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Photographs are of our actual stock, taken at the nursery. Plants are living things — expect small differences in shape and leaf count from the plant shown.
Succulents & Cacti
Columnar Cactus
Cereus / Trichocereus spp.
Columnar cacti are the architectural ones: strongly ribbed, upright, and by cactus standards genuinely fast — thirty centimetres in a good year once established. They branch from the base with age into the candelabra shape people plant them for.
They are also among the easiest. Full sun, a gritty free-draining mix, a good soak in summer whenever the pot goes light, and nothing at all through winter. Left dry and cool from November to February they are hardy well below what a Punjab winter delivers.
Older plants flower at night — large white flowers that open after dark and are finished by morning.
- The fastest-growing cactus we sell — 30 cm a year once established
- Branches from the base with age into a candelabra
- Keep completely dry through winter
- Night-flowering when mature: large white flowers, gone by morning
Rs 450for the 10 inch pot
Inclusive of pot and mix. Delivery Rs 350, free over Rs 5,000.
1
4.6(29 reviews) In stock, dispatched in 1–2 working days
Packed by hand
Dispatched in 1–2 working days
7-day guarantee
Replaced or refunded if damaged
Grown by us
Never bought in and resold
At a glance
- Mature size
- 1–3 m in a pot over many years
- Growth rate
- Fast for a cactus
- Difficulty
- Easy to keep
- Around pets
- Non-toxic — safe if chewed
Full sunRooftopCourtyardWindowsill
How to look after your Columnar Cactus
Written for Pakistani conditions — long hot summers, dry winter air, and hard tap water. Follow this rather than advice written for a temperate climate.
- Light
- Full sun. Four to six hours of direct light minimum — a rooftop, balcony rail or south-facing sill. Acclimatise gradually if the plant has been indoors.
- Water
- Soak thoroughly, then let the mix dry completely before watering again. Fortnightly in summer heat, and nothing at all from mid-November to late February.
- Humidity
- Low. Good airflow matters more than humidity — stagnant, damp air invites fungal spotting.
- Soil
- Gritty mineral mix: coarse sand, perlite and a little compost. Our plants ship in this blend already.
- Feeding
- Low-nitrogen cactus feed once in April and once in July.
- Temperature
- 10–45°C. Genuinely tolerates Pakistani summer heat. Keep dry and above 5°C in winter.
If something goes wrong
Soft brown patch at soil level
Why it happens: Rot from winter watering.
What to do: Cut above the rot with a sterile blade, callus the cut for a week in shade, then re-root in dry mix.
Pale, stretched, narrow new growth
Why it happens: Etiolation from too little light.
What to do: Increase sun gradually over two weeks. The stretched section will not shrink back, but new growth returns to normal.
White cottony specks in the crevices
Why it happens: Mealybug.
What to do: Dab each cluster with a cotton bud dipped in rubbing alcohol, and repeat weekly for a month.
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