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chelsie_wizper

HELP-- I have a black thumb but want this Fish Hook Cactus to live

Chelsie Wizper
9 months ago

Hello! I am notorious for my black thumb— I cannot keep any plant alive no matter how much I research and care for it. This breaks my heart as I have tried and tried with all kinds of plants to keep them alive to no avail. I have wanted a cactus forever and was recently gifted one. I had originally thought cacti were low-maintence and very hard to kill/harm, but now that I have had it for a month and have done a ton more research, I feel like maybe I’m in over my head again. I have a few questions and would be so grateful for any advice.

  1. Does it need repotted? This particular cactus has a lean and doesn’t appear to be straight. It is inside a nursery pot and that is inside a pot with no drainage. I can see the roots peeking out of the nursery pot drainage holes so I assume it probably needs a bigger pot but a repot is intimidating. What size pot would it even need— the current pot is 3.5” deep by 3” in diameter.

2. Will a fallen out spine grow back? When I went to check the nursery pot and lifted the cactus, one of the spines ripped out 😩. I’m terrified that all of this lifting the cactus out of the pot to water the nursery pot inside and the falling off of the spine is too traumatic and my cactus is doomed.

3. Why is the soil so dry?! I have had this cactus a month and the soil seems to go dry very quickly— I live in Ohio so it’s not super hot or humid here and idk why the soil is going dry so fast or if that’s normal. I watered it a week ago and it’s already bone-dry.


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