Features of watering cacti
Frequent and abundant moisture of the soil is harmful for succulents: water displaces air and does not allow the roots to breathe. Excess moisture and lack of oxygen in the soil provoke the appearance and proliferation of putrefactive infections. An exception to this rule is the Schlumberger cactus (zygocactus), which loves abundant watering and does not grow in dark room. Housing conditions, weather, variety, time of year affect the amount of water, necessary for the plant. So, if a small pot is in a sunny room, the soil dries out quickly and the flower requires abundant watering.
In summer, the cactus actively grows and develops, so the soil must be watered every morning, and in sunny days also spray. It is important to direct the flow not towards the plant itself, but over it. Exceptions are prickly pears and epiphytic cacti, the leaves of which can be washed under running water. In cloudy and rainy weather the air is humidified, so water procedures It's better to refuse. On cold autumn days, the frequency of watering should be gradually reduced.
In winter it is important to ensure home flower peace: take care of sufficient lighting of the cactus, fresh air and minimal watering. It is better to place the pot in a cool place with optimal temperature– 5–10°С. Watering cacti in winter should be kept to a minimum: moisten large varieties 1-2 times during these months, small ones - once every 2 weeks.
Watering cacti at home
The key to successful growth of any plant is proper care. Regular watering Growing cacti at home is not as simple as it might seem at first. There are many nuances that need to be taken into account when moistening the substrate: what water to water, how often, in what way, what to do during the flowering period of the cactus, how and how much to feed.
Methods
Flower growers distinguish several methods of watering indoor plants: through a tray or from above. A comparison of these methods is presented in the table:
Rules
Melted or melted water is suitable for watering thorny plants. rainwater. For those who do not have the opportunity to collect it, it is recommended to use settled (at least a day) or warm boiled water. The use of hard water is undesirable: it is better to soften it with peat or pass it through a filter to remove chlorine. Otherwise, a white coating– calcium salts will be deposited. It will not only spoil appearance thorns, but will also harm the plant.
Remember the basic rules:
- the moisturizing procedure should be carried out in the morning or evening, the main thing is not on a hot day;
- use warm water (not lower than 12°C);
- take care of drainage to avoid stagnation of water;
- pour water in a thin stream along the edge of the pot to wet only the soil, but not onto the plant itself;
- It is better to underfill than to overfill;
- When flowering, do not over-hydrate the plant: the buds will grow into shoots;
- at low temperatures and high humidity rare watering is required (water from the ground evaporates slowly), and vice versa;
- When flowers appear, do not move the pot or turn it over, otherwise the buds will fall off;
- some varieties, for example, cereus, need to be sprayed with warm water when flowering.
Top dressing
There is no consensus on fertilizing cacti. These unique plants require special feeding. Thus, the mandatory nutritional components include:
- Nitrogen. For ordinary plants chemical element necessary for growth. Desert flowers grow slowly. If the soil is highly enriched with nitrogen, this will negatively affect the plant: the stems will become watery and loose, the skin will burst, scars and wounds will form, and the cactus babies will not be able to fully develop. You should not use a lot of this organic element as a top dressing, but you should not completely eliminate it, so that nitrogen starvation does not occur. The exception is fast-growing, epiphytic cacti.
- Potassium. Vital necessary element regulates growth, forms a dense skin, stimulates ripening and flowering. Its deficiency can give the succulent a bronze tint.
- Calcium. Indispensable construction material for spines, hairs and bristles. With its deficiency, the root system becomes weak, the spines become soft, and the plant itself becomes fragile.
- Phosphorus stimulates root growth, affects seed viability and fruit ripening.
Flower growers rarely use organic fertilizers. Liquid solutions that are easier to dose are suitable for feeding. It is important to maintain the concentration - 1 g of salts per 1 liter of water. Fertilize the soil 2 times a month from March to September; during the rest of the period, the cacti are not fed. If the weather is rainy for a long time in the summer, then the amount of fertilizing should be reduced. Metabolism slows down and the plant no longer requires as many nutrients. When transplanting, fertilize the soil no earlier than after 20 days.
