Many cacti and succulents have a much deserved reputation of being rugged, hardy and able to withstand scorching temperatures, all day sun, heavy winds and prolonged drought.  All true depending on their native habitat.  Did you know that cacti and succulents have a proper orientation when being grown, harvested and planted?  

Think about the orientation of your house, condo, apartment or patio.  Certain sides of your home receive more sun than others.  Certain sides of your home receive morning sun, afternoon sun and darn near all day sun.  Southern exposures receive the most direct sun.  Northern exposures the least amount of direct sun exposure.  A Western exposure will receive blazing afternoon sun.  Eastern exposures will generally receive a half day dose of morning sun.

Your cacti and succulents are grown in the exact same conditions depending on how they are grown.  At The Cactus Outlet our plants are grown with love in a full exposure environment.  They are not shielded from the elements in a controlled greenhouse setting.  Our plants are grown to take the harshest conditions our customers can throw at them.  If this includes a sunny exposure inside your home or office, great.  Our plants will consider this environment a vacation.  

Let's get back to orientation.  All of our plants come to our customers with a ribbon indicating the Southern orientation or exposure of the plant.  The Southern side of a cactus or succulent is the most sun hardy.  The Southern side of a cactus has calloused to being exposed to full sun every day.  It is important to keep the orientation the same way when planting outdoors.  What happens if you flip the Southern orientation with the Northern orientation?  You guessed it.  Your cactus will physically burn.  A cactus does, can and will burn outdoors if the orientation is not taken into account.  If you flip Eastern and Western orientations your cactus will also burn.  Any accurate orientation indicator ribbon works.  If you mark the East side of a cactus when harvesting, keep the Eastern orientation the same when planting.

Mild cactus burns present as lightening or slight fading of the green tissue.  Mild burning is acceptable when pushing or acclimating your plants into more sun.  You do not want to see the burning progress to the moderate stage.  Moderate burns present as a green to yellow skin change.  Severe burns go from a healthy green to a stark white.  The severe burns eventually heal over in a scar.  If you have to change the orientation of a cactus or succulent outdoors for any reason, make sure to cover it with 30% shade cloth to acclimate your plant to the new conditions of sun exposure.