If your Christmas cactus is dying, it means there is an environmental factor causing the plant stress. This factor may be underwatering, overwatering, mineral salt buildup or too much sunlight. If you can properly diagnose the reason the cactus is dying, treatment will become much easier.
In this article, we will discuss the different reasons your Christmas cactus may be dying, and how to save it.
How can you tell if your Christmas cactus is dying?
The plant is shriveled and soft
If the soil is very dry and your cactus is shriveled and soft, it may be dying due to underwatering. Moisture is not able to reach the stems when the soil is too dry or the roots are damaged.
Underwatering is easy to distinguish by looking at and feeling the soil. Once you are sure that the shriveled stems are due to underwatering, you can remedy the situation by watering the plant. A deep, thorough watering is what a dehydrated Christmas cactus needs, to ensure that the entire root ball gets access to water.
In hanging plants, the soil can become so dry that it actually repels water when it comes into contact with it. The water cannot penetrate the soil because of how dry and compact the soil has become, and ends up running off the soil and into the tray or saucer under the pot. In this case, regular watering will not do the job and you will need to soak the root ball of the plant. Place the pot in a sink or in a bucket of water and allow it to soak for up to 15 minutes. After soaking, let the pot drain completely. Once the soil is rehydrated, it should no longer have a problem with being water-receptive, and you can continue watering normally in the future.
Christmas cacti, unlike most cacti, are not desert plants, which means they do not require long periods of dryness between watering. They are low maintenance, but they do like a constant level of moisture throughout the year. All you really need to remember when it comes to watering your Christmas cactus is to water it deeply enough that the entire root ball is moistened. Wait until the soil is relatively dry before watering it again.
The plant is droopy
Overwatering
If the plant is drooping and you notice that the soil is wet most of the time, it may be dying due to overwatering. When the soil is constantly waterlogged, the roots are unable to breathe and they will start to die. When there are dead roots underground, opportunistic pathogens are able to attack them and this will lead to root rot. These pathogens are the dormant spores of various fungi that are awoken due to the presence of rotten roots.
The rot will start on the dead tissue but will move up to the healthy roots, effectively spreading the rot. This will continue until all the roots are compromised, thereby killing the entire plant.
Mineral salt buildup
Another reason your Christmas cactus is drooping may be mineral salt buildup.
If the plant has been around for several years, it is no surprise that salts will have accumulated in the soil. These deposits come from the water you are giving the plant, as well as from fertilizer.
When the salt levels become too high, there will be more salt in the soil than there is in the plant. Because of this difference in salt levels, osmosis will encourage water to move from the plant to the soil, instead of the other way around. The plant’s roots will begin to lose water and become droopy.
You can tell there is a salt buildup in the soil when there is a yellowish or whitish crust on the rim of the pot and on the plant’s stem.
Christmas cacti are especially prone to mineral salt buildup when compared with most other plants.
How do I save a dying Christmas cactus?
Water
The most important factor when trying to revive a Christmas cactus is knowing the proper watering techniques.
If the plant is dehydrated and thirsty, put it in a bowl to collect the water that runs through the pot. After collecting the water, pour it back into the planter to make sure it has been watered thoroughly.
When the plant has recovered from either underwatering or overwatering, only water it when the top inch of soil is dry. Do not wait for all of the soil in the pot to dry out.
Inspect the plant
When you have given the plant the water that it needs, you need to do a thorough inspection. Look at all the stems of the plant and if there are dry and crunchy parts, it is best to just remove them. If a leaf is still soft, leave it on the stem.
Next, look at the soil in the pot. Hard, crunchy soil is very dry, so you may need to remove the top inch. If the soil under the first top inch is soft, then you only need to replace the top inch of soil. If the rest of the soil is just as crunchy and dry as the top inch, you will need to replace all of the soil.
Use the right kind of soil
When you repot your plant, the type of soil you use is imperative to the success of its recovery.
Christmas cacti like soil that has both organic and inorganic components. This makes the soil drain and dry out quickly.
The soil needs to have a pH of about 5.5 and should contain 25% perlite.
Repotting
As mentioned above, repotting is only really recommended when the soil is dry and crunchy all the way to the bottom of the pot. If the roots are not compacted, you can use the same pot and just replace the soil.
Using a small spade, remove the plant from the pot while leaving some soil around the roots. Take out all of the old, dry soil and replace it with fresh soil. Place the plant back into the pot.
Make sure the plant gets enough light
Place the plant near a window while it is recovering. They prefer bright, indirect sunlight because direct sunlight can cause sunburn. Too much sunlight can also stunt the plant’s growth when it is still trying to recover. Try not to keep the plant in a room with lots of artificial light, so do not place it in a room where you turn on a lot of lights at night.
Conclusion
Christmas cacti will exhibit signs of declining health when there is an environmental factor causing them stress.
This stress can be caused by underwatering, overwatering, too much light, or a buildup of mineral salts in the soil.
Figuring out the exact cause of the plant’s stress is the first step in correctly fixing the problem. Christmas cacti are more low-maintenance than many other plants, so as long as you provide their basic needs, it should not be too difficult to keep them thriving.
Image: istockphoto.com / nzfhatipoglu