How often to water a cactus
The regularity of water treatments also depends on the location and material of the flower pot. So, if the window faces the sunny south or east, then more frequent watering is required than if it is oriented north or west. When using a ceramic container, the soil is moistened more abundantly than when plastic dishes. Age also affects the regime: young cacti require more frequent watering than adults.
in winter
IN winter time year, the cactus begins to rest, its growth rate slows down, so the amount of watering should be reduced and fertilizing should not be used. To control frequency, it is recommended to keep a calendar. In some species, flowering is not associated with a growth period, so the plant can bloom at any time. This is not a reason to increase the amount of watering. You can moisten the soil a little more often or more, but not in the same volumes as in summer and spring.
Watering cacti is a very responsible agrotechnical activity. Depending on how often these procedures are carried out, you can achieve accelerated growth of the succulent or rotting of its root system. Therefore, watering cacti at home should be carried out according to a certain scheme. You need to feed succulents in the same way. Proper watering cacti begins with determining their species. Before watering a cactus, you should make sure that it requires a constant level of soil moisture. There are types of this crop that receive all their moisture from the surrounding air. How to water a cactus at home is described in detail in the proposed material, which discusses all aspects of applying fertilizers and liquids to different time of the year.
How often should you water cacti at home?
There are several aspects to how to properly water a cactus at home, and the frequency of the agrotechnical operation is of paramount importance. Many plant lovers see certain problems in watering cacti. Some believe that, being desert plants, cacti do not require watering at all. Others water their cacti a little every day. Both are wrong. There are certain requirements regarding how often to water a cactus, and the following also applies here: if you understand the basic needs of plants, then these plants will be easy to care for
How often you need to water your cactus depends on the type of succulent. Regular cacti are watered only when they are growing or blooming, and even then only when soil substrate will dry out. When cacti grow, they need water, and the more, the faster they grow. How often to water cacti at home depends on the conditions environment. When they are warm and evaporate more moisture, they need to be watered more often and more abundantly. And vice versa: when cacti - for example, during winter period rest - kept in cool conditions, watering is stopped completely. At temperatures below 10-15°C, cacti's metabolism stops, water is no longer absorbed by the plants, and watering at this time will in any case lead to rotting of the root system. How to water a cactus depends on the time of year and the ambient temperature. Therefore, in winter from October to March, when kept cool, the vast majority of cacti should not be watered at all. If they winter in more warm conditions- for example, on the windowsill of a living room - or we are talking about cacti from tropical regions, then in winter they are watered very sparingly: about one teaspoon or tablespoon of water per week. When cultivating such cacti in clay cacti, which are placed in a box filled with peat or similar moisture-absorbing material, only the substrate between the pots is slightly moistened. In the spring, when the plants resume growth and their first buds appear, the cacti are initially only sprayed with warm water and watered very sparingly clean water(no fertilizers!). Thanks to this, the dust accumulated over the winter is washed off from the plants and the formation of lateral roots that absorb water is stimulated. How to properly water a cactus and not overwater it root system, we’ll talk later in the article.
How many times should a cactus be watered per week or month?
How many times to water a cactus depends on the time of year and the period of development of the plant. During the growing season from March-April to September-October, cacti are thoroughly watered once every one to three weeks. How many times a week to water a cactus in summer also depends on the size of the plant; the larger it is, the more often this operation is performed. However, any tough established rule there is no; The frequency of watering depends on the location of the plant, temperature, size and size of the flower pot, day mixture or substrate, and not least on the growth of the plant itself.However, in principle, cacti should be watered only when the soil is almost dry, not only on the surface, but also in the depths of the pot. A wet substrate that has not yet dried out should never be watered!Another factor in determining how many times to water a cactus is the flowering period. Some cacti, e.g. individual species rebuts. After flowering, when kept in warm conditions, they have a short summer dormant period, so at this time they are watered more moderately. Dwarf cacti, whose long turnip-like roots and many white spines indicate that they come from areas with a dry climate and use water very sparingly, are watered less than those that look green and differ more rapid growth cacti, such as fast-growing columnar cacti or Echinopsis. In autumn, from about September-October, watering is gradually reduced so that growth current year matured well and the plants were prepared for winter. How many times a month to water a cactus depends on the variety, but usually the frequency does not exceed 2 times.
