San Pedro growing questions

[ggpr]

Hey guys,

I got a couple of questions regarding growing San Pedro. FYI, I live in central canada in a semi arid region approximately 50 degrees north of the equator. After reading on here i think i should be ok to put my cacti outside. Should i be worried about heavy rainfalls? Or as long as the pot has good drainage it shouldn't be a issue?

I currently have them in small plastic potters with rock at the bottom and 50% store bought cactus mix and %50 perlite. I got them last july and put them in this and let them sit watering them once every month or two (too busy lately with my newborn to tend for my other children haha). I am pretty sure they have rooted as i seen some small roots a while ago when one had tipped.

I think they need to be in bigger containers, i am thinking 6 inch or 12 inch terra cotta pots. Would these be ok, or any recommendations on what would be best?

I got them when they were 1 ft, they dont look to have grown much. I am assuming that is because they were indoors in partially direct sunlight and also due to my lack of regular watering. How often should i water these when there is long time between rain?

Also should i be worried about bugs if they are outside? Is that something that can be prevented or should i just deal with something if it happens?

Around what daily low temperature should they be brought back inside?

Here are some pics of them

This happened as a result of this guy tipping and hitting something hard. Is this bad? Its pretty dry right now so i dont think it would be rotting...

Also they came with a bit of scarring like this, I assume this is OK?

Can anyone confirm they are San Pedro also, out of curiosity

Thanks for any help, it is very appreciated!

 

[oetzi13]

Water once a week in summer time. Slowly let them get used to the sunlight outside. Use osmocte as fertilizer. Let them go dormant in Wintertime (no water, little light, no fertilizer). Use as big of a container as you can. Water or rain should not be an issue with this much perlite inside. And yes, this is a Pedro.

Good Luck!

 

[kiang]

You might get some problems with the winter and\or heavy rain seasons, because the roots might rot.. I would put one San Pedro outside all year around in the ground or in a well drained pot and the others indoors when the cold season arrives.

This way you will learn and get a better feel of what your cacti can withstand. Even if the outside cactus gets the roots to rot you can salvage it by cutting the upper part. But you have to monitor it closely, like if it is getting inclined to one side, etc..

 

[Mill]

They should be able to withstand a good amount of water in the summer outdoors but as oetzi13 said they are sensitive to too much sunlight after a long winter indoors so best to adjust them slowly in the spring. Where you're at I would say that planting outdoors is not an option at all...highly unlikely they can handle a central Canadian winter. I'm jealous of those that are able to plant these beauties outdoors where they can thrive all year!

 

[dg]

nice posts everyone
i'd recommend getting some better genes, those PC types are notoriously low yielding. (they were my first cacti too)

 

[galulyah]

Hey op,

I grow here in Colorado, we get crazy extreme temps and weather conditions, these guys handle
it like champs. A couple of things for you to consider...

My guys love water. Everyday in the summer and very heavy every 3-5 days.

I put everyone in a greenhouse when winter rolls around...it can get down to 0 or less and these guys do just fine, granted, I do get nervous at about 25 degrees, and put a space heater out. But as long as they don't get snow on em...they do really well.

If you are going to overwinter them, keep them somewhere with little light, no more than 40 degrees and don't water them all winter. They will be fine with no water, they just go dormant.

Happy growin!
D