i am asking for some help on this subject. i live in ohio so i cannot leave my cacti outside for the winter. i have been searching for info on how to prepare your pedro for dormancy and i'm just curious as to how you folks prefer to do it. i want to prevent etiolation as much as possible.

since i am bringing my cacti inside for the winter it is my understanding that they will not get the message from nature to go dormant since it will be warm indoors. i read that it's a good idea to just leave them in the dark for the winter. i am thinking i might be able to leave them in the garage if it doesn't get too cold (which it might, but winters have been mild recently).

please help, fellow nexusers. i am just wondering how to do this so i don't suffer etiolation or any other problems. my cacti are growing beautifully and i want to keep them that way


thanks for any information!

hxxp://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=11003
here you are

I live in Texas, but my technique has been as follows:
Stop watering for two weeks and move them under a roof so they get less light and no rain.

After two weeks, move them to the garage. I would let them sit there until it gets into the low 40's.
After that move them indoors next to a window where they will get minimal light, but still receive the cold radiating off the window.

If it's already too cold up there, then move them outdoor during the day when it's warm enough to allow the flowing air to dry them out.
The most important factor is ensuring the soil is 100% dry.
They'll stop growing if they have no water.

But if they do have water, they'll grow and probably etiolate.

thanks! i've had them inside for a few weeks now... i guess i should probably put them in the garage. i noticed they are looking a bit lighter at the top so they are probably looking for light. so if i just put them in the dark in my garage then they'll stop growing?

Yes. If it appears they are still trying to grow, they probably have a little bit of water in the soil.

In that case, I would take them outside under a roof during the day when it isn't below freezing so the flowing air environment can dry them out faster.

If it's sunny and no chance of rain, let them sit in the sun to help dry up the soil.
Then move them to the garage.

Cactus guru M.S. Smith gives in depth advice on wintering cactus. Smith says that temperature is the most important factor when inducing dormancy. Reducing light and water are important, but if the temperature is not kept suitably low, growth/etiolation will ensue.

Good luck happy gardening!


http://www.thenook.org/f...ndex.php?showtopic=46363

^ same info i posted above, but w/ more discussion


ms keeps his cacti looking and growing nice in a cold northern climate.
many of my cacti were ms sourced
good guy, i have his medicinal and hallucinogenic cacti book too, good stuff

Whoops! didn't mean to post the same link, Smiths cactus care posts are awesome. Should have known you would be on top of it DG . What is the name of his book/books?

its called "narcotic and hallucinogenic cacti of the new world". edited by trout.
he may have other books and i just cant recall

glad you posted the link to nook discussion, i posted the sab link because many here dont know about nook, or have accounts there...

San Padro is native from the Andes Mountains I think it should be fine in winter

Check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinopsis_pachanoi

dont make assumptions, most are not hardy in the winter, unless you are in a climate that Never freezes

they can in rare cases take a temp that is maybe 15F, but more likely they die at 28-25F

they do fine in the cold when wet if it does not get below 25F, in general but not all are this hardy

Smith has good info on dormancy care.
DG does too.

Here in holland there is a nursery which specializes in trichocereus. It's in an unheated greenhouse and outdoor temperatures can easily come at 14 F with dips to 5 F here. In some of his cacti you can see a little damage but most look very healthy.
As long as they stay dry in the colder period they can handle low temperatures.

You must be careful of this, I had the same assumption the first time I tried growing a Pedro, I left it outside, living in the desert with the crazy climate, dropped to like 28f or so and it did not make it. I was a sad panda, will never make that mistake again.

even if your plant dies and turns into a pool of black bacterial culture you can still extract it and retrieve the salty alkaloids

this is poor advice and should be discouraged;

you do not know what else you might be co-extracting if you add bacteria in your mix, and conventional wisdom says that you might not want to gamble with bacteriotoxins'-laden mescaline.

really?
i've extracted from rotten cacti many times w/o trouble
and so have my friends.

ofcourse this is down to a very crystallized product not "resin" or some such

why do you think bacteriotoxins would pass thru an A/B??

^
It all depends on the nature of bacteriotoxins or other toxic metabolites found in bacteria, as well as the method of purification (as opposed to extraction).

It is important to have in mind that the risk of contaminated, potentially toxic mescaline is there if you start with rotten samples just as it is important to take further precaution (crystallisation as you mention) should the risk is there. ipuma's post read as if extraction is the cure if your cactus turns to a a pool of black bacterial culture (sic), which was passed too easily and without any mention of risks involved. That is bad practise.

hmmm. my mistake. i understood it in theory as the super basic solution of which the bacterial goop would be added to would completely destroy bacteria and break down all components of their potentially hazardous bi-products.

ive had ayahuasca turn into a culture of bacterias many times, as well as rue tea. ive just filtered the solution bassified and let the alkaloids precipitate. ive also had cactus tea ferment and then extracted it on numerous occasions. were these practices jeopardizing of my health?

ive made a new thread about extraction of bacterial substrates in the health and safety section as to not derail this thread further

bacterial substrate extraction: safe or not