An exception to this rule are epiphytic and forest cacti, in which the substrate should never completely dry out. These are kept in warmer conditions in winter and watered sparingly.However, epiphytic cacti prefer only light moisture in the substrate and do not like waterlogging. How much to water a cactus of this type depends on the air temperature in the room. The higher it is, the more often the need for moisture arises. In principle, cacti need to be watered in hot and sunny weather, since then they require and can absorb a lot of water. If you water cacti very generously at the beginning of a period of damp and cool weather, then there is a great danger of prolonged waterlogging of the earthen clod, which can lead to rotting of the roots and death of the plants. The easiest way to tell is how much to water a cactus in hot summer weather. Here, as they say, there is no excess liquid.
Watering cacti during flowering
During the growth period, cacti should not be watered little by little every day, but at long intervals, but thoroughly. Many cacti have a root collar that is very susceptible to rotting - the place where the roots grow from the stem. Some cacti have thick, turnip-shaped roots with moisture-absorbing root hairs located at the bottom of the pot. That is why watering from below is especially favorable for cacti. If in individual pots with large enough trays, required amount irrigation water can be poured directly into the tray. Water that has not been absorbed by the substrate within an hour must be drained. Under no circumstances should cacti be left with trays filled with water all day. Larger collections grown in bowls can also be optimally provided with moisture using this method - water suction.
When watering a cactus during flowering, you need to moisten the substrate, and not pour water on the plant itself. Otherwise, in the crowns of some plants that have deep folds, they may for a long time drops of water remain, which under strong sunlight act like magnifying glasses and cause burns, and in cold weather lead to fungal disease or rot. On the other hand, you shouldn’t play it safe too much. From time to time, it is very useful to freshen the cacti a little, that is, in the evening of a hot day, spray them with clean, fertilizer-free water. Hobbyists who grow their cacti on outside windowsills or in the garden during the warm season can note how fresh and healthy they look after an overnight rain. However, cacti that have a bluish or chalky waxy coating on the stems cannot be sprayed, since otherwise spots will form on the decorative coating. To spray cacti, you should not use very hard water, as it leads to the formation of unsightly spots and salt deposits on the stems. Air humidity. In the homeland of cacti, there is often a large difference between night and day temperatures. The result is the formation of heavy fog or dew and high humidity at night. Some cacti can absorb moisture from the air using the epidermis or spines and hairs. Many cacti wither in constantly too dry air. However, in some apartments, especially on sunny and hot southern windows, the air humidity is very low, so species and varieties of rebutia (Rebutia), lobivia (Lobivia) or echinopsis (Echinopsis) originating from high mountain areas and usually completely problem-free grow in such places very bad.
Fertilizers for cacti and succulents at home
In their natural habitats in their homeland, cacti most often grow in soils rich in mineral salts. Therefore, the often-held opinion that they do not need to be fed with fertilizers for cacti is erroneous. Moreover, it is very important to feed cacti at the right time and the right fertilizer. Fertilizers are applied only during the growing season, that is, from approximately April-May to August. At the beginning of the growing season, plants are watered with clean water without fertilizers. The same applies to the last waterings in the fall before the start of the winter dormancy period.Individual fertilizers for cacti and succulents vary in their chemical composition. Without going into too much detail, a distinction can be made between fertilizers containing more nitrogen, which promote plant growth, and fertilizers containing more potassium and phosphorus, which stimulate the formation of flowers.Compared to others herbaceous plants or shrubs, cacti differ only in insignificant and much slower growth of stems, and therefore require fertilizers containing little nitrogen and more potassium and phosphorus. The most suitable fertilizer for cacti and other succulents is a fertilizer mixture containing about 4% nitrogen (N), 14% phosphorus (P) and 18% potassium (K). It is very important that the fertilizer also contains microelements, such as magnesium, manganese, boron and others, which plants also need for healthy growth, although in much smaller quantities. The use of high nitrogen fertilizers results in unnaturally vigorous growth of cacti, resulting in significantly increased plant susceptibility to various diseases. Cacti must grow healthy, that is, slowly and compactly, and in this they are helped by fertilizing with a nitrogen-poor fertilizer containing a lot of potassium and phosphorus.
