Cacti Seminar

On  Tuesday, March 8, Quail Creek will host a repeat of a seminar held by the Green Valley Gardeners concerning growing and caring for cacti in Southern Arizona.  The turnout for this seminar was overwhelming, exceeding the capacity of the room, and many, many people were turned away at the door. The Master Gardeners are getting many calls about ailing plants at the Cooperative Extension as well. Obviously people in our area are concerned about their cacti and succulents after the freeze.

After experiencing three nights of the worst freeze in Tucson in 30 years, many folks are looking at dead or dying cacti.  The speaker, Mark Sitter, owner of B and B Cactus Farm in Tucson, will introduce you to 10 species of hardy cacti that fared well after the recent freeze.  Mark will have living examples of each species and will talk about their merit.

He will discuss how to choose species appropriate to our area and will provide tips on planting, maintaining and feeding your cactus.  He will cover proper watering and control of insect pests particular to cacti.  With the recent cold spell, Mark will also discuss how to move forward, pruning and removing dead or damaged plants.

Mark has an extensive background in growing and caring for cacti.  He worked 10 years at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum as a horticulturist caring for the Cactus and Succulent Garden as well as the Ironwood Restaurant and Gallery.  He was involved with many of the museum's designs and installations of cactus and succulents.  Today he oversees a large and diverse collection of cactus and succulents from around the world growing at B and B Cactus Farm,  1.5 miles east of Houghton Rd on the east Speedway Blvd. in Tucson.

The seminar will be presented in the ballroom at the Madera Clubhouse.  Doors open at 9.  The seminar will begin at 9:30 and last approximately 1 hour, with plenty of time left over to ask questions.  The seminar is being co-hosted by Quail Creek with the Green Valley Gardeners as a public service and is free and open to the public.