08/07/2025
Free cactus and succulent
I usually donate cacti and succulent pots to the Park Library. The last time I donated cacti pots, I saw many left over on the shelves as the demand and capacity were saturated. But I was wrong. Last month, I ran ads on the Marketplace for free cacti pots and received about 10 buyers in one week. I gave away about 70 pots. They are not top-notch in terms of beauty, but they offer a reasonable outlook for being loved by the new owners. I didn’t have any dollars for that business, but I was so satisfied with the result. Therefore, this time I will create a bigger event, which can involve more people within the green community.
As a gardener, I have many cacti pots, ranging from the rare and expensive species to the “predominant” cultivar cacti or PC, which are very popular among Adelaide suburbs. Cactus growers typically use those cacti as rootstocks for grafting, which causes them to stop developing and instead feed the other scion on top. These cacti are very inexpensive or can be obtained for free; however, if they are not cared for, they will die or end up in the green bin to be composted. Having a great passion for cacti and succulents, I usually collect and repropagate these plants into 14 cm plastic pots, wait for them to root and produce pups, and then redistribute them back to the community.
The cacti and succulents I give away are not the psychedelic ones. They have the common, well-known name of “San Pedro”, but actually don’t have the substance to attract the drug users. Hence, they are pretty safe to have in your garden. In fact, their beautiful flowers are attractive to the bees and butterflies. I also don’t give away the dangerous and invasive cacti that are banned in South Australia, such as the Opuntia family, or the species with crazy spines. In short, they are moderately safe but require careful handling skills.
I love to practice community collaboration. I would love to receive the plants that are no longer needed and swap them for lovely cacti or succulent plants. If you can’t deliver the plant, I can go for it and bring my cacti along. I can also plant the cactus in the garden for you and suggest the best spot for them to thrive. You can support the revegetation project by donating leftover compost bags, pots, or gardening tools, which can be put to use instead of sitting unused in your garden shed.
The expected result is that the cactus in your garden will be a big stand of water-embodied plant. It can help regulate the surrounding temperature, soil moisture, and air humidity, thereby withstanding any catastrophic heatwave or a prolonged, dry summer. Cactus and succulents can purify the air and absorb harmful radiation. They can significantly reduce the urban heat island effect due to the embodied water mass playing a role in thermal moderation. When established, the cactus is nearly immortal and requires minimal care. When demolished, they can provide many hundreds of new clones, which can be distributed to the broader community.
