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Euphorbia Tirucalli/Pencil Cactus-'pencils' falling off

15 years ago

I purchased a pencil cactus in January and it seemed to be doing quite well until about a month ago. It gets adequate light and the plant is indoors so the temperature hasn't fluctuated too much. Aside from maybe getting hotter in the summer but not substantially.

It seems to be dropping it's pencils, they shrivel up and turn gray and drop. The plant itself seems healthy, it has tiny little leaves indicating to me that it's doing well and it has grown since I purchased it.....

I didn't repot it when I purchased it, I figured I would let it settle so the soil seems appropriate, sand and soil. I don't believe I'm overwatering it, I give it a small amount of water, maybe 200-300 ml/month and it's not sitting in water. Too little water perhaps?

Could this be a pest? I haven't seen any indication of bugs on the plant but I don't know what's causing the grey, dehydrated pencils?

I'm at a loss and do not want to lose this plant....

Thanks for your help,

Erin

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Comments (6)

petzold6596
15 years ago
The water requirements of any indoor cactus is determined the amount of sun light it gets,which you did not mention. Cactus receiving 5,000 foot candles, the measure of light, which is about 1 foot from a south facing window, should be watered every 3-4 weeks. Greater intervals with less light but at least once every 2 months. To adequately moisten/wet the soil in the pot, place the pot in a container with enough water to just cover the pot, allow time for the soil to absorb all the water it can hold, remove from the water and allow to drain.

What is most important is the that the soil reach it's maximum water holding capacity.
netogrimald
7 years ago
Hello, yellow, or green very pale and shrink, indicates poor irrigation. Likes full sun. Slightly increase watering during the day if you live in a cold area. Euphorbia tirucalli is a succulent, African, is not a cactus. Succulents are from america and africa. Cacti are from America, from Argentina to the United States, most species concentrated in Mexican territory. Luck.
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I’d love to find out what happened to your cactus. I bought one in the summer and within a month it started dropping pencils. I thought I was water it too much, so I cut back to every three weeks and added a grow ligh. Then it started throwing off an alarming amount of pencilS. I took it to the store I bought it from and they exposed the roots. It only had a couple leading me to believe it what a cutting that wasn’t rooted enough. They told me to keep it in water to grow roots, that did nothing. Finally after a month and a half I planted it in well draining soil and within two weeks the plant turned grey and died. The owner of the store felt so bad she gave me a huge one of her own to replace it. The only problem is she used normal soil from a company called “Good Dirt.” It’s mostly peat. I feel like I should repot it in Al’s gritty mix that I made, but I’m gun shy after losing the first one. Please note the giant rocks are only a temporary solution. The plant is so top heavy and the soil is so light I’ll be fixing that problem when I repot.
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Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
7 years ago
Yes, that does sound like very little water. Are you able to add a pic? New growth is a very light color. Hopefully that's what you are seeing. "Pieces" should not shrivel &/or fall off.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
7 years ago
i doubt you will get a pic from an 8 year old post ... ken
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
7 years ago
Ugh, I didn't notice that. TY, Ken. Wonder why that keeps happening... people commenting for their first time on a really old discussion? How did it come up?

Hi & welcome, Netogrimald! It's not your fault something weird is going on since Houzz took GW.
Amanda Smith
2 years ago
My PC is dropping branches but they aren't shriveled. They're green. What would be causing this? 🤔 it's underneath a grow light. I just moved it from the south bedroom to the northeast living room under the grow light. Should I put it back?

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