Of course, an amateur cactus grower - unless he has a very large collection of plants - does not make his own fertilizer mixtures. There are special fertilizers for cacti on sale; You can also use so-called fertilizers for flowering plants. In addition, cacti can be fed with guano from time to time, which, however, smells quite unpleasant and does not completely dissolve in water. Guano is particularly high in micronutrients that are deficient in some artificially formulated fertilizers. Fertilizer for cactus at home is added to the irrigation water in the concentration indicated on the package. When preparing the solution, it is necessary to ensure that the fertilizer is completely dissolved in the water so that some cacti do not receive too little and others too much nutrients. In general, when using mineral fertilizers The upper limit should be considered a concentration of 1 gram per 1 liter of irrigation water.
Many novice gardeners think that succulents, which are native to desert and arid regions, do not need watering. Of course, this assumption is wrong. From our article you will learn how to water a cactus grown at home.
A cactus, like any other indoor flower, needs proper soil moisture. Lack of moisture negatively affects the growth and development of the flower. However, as experienced gardeners note, excess moisture in a flower pot is more dangerous for many succulents than dry soil. Too wet soil leads to rotting first of the root system and then of the cactus stem. To avoid the death of the plant, you need to know how often to water the cactus.
Despite the fact that most cacti, of which there are more than 15 thousand varieties in nature, are low-maintenance plants, you need to know what kind of water is suitable for watering these prickly indoor flowers.
Following the recommendations of gardeners who grow various succulents, it is recommended to water cacti with melt or rain water. As alternative option you can use boiled or settled water room temperature. Please note that the water needs to sit for at least 24 hours.
It is also important to consider the degree of water hardness. When watering cacti with hard water, over time, a whitish coating begins to appear at the base of the stem, which indicates the deposition of calcium salts. You can soften the water by filtration through special devices or by adding a small amount of peat.
From this video you will learn how to properly water a cactus.
Watering methods
To date, flower growers have not come to a consensus on how best to water cacti. When choosing a watering method, some cactus growers prefer watering through a tray, while others insist on moistening the soil from above. Let's look at the advantages of these irrigation methods.
Through the pallet
Watering a cactus through a tray is convenient because when it is moistened, the nutrients that the indoor plant needs for full functioning are not washed out of the soil.
But this method has its drawbacks too. Thus, novice gardeners, having not too much experience in growing succulents at home, often do not know how to correctly calculate the required amount of water for irrigation.
Above
Unlike the previous method of moistening the soil, with top watering it is more convenient to control the amount of water consumed by the plant. This method also helps ensure that the entire earthen clod is wetted.
If we talk about the shortcomings, then, of course, it is worth mentioning the leaching of nutrients and vital substances from the soil. normal height plants substances.
Optimal time for watering
It is equally important to know not only how to water cacti correctly, but also what time of day is best to perform this procedure. For most of our regions, morning watering of succulents is recommended.
Try not to wet the soil flower pots, if the weather is rainy and cold outside. The lack of warmth and sunny color negatively affects the health of indoor plants. Do not water succulents in evening time days and with a sharp drop in air temperature. It is better to skip a few waterings than to over-moisten the soil.
How often to water
Most varieties of cacti can withstand lack of soil moisture for several months. However, there are also subspecies of this crop that do not like drought. It's about about tropical and forest species of succulents. For this reason, when organizing the care of indoor flowers, it is necessary to take into account individual characteristics each plant.
Many people are interested in how many times during a week or a month it is necessary to water a cactus so that the indoor flower does not suffer from either excess or lack of moisture in the soil. Let's see how seasonal watering of succulents differs.
