Question
broken cactus
we have a pseudopilocereus cactus that a friend gave us. it was transported to indiana from arizona. Upon unpacking it we noticed that one of the three spikes is broken 3/4th of the way thru. the cactus is 2 1/2 feet tall and it is broken about 7 in up from the bottom.can we leave it alone to heal or will it die?
AnswerMy bias would be to cut it off. The danger of rot with a break that extensive is significant. You could cut it off with a sterilized knife at the joint or an inch or two down from the break. Either way brush the cut with fungicide. You could start a new plant from the cutting. The alternative is to brush fungicide into the break. If the two edges are touching it may scar over, tho I doubt it. It's up to you. If you choose the latter, you really need to make sure that area isn't getting mushy or that the edges get yellowed which would indicate rot. That would kill the entire arm and could get into the main plant.
If it were my plant I'd cut it at the base with a sterilized knife (it will just look better), brush that with fungicide and then cut again (after re-sterilizing the knife) about 2 inches above the break, dust that with fungicide, let it callous over and start a new plant, or you could send that section to me (just kidding). If you decide to cut all or part of that arm off you may see small arms developing there, tho less likely from a joint cut.
It looks like a beautiful plant.
Good luck and let me know anytime if I've confused you or you need more info. Thanks so much for the picture.
Maureen
