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https://www.gkvks.com/wp-content/plugins/dmca-badge/libraries/sidecar/classes/{"id":2825,"date":"2019-01-11T12:48:55","date_gmt":"2019-01-11T12:48:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gkvks.com\/?p=2825"},"modified":"2019-01-11T12:48:58","modified_gmt":"2019-01-11T12:48:58","slug":"pencil-cactus-care-tips-and-propagation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gkvks.com\/pencil-cactus-care-tips-and-propagation\/","title":{"rendered":"PENCIL CACTUS: Care Tips and Propagation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Today we will look into some important Dos and Donts on Growing Pencil Cactus \u2013 like its care \u00a0tips and propagation. \u00a0Will try to make this video as short and to the point as possible, \u00a0focusing only on the important points to remember in successfully growing this plant. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The  Pencil Cactus is\na beautiful succulent plant belonging to the Euphorbia family. The\nBotanical name is Euphorbia tirucalli<\/em><\/strong>. Its also known as aveloz<\/strong>,\nfirestick plant<\/strong>, Indian tree spurge<\/strong>, naked lady<\/strong>, pencil\ntree<\/strong> and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is a beautiful ornamental houseplant and gives an interesting look\nbecause the stems are slender and look like branching pencils with no obvious leaves.\nActually tiny leaves appear initially and then fall off. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pencil Cactus is actually not a cactus. Cactus is a misnomer and its\nactually a succulent plant. If you want to learn basic of succulents and cacti,\nI have a separate playlist on succulents and cacti.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is also called as Milk-bush because of the milky sap or the juice it secretes when its cut or damaged. So, Be careful while handling this plant, because this sap is toxic and can sometimes cause anaphylactic reactions \u2013 that means acute allergic reactions. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Care Tips of pencil cactus plant: Actually pencil\ncactus needs very little care.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. It\u2019s a succulent plant and needs very little water\nlike once a week in summer and only if the top 1 \u2013 2 inches of soil is\ncompletely dry. In winter , that\u2019s in its dormant period, it hardly needs any\nwatering.<\/li>
  2. The soil\nmust be a well draining soil or you can also use a succulent and cactus potting\nmix. You can check out one such best formula from my videos linked in\ndescription. The container must have lot of drainage holes to drain out excess\nmoisture. Also Make sure you change the potting mix to  a well draining succulent mix once you bring\nhome this plant from nursery.<\/li>
  3. Sunlight:\nThis needs full sunlight and warmer temperatures for best growth. <\/li>
  4. Fertilizer: It\u2019s a succulent and\nneeds very little feeding. You can add only about 10 percent compost in potting\nmix while repotting or add some compost on top soil once in 3 to 6 months and\nits optional. <\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Propagation\nof pencil cactus: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Pencil\ncactus is very easy to propagate with cuttings. Actually this plant you are\nseeing here is grown from a cutting from this huge mother plant. Just insert a\ncutting into a clean sandy soil or cocopeat and its roots very easily in about\n2 to 3 weeks even without using any rooting hormone.  You can optionally use a rooting hormone if\nyou have.  
    \nBut remember to allow the stem cutting to dry and form callous to seal the end\nso that fungus or bacterial attack is sealed off. This happens when you\nleave the cutting to dry in shade for 1 or 2 days, before inserting into soil. This is very important basic\nstep for growing any succulent from cutting.   For\nbeginners, Callous is something like a scab which forms on the wound very much\nsimilar to human wound healing. This seals off the rest of the stem from\ninfection and helps prevent rot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    After you insert the cutting, leave it in shade or indirect light for about a 1 to 2 months or until good new growth or shooting commences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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