Since no one else has spoken up...

I don't have any that big yet, but if I did, my first thought would be to use a hand truck. You could put a pillow or two between the plant and the truck to keep the plant from tipping in the pot. If you don't have a hand truck, then I'd probably lift it onto a rug and slide it along. You might want a second person to make sure it stays upright.

I think I remember seeing a picture of yours and, although I'm not usually a fan of mutations, that is a really nice plant. It made me consider getting one. How old is yours?

Get a helper! I've helped a friend move big stuff and it's no simple task...one wrong step and plucking spines outta your face or other tender area. Remember the movie The Great Escape? when the German guards lift the stove with 2 long boards, that how we move his large and heavy plants. Another way is to wrap the plant it carpet or make a sling out of old shade cloth and carry it out laying on it side. Have moved some massive barrel cacti this way.

At a nursery in Kansas City last summer I saw the perfect thing, it's made to move pots, out of rope. Showed 2 people carrying a huge statue with it. I wish I had a brain and could tell you what it was called. I saw a couple of landscapers with one in Houston moving boulders right after that. It works like a 2 person carry.

Or get 2 nurses, we can move ANYTHING! Mom quit moving the pencil tree when it hit 15'. It wouldn't fit inside any more. Thank goodness! It was killing me moving that thing.
Tally HO!

Thanks for the tips, guys. As I feared, it looks like brute force. It isn't too bad until you hit the steps and the doorjams that you need to lift it over (it is on wheels). But, definitely a two person job. My biggest fear is it tipping over out of the pot...

Penfold - I think I have had this cactus for about 15 years now. I can't help but feel like it would be even better if it had some outdoor full sun exposure to growth with, vs. the year round indoor conditions. You can see it in this pic (which was taken about a year and a half ago...)

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I think it would have tighter growth if it spent time outdoors in the growing season.

Well, I guess when the time comes I will see how motivated I am to make this happen.

Thanks, again.

Tom

hi that is a great looking plant...
good luck in moving it,I hope it doesn't tip..
a friend of mine has one half that tall..and she moves it in and out and I don't know how she does it....she is a little lady in her 70's...
take care...linda

You have some very magnificent plants there. I wish I had a sunroom. I agree with everyone though, find a helper.

And if no one's willing to help...bribe them...or hire me...I'll help for free...but someone's gonna have to pay for the airfare. =P

Why move it at all? The Cereus looks pretty darn good for being condemned to the sunroom for all those years.

After seeing the plant and pot it will be daunting task to move. You can't carry it upright, there's no easy way to hold the pot, then you have to stoop over to get it out the door. The sling idea would probably work the best, but then there's worry of damaging the surface or breaking something off.

This is what I do.
Do to main stem not being real tall compared to the branches above. What I do with this type is , yes, two people. One for the slow pulling and one to help stabilize the plant.
Take some twine and wrap around the branches at the top to help keep them from breaking off. Do the same for any others that many bounce around and snap off during the move. Do not make it tight, just a little snug for reinforcement.
Then take a big bath towel, folded a couple of times and wrap around the holding point (slightly above center). Both just need to work slow and together on moving it. It will be fine.
BTW, very nice looking plants you have.

First, thanks for the compliments on my plants. You should see this room now - it is utterly packed with plants. Real estate is a serious issue...

beachplant - No nurses in the immediate family...I would need to be admitted to the hospital to find one right now ;-)

bunnygurl - it is pretty cheap to fly to Boston at this time of year (who the heck wants to come here in the winter!). But, come late spring it may be a different story...

caudex - I have pretty much stayed with the 'it is too big to move' approach, but can't help think it would be less stretched (does it look etoliated to you?) if it had good sun exposure during the growing season....may not be worth the risk of moving, however.

anya - I like your idea of stabilizing the branches with twine. I would hate to lose one in the move. That, in conjunction with another person and a dolly to roll it on, may do the trick!

Thanks everyone for the input...

