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DdaShroom
Wanna Be TI & Friend


Registered: 05/16/19
Posts: 584
Last seen: 1 year, 5 months
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Fungal growth on my cactus?
#26683193 - 05/20/20 12:01 PM (3 years, 8 months ago) |
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Is this black spot a form of fungal growth on my san pedro cactus? If I made a cut (cutting the top off) directly under the black spot, would it BOTH remove the fungus AND propagate/grow from the dried scar?
Thanks!
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DdaShroom
Wanna Be TI & Friend


Registered: 05/16/19
Posts: 584
Last seen: 1 year, 5 months
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Re: Fungal growth on my cactus? [Re: DdaShroom]
#26683198 - 05/20/20 12:05 PM (3 years, 8 months ago) |
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Here are some photos
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Mostly_Harmless
wyrd bið ful aræd



Registered: 05/12/09
Posts: 5,043
Loc: Perfidious Albion
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Re: Fungal growth on my cactus? [Re: DdaShroom]
#26683208 - 05/20/20 12:09 PM (3 years, 8 months ago) |
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It is a fairly common occurrence on some trichs
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DdaShroom
Wanna Be TI & Friend


Registered: 05/16/19
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Last seen: 1 year, 5 months
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Quote:
Mostly_Harmless said: It is a fairly common occurrence on some trichs

So basically, make sure it gets equal parts sun and shade? Also, dont treat it, or should I cut under it to propogate/remove the scar? Should it be getting more ventilation outdoors? It has been indoors since we live in zone 5b (eastern Nebraska).
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Mostly_Harmless
wyrd bið ful aræd



Registered: 05/12/09
Posts: 5,043
Loc: Perfidious Albion
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Re: Fungal growth on my cactus? [Re: DdaShroom]
#26683268 - 05/20/20 12:34 PM (3 years, 8 months ago) |
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I don't know much about US zones. Ventilation and humidity do seem to have a role, it occurs for me more often on trichs in a greenhouse than those kept outside (in England). It rarely needs treating, and will scab over eventually.
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ninja cat 09
A paranoid android



Registered: 10/11/09
Posts: 4,170
Loc: Mexico
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Would that mean one would be more likely to develop kidney stones if one were to eat a full sun grown Trichocereus? For how long would someone need to leave the plant in the shade to avoid this?
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Mostly_Harmless
wyrd bið ful aræd



Registered: 05/12/09
Posts: 5,043
Loc: Perfidious Albion
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How much greater the increase in oxalate is compared to shade grown is I don't know. It is common to all cacti. I wondered about the content in nopales and found this: https://arizonadailyindependent.com/2013/06/05/cactus-water-will-make-you-sick/
Quote:
Besides malic acid, succulents produce Oxalic Acid (C2H2O4), which is toxic, as another product of photosynthesis. “Its chief function seems to be sequestering metals, principally calcium. Calcium oxalates often occur as crystalline minerals within the cactus pulp. Their function seems to be aiding structural integrity and enzymatic processes. In fact two crystalline calcium oxalate minerals have been identified in all cacti tested: CaC2O4.2H2O (weddellite) and CaC2O4.H2O (whewellite).” [Source: Plant Physiology, February 2002, Vol. 128, pp. 707-713.] Oxalates are also formed with heavy metals such as copper, perhaps to reduce toxicity to the plant.
Oxalic acid is toxic to humans because it combines with calcium in our bodies to produce calcium oxalates which clog up our kidneys.
What about Prickly Pear pads we sometimes see in grocery stories or on the menu of Mexican restaurants? What you see are generally young spring pads which naturally contain less oxalic acid. Cooking leaches out the acid. In an emergency you can eat the young pads raw. And there are some spineless cultivars that naturally contain little oxalic acid which can also be eaten raw. These were developed mainly as cattle feed.
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ninja cat 09
A paranoid android



Registered: 10/11/09
Posts: 4,170
Loc: Mexico
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Interesting, thanks! I'm willing to bet it's not that dangerous, I've had periods where I eat nopales every day for weeks to no ill effects, I just hadn't thought about it. But then again, like the article says, they're younger pads which are cooked, which would explain the lesser likelihood of negative effects.
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ninja cat 09
A paranoid android



Registered: 10/11/09
Posts: 4,170
Loc: Mexico
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I gave the article a full read, and it turns out that some Ferocactus, Melocactus and Echinocactus are used to make candy here called Acitron, although it's a lot rarer now that the cacti are in danger of extinction and it's a federal crime to sell it (although it's not really enforced as much as I'd like). The oxalates are likely not a problem because of the long cooking process, which takes up to 48 hours.
If you want to read more about it, here's a good article, if you don't read spanish, you might need to put it through google translate:
https://www.animalgourmet.com/2020/01/02/acitron-por-que-no-deberiamos-consumirlo/
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DdaShroom
Wanna Be TI & Friend


Registered: 05/16/19
Posts: 584
Last seen: 1 year, 5 months
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Quote:
ninja cat 09 said: I gave the article a full read, and it turns out that some Ferocactus, Melocactus and Echinocactus are used to make candy here called Acitron, although it's a lot rarer now that the cacti are in danger of extinction and it's a federal crime to sell it (although it's not really enforced as much as I'd like). The oxalates are likely not a problem because of the long cooking process, which takes up to 48 hours.
If you want to read more about it, here's a good article, if you don't read spanish, you might need to put it through google translate:
https://www.animalgourmet.com/2020/01/02/acitron-por-que-no-deberiamos-consumirlo/
I'm reading this tonight! Interesting stuff!
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DdaShroom
Wanna Be TI & Friend


Registered: 05/16/19
Posts: 584
Last seen: 1 year, 5 months
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Quote:
Mostly_Harmless said: How much greater the increase in oxalate is compared to shade grown is I don't know. It is common to all cacti. I wondered about the content in nopales and found this: https://arizonadailyindependent.com/2013/06/05/cactus-water-will-make-you-sick/
This is so interesting
Quote:
Besides malic acid, succulents produce Oxalic Acid (C2H2O4), which is toxic, as another product of photosynthesis. “Its chief function seems to be sequestering metals, principally calcium. Calcium oxalates often occur as crystalline minerals within the cactus pulp. Their function seems to be aiding structural integrity and enzymatic processes. In fact two crystalline calcium oxalate minerals have been identified in all cacti tested: CaC2O4.2H2O (weddellite) and CaC2O4.H2O (whewellite).” [Source: Plant Physiology, February 2002, Vol. 128, pp. 707-713.] Oxalates are also formed with heavy metals such as copper, perhaps to reduce toxicity to the plant.
Oxalic acid is toxic to humans because it combines with calcium in our bodies to produce calcium oxalates which clog up our kidneys.
What about Prickly Pear pads we sometimes see in grocery stories or on the menu of Mexican restaurants? What you see are generally young spring pads which naturally contain less oxalic acid. Cooking leaches out the acid. In an emergency you can eat the young pads raw. And there are some spineless cultivars that naturally contain little oxalic acid which can also be eaten raw. These were developed mainly as cattle feed.
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