The rat tail cactus is a succulent that flowers and has a trailing stem that sort of looks like rat tails, hence its name, but how do you care for it at home and propagate it?
The rat tail cactus has simple care and propagation need. It requires full sun and regular fertilization to grow and be healthy. You can easily propagate the rat tail cactus by cutting off a piece of the stem and planting the cutting in a cactus mix under similar conditions as the parent plant.
In this article, I’ll explore everything you need to know about caring for and propagating your rat tail cactus so that it continues to look beautiful in your home.
How To Care for a Rat Tail Cactus
Rat tail cactus plants come from South America and Mexico. They require desert-like conditions so that they can get lots of bright sunshine throughout the year. This is why they thrive in U.S. Hardiness Zones 9 through 11.
But giving your plant enough sun is just one element of its care. Here are the top tips on how to care for your rat tail cactus.
Give It Bright, Direct Light
This type of cactus wants to be in bright, direct light, meaning that it should get light directly from the sun. It doesn’t like getting sunlight filtered by something, such as trees or curtains. It wants to have at least six hours of light every day.
The best area in your house to place your cactus is next to a south-facing window. This will ensure that it gets enough light so that it will produce flowers.
However, it will also do well in an east- or west-facing window as long as it receives bright light for at least six hours daily. Avoid keeping it in an area of the home where it will get low light levels, or the plant won’t flower.
Feed Your Rat Tail Cactus Fertilizer
All your rat tail cactus requires is a half-strength dose of liquid fertilizer, given twice a month during its growing season, which is between spring and early summer. Fertilizer is essential to stimulate the plant’s growth.
You can also use a slow-release granular fertilizer that gradually feeds the cactus every time you water it. It’s a convenient alternative to liquid fertilizer because you don’t have to worry about when you last fed your plant.
I recommend The Grow Co’s Succulent and Cactus Plant Food (available on Amazon.com). It’s a slow-release fertilizer with gentle NPK levels that can feed your plant for the next several months during the growing season.
Keep Its Soil Moist
Although this plant is a cactus, you shouldn’t leave its soil to become too dry. Water it regularly in the spring and summer so that its soil remains moist without becoming waterlogged.
To ensure you give your cactus enough water, check its potting soil. If it feels dry about one inch (2.54cm) deep, that’s an indication you should water it.
During the colder months, you should scale back on your watering so that the plant’s roots don’t rot while ensuring the stems don’t dry out. This could mean that you only water the plant once every week or two.
You can tell that your rat tail cactus is thirsty when tiny protrusions jut out of the stems. These are aerial roots. They’re thicker than the spines and are used to absorb moisture from the air.
Give It Warm Daily Temperatures
Since this is a sun-loving plant, it makes sense that it would also want warm temperatures.
You want to store it in a warm room of the home, ensuring that daytime temperatures are around 70 to 80 °F (21-27 °C). You can keep the plant outdoors as long as the nighttime temperatures don’t dip lower than about 60 °F (15.5 °C).
During the winter, a rat tail cactus will rest, but you should ensure it still gets a decent amount of heat. Maintain a temperature that’s around 55 to 65 °F (13-18 °C) and never dips lower than 45 °F (7 °C).
The rat tail cactus isn’t cold hardy, so you don’t want it to be exposed to temperatures colder than 30 °F (-1 °C), whether you plant it in a pot or hanging basket.
If your region experiences very cold winters, you should plant a rat tail cactus in a pot or container so you can bring it into the home during freezing temperatures.
Provide Moderate Humidity
Rat tail cacti are quite low-maintenance because they don’t require a lot of humidity. You only have to ensure it gets low to moderate humidity, so you don’t have to worry too much because your indoor air should be sufficient.
However, if your home’s air is dry, then you will have to increase the humidity. You can install a humidifier for your plants. Ensure the levels remain around 40%.
Alternatively, you can raise the humidity around your plant by filling a tray with pebbles and water, then placing your rat tail cactus’s pot on top of the tray. As the water evaporates from the tray, it will provide enough moisture for the plant.
Plant It in Well-Draining Soil
The rat tail cactus isn’t fussy about soil pH, so you can plant it in acidic, alkaline, or neutral soil, as RHS reports. However, always ensure that it’s planted in well-draining soil so that the water doesn’t make the soil soggy.
You can enhance soil drainage by mixing together the following ingredients as the cactus growing media:
- Four parts loam
- One part sand
- One part vermiculite
While you might think that you can use all-purpose potting soil that you already have in your garden shed, this isn’t a good idea because it’s too heavy and will cause compaction and drainage problems. Therefore, you should choose a succulent or cactus potting mix instead.
I’d recommend purchasing Miracle-Gro Succulent Potting Mix (available on Amazon.com). It contains nutrients that are required by your succulents so that they can grow. It’s a fast-draining blend, as it contains forest products and sphagnum peat.
Trim Your Rat Tail Cactus When It Becomes Unruly
Your rat tail cactus doesn’t need pruning, but you should remove old flowers on the plant when they start to die and trim the plant back a little if it becomes too large.
If you like, you can also remove some stems on the plant to reduce its overall size or to shape it the way you like. This is especially important if you’re growing it in a small space, as its long “tails” can grow up to a foot (0.3 m) long in one year!
Repot Your Cactus Every 1-2 Years
You will have to repot your cactus every year or two because it will grow quickly. You should repot your plant during the spring when its new growth is on display. Make sure the pot is a size larger than the current one, and fill three-quarters of it with cactus growing media.
Here are some tips to follow when repotting your rat tail cactus:
- Carefully remove the cactus from its pot. Do this gently so that you don’t damage its long tails.
- Place the roots of the plant in the potting soil of the new pot.
- Fill the pot with soil around the plant’s roots.
- Water the soil.
Keep an Eye Out for Insects and Bugs
Some pests that might attack your rat tail cactus include mealybugs and scale insects. These feed on plant sap and the mealybugs leave behind a black fungus on the plants that reduce their ability to engage in photosynthesis.
Remove both of these pests with the use of neem oil. This is a more natural alternative to chemical insecticides.
I’d recommend purchasing Harris Neem Oil (available on Amazon.com). To use it, mix one fluid ounce (29.6 ml) with one gallon (3.8 L) of water. You should mix in a bit of soap with it, then spray your plants directly.
Neem oil is an effective ingredient to kill many pests, including the following:
- Aphids
- Beetle Larvae
- Lacebugs
- Whiteflies
- Thrips
- Leafminers
Propagate Your Rat Tail Cactus by Cutting Its Stems
It’s possible to grow a rat tail cactus from seeds. However, viable seeds are hard to come by, so the best option is to propagate your plant through stem cuttings.
The stem cuttings will grow new plants more quickly. Here are the steps to follow.
- Cut a six-inch (15.24 cm) long section of the plant’s stem.
- Put the cutting in a dry, cool area of the home. This should be done for approximately three days. This is an important step so that the cut end can form a callous and seal over.
- Fill a pot with fresh potting mix.
- Put the cutting in the soil. You should plant it to about ⅛ of an inch (0.3 cm).
- Place the cactus’s pot in an area of the home where it will get bright, indirect light.
- Water the soil regularly to keep it moist. You should do this until the cuttings produce roots, which should take about two weeks.
Final Thoughts
Rat tail cactus is a unique, beautiful cactus you might want to grow in your home, but it does require some important elements in its care to remain healthy. These include:
- watering it when the top inch (2.54 cm) of the soil is dry.
- ensuring it gets at least six hours of sunlight per day.
- planting it in well-draining soil.
- feeding it with a liquid fertilizer during its growing season.
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