In winter time
Watering cacti in winter depends on the conditions indoor flower. The best option Wintering conditions for most varieties of succulents are a combination of slight coolness, lack of drafts and low lighting. When creating such conditions, plants practically do not need watering. In winter, cacti only need to slightly moisten the soil once a month.
With the onset of spring warmth and increasing daylight hours, the growth of indoor plants, including cacti, is activated. From the second half of April, when the weather has already stabilized, you can begin to make changes to the frequency of watering. Experienced flower growers It is recommended to increase the number of waterings to twice a month. It is especially necessary to carefully monitor soil moisture during the flowering of the cactus, since if there is excess moisture, the flower can shed its flowers or turn them into small shoots.
During the summer
How to provide cacti with proper care in the summer, you ask? The frequency of watering depends on many factors: average monthly precipitation, features temperature regime, composition of the substrate used for planting or indoor flower, presence or absence drainage system and etc.
Feeding cacti
The cactus, being a kind of indoor plant, needs special feeding. If most indoor flowers can be fed with complex fertilizers, then when growing succulents it is necessary to avoid fertilizers with a high nitrogen content.
Don’t know what to fertilize the cacti grown on the windowsill at home? In specialized flower shops You can purchase fertilizers for cacti and succulents that contain phosphorus, potassium and calcium.
Activate growth, stimulate photosynthesis, improve absorption and assimilation indoor plants nutritious and useful substances succinic acid, obtained from natural amber, will help from the soil. It is not recommended to spray the above-ground part of succulents with this biostimulator; it is better to use succinic acid for watering plants.
Many gardeners, knowing what a “sweet tooth” cacti can be, feed indoor flowers with sugar, which is a source of energy for all plant life processes.
Despite the fact that cacti are unpretentious plants, they can easily survive long periods without water and do not require frequent replanting, yet certain rules they exist, they mainly relate to spraying and watering, so we will determine how often cacti need to be watered, how to water cacti so that they bloom, and also what are the features of watering depending on the season.
Under natural conditions, cacti receive moisture seasonally, rainy periods are replaced by long droughts, and conditions should be created for them as close as possible to natural ones. You need to water the soil only when it is completely dry; the rule here is that it is better not to top up than to overfill. Water should be poured carefully and under the walls, not on the plant itself, it will not like it.
Watering cacti after transplantation
There is no need to water it immediately after. It is recommended to find a shaded place for it on the eastern or south-eastern side and give it 3-4 (and in a temperate climate, 5-10) days to adapt; do not forget that replanting is a significant stress for the plant. After watering begins, when the plant begins to grow, you can slowly reduce the shading and give it more light.
Watering blooming cacti
The next point is to determine how to water a cactus that is blooming, so as not only not to harm the flower, but also to prolong the flowering period.
Although cacti unpretentious plants, but if there is a lack of moisture, they will not grow as the owner of the plant would like, much less bloom. Accordingly, if the buds beginning to form become noticeable, watering should be made a little more intense, and when flowering appears, water as usual. During the flowering period, it is important to ensure that there are no temperature “jumps”, that there are no drafts, and also that you do not need to move the pot with the cactus, no matter how much you would like to try on this beauty for each room. Such trips can lead to complete fall of the buds.
Watering cacti in winter
And finally, the features of seasonal watering, how to water a cactus in winter and whether to water it at all. From October to March, cacti continue to have a dormant period, during which watering is reduced to once every 7-12 days; you should focus on the condition; it should be moderately dry. As spring approaches, watering should be done a little more often to gently awaken the plant. Providing the cactus with such a period of rest increases the chances of it blooming.
Watering cacti in summer
If during the rest period at low temperatures cacti can use their own moisture reserves, but in the summer under the scorching sun they want to be watered. In late spring and summer, plants can be watered every other day or even every day in moderation. You can spray, but only by creating a mist of water around the plant, letting drops of water fall on the surface of the plant when high temperature air may cause burns.