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The Cactus Doctor makes a house call

After a week of record rainfall and a night of strong winds, the lovely saguaro cactus in our front yard began to lean at an alarming angle. We learned that a saguaro leans when it has bacterial necrosis at the base, there are too many heavy limbs on one side, and/or the soil around the base of the cactus is too wet and loose. Our saguaro suffered from all three conditions! The solution was to call the Cactus Doctor! The Doctor performed surgery, removing the infected flesh at the base of the cactus. I removed the plastic sheeting under the rocks around the base of the saguaro that had been placed there more than 20 years ago, before we bought our house, as a weed barrier. This will allow the soil around the base of the cactus to drain and to dry out after a rain. Finally, the Doctor returned to straighten the saguaro and "train" it to grow straight again by lashing it to two large wooden posts. He also removed two large, heavy, limbs from one side of the cactus to restore its balance. The Cactus Doctor is literally a life saver, and we're grateful to him for saving the life of our beloved saguaro and teaching us a lot about cactus care in the process.

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The Leaning Tower of Cactus
The Leaning Tower of Cactus		 Wounds are visible near the base
Wounds are visible near the base		 Evidence of bacterial necrosis
Evidence of bacterial necrosis		 Without help, this cactus won't survive
Without help, this cactus won't survive
The Cactus Doctor performs surgery on the infected area
The Cactus Doctor performs surgery on the infected area		 A few days later, the wound is starting to heal
A few days later, the wound is starting to heal		 I placed 2x4's to temporarily stabilize the cactus
I placed 2x4's to temporarily stabilize the cactus		 Holes are dug for stout wooden braces
Holes are dug for stout wooden "braces"
The Doctor assures us that our saguaro will get well
The Doctor assures us that our saguaro will get well		 The cactus is strapped to wooden posts
The cactus is strapped to wooden posts		 The posts are used to straighten the cactus
The posts are used to straighten the cactus		 This procedure must be performed carefully
This procedure must be performed carefully
Doing this the right way takes years of practice
Doing this the right way takes years of practice		 Finishing the job before it rains again
Finishing the job before it rains again		 The Doctor know best
The Doctor know best		 Our saguaro likes the Doctor!
Our saguaro likes the Doctor!
These braces will remain in place for a year
These braces will remain in place for a year		 We're relieved that our saguaro is safe again
We're relieved that our saguaro is safe again		 A few more days and the wound looks even better
A few more days and the wound looks even better		 Another cactus that we treated with advice from the Doctor
Another cactus that we treated with advice from the Doctor
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comment | share
Guest 13-Apr-2012 21:49
I've enjoyed your pictures and comments about your work. I recently published a collection of saguaro pictures (saguarofamily.com or Saguaro Family Album will bring up the site) that includes a number of questions I have about saguaro health, physiology and variability. Based on your work I wonder if you may be a person who can answer some of my questions. If you have time to look at those questions, I will really appreciate your comments & suggestions.
lafemyers@gmail.com
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