Some people do it every six months.
Some people do it once a year.
While others do it only when they have to!
What am I talking about?

Repotting, of course!

There are several reasons for repotting and these could be a few of yours too. The plant may:

• outgrow the pot
• be root bound
• need to be propagated
• have disease (like mealy-bug or root-rot)
• need fresh soil as there’s no growth occurring
• need potting on, as in the case of seedlings
• be a new addition and has to be potted up in your own mix

My own busy lifestyle last year meant I had to reorganise my time to fit in some repotting. So, TV was out, and instead I repotted 2-3 hours during the week nights. It actually became less a chore and more enjoyable when I saw how attractive the plants looked in their new pots. 

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I set up a light outside my shadehouse and worked under the stars in the fresh Spring evenings, with a radio for company. My advice is to prepare everything first! You’re probably going to need some or all of the following:

• Bench on which to work
• Soil
• Pots
• Peat moss
• Gravel
• Gloves
• Tags
• Pencil/pen
• Tweezers/tongs
• Disyston (or another systemic insecticide)
• Osmocote (slow-release fertiliser)
• Trace elements
• Shadecloth/flyscreen

Whenever possible, I use Disyston at root level in the pot. I have so many fewer mealy-bug problems when I can get a hold of that particular chemical. It is much better to prevent them infesting the plants in the first place, though you can treat them with spray or soaking them in diluted Rogor to poison the mealy-bugs. I heard that watering diluted Conde’s crystals (potassium permanganate) into the soil is a preventative as it keeps the ants away and therefore the mealy-bug as the ants farm the bugs for food. This may be worth trying if you have a small collection of plants with which you can use a bucket and watering can—less than ½ a teaspoon of the crystals per 9 litres is enough.

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As a fertilizer, I mix Osmocote or Nutricote through the soil. A member recently told me that trace elements powder, thoroughly mixed through the soil, can be beneficial as a long-term supplement for what the soil may be lacking. Then, of course, Moo Poo or similar (like a liquid fertilizer) is great.

The types of pots used by growers reflect their style preferences and budget. I re-use pots but I throw out ‘mealy-bugged’ ones (some white spots remain on the inside). Most of my collection is in plastic, while some outdoor plants are in clay pots. They get the rain so clay pots dry out faster.

Choose a pot that allows a ‘thumb’s distance’ between the plant and the pot’s sides, a little wider for long-spined plants. Did you know that this factor is part of presentation points when your plant is being judged? It also, of course, makes for safer handling.

Cover drain-holes with either gravel, peat moss, or charcoal, etc. Larger pots may need pieces of shadecloth or flyscreen wire, or even newspaper. I use peat moss as it attracts the roots to the bottom of the pot (it does work!), and it does prevent losing soil of out of the pot. Then a shake of Disyston into the base.

Next, I’ll take the plant I’m repotting and squeeze the sides of the pot (another good reason for using plastic) I tip my top gravel into a bucket (re-use this) and use tweezers/tongs/gloves or fingers to separate plant from pot.

Check the soil for bugs, knotted roots or poor soil. Tease out roots to remove old soil. Some plants may have new growth at the tips of their roots which I don’t like to disturb so I simply transfer it to the new pot. Some genera of cactus don’t like their roots bothered, especially mature Melocactus with cephaliums.

Sit the plant in the new pot and adjust the height with soil underneath if necessary. Fill in the sides with fresh soil. Dress with gravel if desired. I feel this gives my plants a finished look and prevents soil splashing and staining the plant from my messy watering.

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Repotting is an ideal time to vegetatively propagate your plants. Simply pull or cut off pups. Lobivias, Rebutias, Mammillarias, Haworthias, and Stapeliads (to name just a few) are easy to split up.

Repotting a new plant is recommended as this give you a chance to check for disease, and allows you to treat the plant straight away and hopefully prevent an outbreak among your scrupulously kept collection. Not that you don’t trust the previous owner, mind—but it pays to be cautious. Another good reason is that the new plant will then be in the same soil as the rest of your collection and can adjust to your watering routine.

Regular repotting as the plant needs it can keep it in even growth, whereas a pot-bound, neglected plant given a sudden repot can have a dramatic spurt of growth and causing ‘checking’ (growth rings). While growth rings can be natural, it could also mean your plant on the show-bench is marked down compared with an evenly grown one. I must add that I don’t grow all my plants for showing. In fact, many are marked but are kept for their beautiful flowers and bodies.

Well, I hope this little chat about my repotting capers has been of some interest to you. Until I see you at the next meeting, happy repotting!