Growing cacti that you have to understand

Cacti or cactus plants have many shapes.The ideal environment for a cactus is not of course solely dependant on its genetic predispositions. There are several factors that contribute to how well or not well a particular cactus will do under certain conditions.

The first factor is how it was raised before you acquired it. Most of the cacti we purchase where probably grown in a greenhouse where conditions are more or less kept within a particular range of light, heat, moisture. Seedlings are kept cooler and in higher humidity conditions with a more limited amount of light than your standard commercial greenhouse. As the plants grow larger they will be moved into a greenhouse where they receive light through opaque plastic and depending on the location of the nursery probably a much hotter and drier climate.

So now you've bought your new little pride and joy from your local nursery, cactus farm. You take it home and immediately place it outside in the hot sun; probably not a good idea.

Cacti aren't able to move or put on sun screen so they may need our help when dealing with the elements. So don't let the sun be an enemy of your cacti.