If you are here today, you might have a problem with golden barrel discoloration. There could be several reasons for this problem. Let’s look into reasons and solutions for golden barrel discoloration in this article.
Reasons for golden barrel discoloration?
If you spot your Golden barrel discoloration or turning yellow, that literally means the plants are in stress due to environmental issues or diseases.
To elaborate further, freezing temperatures, excessive sunlight exposure, and fungal diseases may cause this condition.
To briefly explain the plants first, they have inherited the name “Barrel cactus” due to their short round shape. However, since they carry only stems, you could call them columnar cactus as well.
To briefly explain, freezing temperatures could cause Golden barrel discoloration. Golden barrel cacti prefer to have warmer temperatures right throughout the year and hate to be exposed to freezing temperatures.
If you accidently expose the plants to freezing temperatures, they will tend to become pale yellow in color as a way of responding to that.
So, literally they would form yellow margins in the cactus. In that circumstance if you had placed them outdoors, the best thing would be to move them indoors to protect the plants from those unhealthy conditions.
Excessive sunlight exposure would also cause Golden barrel discoloration. Literally , they would respond in the same way by turning yellow when you expose them to excessive sunlight.
In other words, they would form yellow spots on the epidermis on the cactus. The yellow spots mean the tissues there are dead.
However, it would not bring a fatal impact on the plants. Instead, it would leave scars on the plants. If you come across this situation, you need to bring them indoors to remedy that.
In addition to these issues, fungal diseases may also cause the Golden barrel discoloration. In fact, fungal diseases may result in lesions on them, and you could spot them forming in yellow, brown or in black.
The exposure for wet or rainy conditions could also contribute to this. Fungal diseases would not bring death to the plants.
However it would make the plants look unpleasant and deformed too. To avoid this condition, you need to ensure that you allow the plant’s roots to stay firmly in the soil. Do not allow any excess soil to pile up around the cactus base.
Will a yellow cactus turn green again?
If a cactus has turned yellow due to stress and if you correct your caring, they could regain their regular green color.
First of all, you need to identify the root cause which causes the yellowing of the cactus. After you identify the reason, you could treat them accordingly.
For example, if over watering has caused the discoloration, the first thing you need to do is to suspend watering them and allow them to dry first.
Further check whether you have provided a soil mix which has excellent drainage as well. Once they get back to their regular green color, you need to ensure that you do not repeat this mistake.
If excessive sunlight exposure has caused this condition you need to immediately bring the plants indoors and leave them under a shady place. Moreover, if a certain pest attack has resulted in this condition, you need to treat those plants with a proper insecticide or with a pesticide.
Pythium rot barrel cactus
Pythium rot is one of the most challenging conditions which these plants go through.
Further it would be difficult to identify it at the initial stages. However, if you closely look at the plants you could see the symptoms of this disease right at the base of the plants.
In fact, this disease will start to form at their roots and that characteristic makes it very difficult to identify this condition at the start.
In fact, the soil would act as the host for the pathogen. So, once it ingests the soil, consequently it would make the plants ill.
It is difficult to eradicate this condition. However, there are some preventive measures which you could use to protect these plants.
Prevention methods
To briefly explain what pythium is, it is an internal soft rot which would bring so many harmful effects for the cacti.
Golden barrel cacti may go through this condition especially if they are in a moist condition. Further if you had grown the plants too deep in the soil it would also make them go through this condition.
To avoid it, I recommend using a clean sterile soil mix when planting them. It is always best to prevent this condition from happening as there is no such productive treatment which you could practice saving the plants. Best thing you could do is to discard the plants.
Many gardeners tend to use the commercially made succulent or cactus soil mix to grow them as it is very unlikely that you will come across this condition a lot.
However, if you use contaminated tools during the maintenance work of the plants, chances are that it could also lead to Pythium rot.
Further if you are using older and dirty pots it may also result in Pythium rot. If you wish to observe this condition closely, you could take the plant out of the pot and check their roots. Then you will realize that their roots are mushy, discolored and rotten.
If your precious golden barrel cactus goes through Pythium rot, it would make it difficult for the plants to absorb the essential nutrients from the soil.
Ultimately it would kill the plants also. When it keeps spreading, you will see your plants’ health start to deteriorate.
If the plant’s stem is squishy, you cannot save the plants despite what you do.Hence it is critically important that you prevent Pythium rot and to do that you need to always keep the plants dry.
Further you may also get professional services to remedy this. However, they would be somewhat costly. Moreover, keep in mind that you should use a soil mix which has excellent drainage only.
Golden barrel cactus white spots
Mealybug’s attack may result in white spots in the Golden barrel cactus. If you come across any, best would be to remove them using a toothpick.
In addition to that, scales would also result in the white spots. You could practice the regular pest control methods to remedy this condition. In addition to that, exposure for colder temperatures would also result in the white spots.
Excessive humidity levels would also result in this condition. However it is important that you identify the root cause and then avoid them.
Golden barrel cactus corking.
Corking is not an illness. It is in fact a natural mechanism which takes place during the growth of a cactus.
Once a plant is corked, you would see a change in their color as well as in the texture. They would become brown or gray in color along with bumps.
The corking would in fact affect the looks of the plants. Other than that, it would not cause any health deterioration of the plants, or it would kill the plants.
Furthermore, Golden barrel cactus may go through this condition only after they are matured and old enough.
Read Next : 21 Large Cactus For Your Outdoor Garden