Tom

Hi...the twine gave me a idea...
when I was trying to keep my big jade cutting standing upright in a pot...I used styrofoam blocks to help hold the tall branches straight and help them not sped and brake..and I used rags cut into strips so they would not cut into the cutting or leave marks on the branchs...
maybe that would help you...put the blocks in between the branches and the rags all the way arround to hold the branches from wiggling and spending and braking..and you could use the rags to hold stable as you move it...
I just thought I'd throw this in...you can throw it out..;)
good luck....linda
and again great plants....
did I mention I have one of theses...its maybe 4inches tall, no problem moving this one..lol

i vote for not moving it. don't fix what ain't broke.

See, pretty packed in here, huh?

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...like sardines.

Tom

I am overwhelmed. Your plants are extraordinary. Your sunroom/plantroom is extraordinary. I have bookmarked this post so I can look at it again and again. Thank you very much for sharing.
Pat

I agree with Pat.
Thank you so much for sharing your plants with us.
I live in southern lower Michigan and from November through March, every now and then I need a green-fix.
I need to see green plants. I try to go to a greenhouse that sells plants, when this hits, and come home with something new.
I think that your sunroom would work well for a green-fix.
Just wonderful.

Val

I have some biggies in 20-25 gal containers that I roll around on a plant stand/ dolly designed for pots. Make sure you get one that can handle a few 100 lbs. with thick wheels for smoother maneuvering.

x

I suppose I should have asked this up front, but would cereus peruvianus monstrose actually benefit from being outdoors in the Massachusetts summer? In fact, as my cactus collection increases, I start to wonder this about all of them. I.e., is there a general trigger point in terms of warmth that it then becomes safe to put them all out and leave them there? We could get some pretty wet springs and summers up here...

Last summer, I had my saguaro, cleistocactus, and golden barrel outdoors during the summer and they all did well. Now, I've got turbinicarpus, astrophytum, and sulcorebutia to add to the mix. As summer growers, should they all appreciate warmth and water - assuming my soil mix is good?

What do other folks in my part of the world do?

Thanks.

Tom

Wow, thoes are VERY beautiful plants, some look quite old, i am going to show these pic to some of my friends, Wow keep on posting the pics. How did the move go?

Yeah, Tom, you should have asked it up front!

This is the first time I'm able to view your posted pics - the WebSense software on my work computer had previously prevented me from even glimpsing your photos. Other posters' pics were also never visible, and yet still other posters had sometime-visible and others had always-visible pics.

Anyway, enough about me - those are marvelous-looking plants, even the ones dormant now. Quite the collection, sir - Pachycaul Paradise.

Anyway, again, yes, all of those plants would benefit from being outside there, provided your mix is of excellent drainage (and I think you've learned that lesson long ago), as well as ensuring that you get them acclimated to the increased sun.

As a note, I'd likely ensure that those plants that enjoy just a little summer water (like the Sulcorebutia) are on a bench/raised platform so that drainage is accelerated. Your columnars, however, should enjoy outstanding growth (as it's their growth season).

In plant #6, what's the caudex-spectacular plant to the left of the Pachypodium?

Man, that's the load of fat plants - TFS.

PS - do you put your summer-active pachycaul plants outside in the summer?

Thanks everyone for the advice and the compliments. On a day like it is here today (snow and freezing rain) walking into that room is like paradise for me. Warm air, the smell of the soil...maybe I need to relocate!

cactusmcharris - all my plants go up on benches outdoors. As far as the Sulcorebutia (would my epithelantha bokeii and astrophytum asterias also qualify?), would I just let them get rainfall, i.e., perhaps no 'manually applied' water?

I think the plant you are asking about is Adansonia Digitata (the one to the left of the Pachy densiflorum? My densiflorum, oddly enough, is putting out a flower bud and my inopinatum is starting to leaf, too - yet I can't get my namaquanum to say boo - but I digress...).

Yes, all my summer active pachycauls go outside, as soon as I can get them out there safely. This can vary, but I usually find myself making the final moves in the May - June timeframe. Coincidentally, my electric bill drops dramatically at that time, too...

Tom

Let me add my praise, too! Your plantroom is spectacular, Tom. I think you have mastered the science behind soils and container growing, and you shouldn't have any trouble summering this beautiful collection!
Thanks for the time taken to post these pics!

