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Cacti & Succulents

How Do I Use Cactus Food If My Cactus is In a Self-Watering Pot?

16 years ago

My cactus plant is in one of those pots that rests inside another pot. The bottom pot has water and the top pot is made of some kind of material that draws in the water as it's needed.

I bought some cactus food that is supposed to be added to water and then fed to the cactus. If I add this liquid cactus food to the water in the bottom pot, will it be drawn through the sides of the top pot?

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Comments (9)

tanyag
16 years ago
I am not sure what kind of cactus you have, but I don't know of any that would like that kind of pot and those conditions. Those pots are meant for African Violets and other things that like constant moisture. Cactus don't! I would transplant and then follow the direction on the cactus foood. I use the Schultz stuff but I hardly ever fertilize and they are fine without. Most don't require a lot of food. If you are going to keep it in that pot to see if it will survive, I guess you could put the fertilizer solution in the pot every 3-4 months and let it leach in like the reg. water does. A lot of the nutrients may get trapped in the ceramic though. Another options would be to get those house plant fert. sticks, cut them in thirds and put 1/3 in every 3-4 months. That way your not pouring water into it that can't get out. I still think your plant won't survive long in a pot like this.
paul_dvorak
16 years ago
I would agree with the above reply. Most cacti prefer to dry completely out between waterings and during the winter most like to be very dry. I think that sooner or later you would run into problems if it remained in that pot.
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Vanessa From your description of mix it sounds that it does get properly moist - only you can judge that. Sand is usually very fine and typically decrease drainage rather than increase - it clogs up any spaces available between larger particles. But if it is coarse, it would work. And there are ppl that grow succulents in sand very successfully - but they have lots of knowledge and experience... Grit in the mix is desirable ingredient; pebbles are usually too large (what's visible in your photo is too large for the mix, but good for top-dressing) Grit should be about size of aquarium gravel, and any other additional materials too. Many of us use a gritty mix. There is very good and quite detailed info on this forum if you search for "gritty mix". There could be some adjustments made to it using suitable substrates - whole idea is to create well-draining and airy mix. Perlite, grit, scoria, turface, pumice are some that are used most often. Small bark is used too. I use mix of grit (chicken grit), perlite and turface - these are quite easy for me to find. And I use top-dressing a lot, sometimes just chicken grit, sometimes pebbles and/or rocks - they help to anchor newly planted plant (and my hope is that they deter at least some digging by squirrels - just a little - since I keep plants outdoors). Rina
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sjv78736
16 years ago
I'll "third" that; this is not a good pot for a succie.
dufflebag2002
16 years ago
Don't let the cactus pot sit in water. Have you heard of liq. fertilizers, about 1 tbs per gal of water, don't let it's pot sit in water once it takes up the water that it needs remove the rest of the water in the tray (saucer). This will not take more than an hour, depending on the size of the pot. Let it dry out between, take a chop stick and put it into the soil, and see if it needs water.
Group please edit if I didn't make sense. Norma
tanyag
16 years ago
So, Norma, your saying it's okay to use the pot but only put water in it when it needs the water and only let it drink for about an hour at a time and then dump the rest of the water out? It makes sense, but then why use that kind of pot at all? Buy and AV for that pot and get an inexpensive clay pot for the cactus. It will be happier, IMO.
shrubs_n_bulbs
16 years ago
I wouldn't use the self-watering pot at all. It is not designed to completely wet the soil in a short period and then let it dry out. You can grow in almost anything, even a pot with no holes in, but if you don't water a cactus the "standard" way you will almost certainly kill it within a year or two.
gabro14
16 years ago
I think Norma thought the poster was talking about one of those plastic self-watering pots, where you pour water in the saucer. Just a guess?
I think what the poster is talking about is an inner pot made of very thin clay that absorbs water from the outer pot that it sits in.

Gabi
gabro14
16 years ago
And by the way, I definitely would NOT use any type of self watering pots on any succulent.

Gabi
flattie
16 years ago
Please get it out of that pot ASAP. Cacti don't like to be drowned.

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