Easygoing orchid cacti simple to prune or divide
Dividing plants
Q: I have a pink-flowered orchid cactus about 5 years old and 4 feet long. It is so beautiful when in bloom. Is it possible to divide the plant in half, as it is quite crowded in the container? Also a few of the stems have brown spots on them. Should I trim those off? I live in San Mateo. Is there any place nearby where I can get instructions on the plant? A: Orchid cacti, also known as epicacti or epiphyllums, are native to tropical rain forests from Mexico to Argentina. The ones we grow are likely to be hybrids, often a mix of more than two species. Most of the wild parent plants live on the branches of forest trees, and a few live with their roots wedged into cracks in rocks. They thrive in potting mix high in organic content, preferably from decayed leaves, with perlite or coarse sand to provide excellent drainage.
Young branches of these plants may have spines like other cacti, but the mature stems usually do not. The large, luminous flowers are borne on the sides of the draping, leafless, flattened stems, most often in spring or early summer.
Orchid cacti bloom best when somewhat pot bound. If yours is blooming and growing well, but unattractively crowded with branches, you can prune a few out. Start with older, less attractive, non-blooming stems, cutting them out with a sharp knife at their base. If you determine that the spots on some branches are not an insect (see below) you could prune these unattractive branches out now. However, do not remove more than one-third of the plant.
If your plant is too crowded to perform well, you might solve the problem by moving it to a larger pot. Choose one that is no more than 2 inches wider in diameter. Move the plant carefully, as its roots are delicate.
Growers do say that large plants can be divided. You may find yours was created with several cuttings in the first place, so you need only gently separate their roots. If it’s one big plant, it can be cut in two and the halves repotted. Let halves dry two days before you repot them, then keep in a cool shady place and don’t water for two weeks.
As a backup plan, or just to have some extra plants, you could grow some from cuttings. Cut off flat branches 8 to 12 inches long near their bases, let them dry a couple of weeks, then bury their bases in potting mix. Some growers use rooting hormone on the cut ends before planting, others say they don’t need it. If you put several in one pot, they will fill the pot faster. Cuttings usually bloom in 2 to 3 years.
(Do wait until a couple of weeks after the plant finishes blooming to prune, divide or make cuttings.)
Without seeing your plant, I can’t tell what’s causing the spots on the leaves. They could be due to a sharp contrast between warm days and cool nights, which isn’t serious. Raised spots could be scale insects, in which case you can carefully scrape them off. Sunken spots with yellow or orange blotches could have been caused by too-wet soil.
Epicactus always needs to dry a bit between waterings, though it needs more water in spring and summer while it is actively growing than in winter, when it isn’t. Mine is outside, under the house overhang, so I can provide winter water only when the potting mix is rather dry. The overhang protects it somewhat from cold, but if frost is predicted, I bring it inside. In summer it gets half-day sun. This is OK since my location is rather foggy, but a couple of hours of sun is enough in brighter locations. Indoors, an orchid cactus wants bright light out of direct sun.
Plant clubs
There are three nearby plant clubs where you can find out more about your orchid cactus. The closest to you is the Peninsula Succulent Club (affiliates. cssainc.org/peninsu la-succulent-club), which meets at 12:30 p.m. the second Wednesday of the month at the San Mateo Garden Center, 605 Parkside Way.
If daytime meetings do not work for you, consider two clubs that meet in the evening in the Hall of Flowers in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, at Ninth Avenue and Lincoln Way. The San Francisco Epiphyllum Society (sfepi.org), meets at 7:30 p.m. on first Thursdays. The San Francisco Succulent and Cactus Society (sfsucculent.org) meets at 7 p.m. on third Tuesdays.