Josh

Goodness gracious, Tom...what beautiful pictures!! You've got a tremendous selection of gorgeous plants...I especially love all of the ones with the large trunks/caudexes...those pictures should be in a magazine...just stunning!! Bravo! Patrick

Tom

If you're planning on leaving some cactus out all spring-summer-fall, here is my advice: use a potting mix that is particularly porous. Anything mixed with 60-80% perlite would be OK. This will work well during cool and wet conditions, since the mix will never be saturated.

The downside to this mix is that when the hot weather kicks in during July + August, you may find yourself needing to water some plants daily.

Even better, submerge those pots into the soil a few inches and let some roots escape - then you will really see good growth. In the fall just root-prune.

This technique works nicely for medium to large plants. Small cactus in little pots seem lost when outdoors. I prefer to keep those guys sheltered under cover a greenhouse.

The trickier period is early spring when the plants are not in growing mode yet. The potential for rotting is there. In the fall, even during cool weather, what happens is that the pots are full of healthy roots that readily absorb moisture and plants do not rot.

As far as the "cut-off temp" - I think at least 65-70F in the day is enough to trigger growth in most succulents, summer or winter growers. As nights hit the 60's regularly, the summer growers take off.

I like to get my plants outdoors much sooner, and expose them to fresh cool air and sun first. I find that taking them out when its warmer results in more sunburn.

x

x -

Great info. I agree, spring is really the tricky time. Particularly last year, though each season has its own challenges. I lost a nice sized C. juttae last year to rot, but it was in an older soil mix of mine. I think I have gotten better at that.

The other downside I find to using a lot of perlite is the float factor. That said, if it is 80% perlite the float factor hardly matters, I guess. I mostly use pumice, turface, dynarok (in my larger plants) and some coir or topsoil (either or both, but in much smaller quantities than the other ingredients). Maybe some coarse sand, too.

I like using pumice, though it is virtually impossible to find locally here. When I have gotten it mail order, I am lucky if it doesn't come mostly pulverized.

I think you let your cacti get a bit colder than mine do in the winter, if I recall correctly. So, are you bringing yours outside from complete dormancy? Or have they started to waken? Please describe then temps/conditions you are taking them from, and what the outdoor conditions need to be when you make that move (particularly nighttime lows...). The trick is coming from the cool temps with moisture totally controlled (i.e., greenhouse, grow room) to cool temps with moisture whenever it feels like it...

I hear ya on the small guys...not sure where I am going to locate my epithelenatha and turbinicarpus...

T

What a gorgeous room...filled with gorgeous plants, all meticulously cared for...paradise indeed! Wow! And seeing snow outside the windows, what a kick!

Thanks for sharing those photos.

No Platycerium superbum? Looks like there's some room in the corner just below the ceiling... :)

...Platycerium superbum? uh oh...don't get me started!

I will be googling it right after this message, to see it it will fit....

Thanks.

Tom

My cacti stay dormant in the garage until about early March. The garage is pretty constant in the 38-50F range, sometimes spiking into the 60's if it is a warm and sunny day.

I bring them outside, into the greenhouse protected from rain. There is a heater in there that keeps it from getting below about 40F at night, just in case. They stay here a few weeks to acclimate to the sunshine.

Then, in early April, I raise the heat to get the nights a bit warmer (mid-50's) and that combined with the warmer days wakes up the plants. Watering comes shortly after. By mid-late May, there are flowers and buds everywhere, and some of the larger plants are taken out of the greenhouse (replaced with some fat plants to take advantage of the greenhouse warmth) and they go outside. I have seen a light frost in my area as late as early May, but I do not recall a freeze later than early April anytime recently. I used to plant tomatoes in late March.

The Mother's Day or Memorial Day rule works well- it is pretty safe for many cactus outside. I would worry, though, if there was an extended rainy period with cool temps. One of the tricks, that I have discussed here in the past, is to leave weeds (clovers, grasses, etc.) growing in the pot - they presumably help suck up some of the moisture.

x

Tom I just sit and look at your postings for a long time it brings such joy. How do you manage the watering needs of each individual plant in the winter? because some cacti still need some water in the winter or else their root die off - I know it has happened to some of my cacti. Tom great job.