It’s chemical burns from the alcohol lol. You need to wipe off the alcohol with water after treatment so it doesn’t burn the plant!
Lazy_Study_140
I’m not sure but id never spray em with rubbing alcohol …not my cactus sorry to see your misfortune
kendrahawk
oh no
National-Patience13
Peroxide or vinegar are an option too, yeah?
Major_Cheesy
IDK, but I don’t use DIY sprays on my plants after someone told me it was safe to soak hot cayenne peppers in water, strain, and spray on cactus, and it would keep all the red mites (that own my backyard) off of them. Well, it may have killed the mite, but it also burned the hell out of it. I had to throw away an old plant. Luckily, I had seeds, so I grew another. Now I just leave them alone …
Dust209
I’ve had my cacti for over 3 years. I got a whole grow set up when I moved into a new place without sun for them. Will they recover from this?
Averechts
Did you leave them in the sun after the alcohol bath?
HomeForABookLover
I’ve never experienced this before using isopropyl alcohol. I spray in warm locations but in shade and it evaporates off.
It “looks” more like the insect damage, but it wouldn’t scrape off if it was insect damage. It’s odd that it’s patchy.
At least Opuntias grow new pads, so killing the insects was the right thing to do
Party_Chemical7454
dead.
Aquasplendens
Did you spray it with rubbing alcohol and leave it in full sun? It might have burnt in those areas. Next time if you need to spray it down, bring it under some shade first, and rinse off again before putting it back in the sun.
Flipperbites
It will recover
prsucculents
Alcohol plus sun equals a chemical/sunburn. Always spray after dark or in full shade.
SignEducational2152
This happened to my grandmas entire huge outside cactus in Florida. I’m not sure what it is but she had it cut back and it’s healthy now. Not sure if that helps if this is just the one paddle
russsaa
I hate rubbing alcohol. Reddit houseplant subs always preach its wonders and has a can do no wrong attitude with it. The truth is alcohol is not as good as people claim. Firstly, [this study](https://journals.ashs.org/view/journals/horttech/35/5/article-p648.xml) showing phytoxicity at higher concentrations of iso, but results varying by taxa. Anecdotally, i have seen burns from iso alcohol even when applied in cool & dark times of day. alcohol is also desiccant, pulling water from the surface of the plant. Just like how it dries your skin, it’ll dry leaves too. Im no biochemist, i couldnt explain whats going on between the alcohol and the plant tissue and why some plant families are weaker than others, but i know for damn sure that iso alcohols safety to the plant is inconsistent and not reliable. Perhaps cacti’s CAM cycle allowed the alcohol to penetrate the cacs wax & skin through the open stoma, allowing it to cause excessive damage.
1sunnyme
Protection measure, maybe…. I want to know the same thing because I spray mines for fungus.
17 Comments
What kind of alcohol?
It’s chemical burns from the alcohol lol. You need to wipe off the alcohol with water after treatment so it doesn’t burn the plant!
I’m not sure but id never spray em with rubbing alcohol …not my cactus sorry to see your misfortune
oh no
Peroxide or vinegar are an option too, yeah?
IDK, but I don’t use DIY sprays on my plants after someone told me it was safe to soak hot cayenne peppers in water, strain, and spray on cactus, and it would keep all the red mites (that own my backyard) off of them. Well, it may have killed the mite, but it also burned the hell out of it. I had to throw away an old plant. Luckily, I had seeds, so I grew another. Now I just leave them alone …
I’ve had my cacti for over 3 years. I got a whole grow set up when I moved into a new place without sun for them. Will they recover from this?
Did you leave them in the sun after the alcohol bath?
I’ve never experienced this before using isopropyl alcohol. I spray in warm locations but in shade and it evaporates off.
It “looks” more like the insect damage, but it wouldn’t scrape off if it was insect damage. It’s odd that it’s patchy.
At least Opuntias grow new pads, so killing the insects was the right thing to do
dead.
Did you spray it with rubbing alcohol and leave it in full sun? It might have burnt in those areas. Next time if you need to spray it down, bring it under some shade first, and rinse off again before putting it back in the sun.
It will recover
Alcohol plus sun equals a chemical/sunburn. Always spray after dark or in full shade.
This happened to my grandmas entire huge outside cactus in Florida. I’m not sure what it is but she had it cut back and it’s healthy now. Not sure if that helps if this is just the one paddle
I hate rubbing alcohol. Reddit houseplant subs always preach its wonders and has a can do no wrong attitude with it. The truth is alcohol is not as good as people claim. Firstly, [this study](https://journals.ashs.org/view/journals/horttech/35/5/article-p648.xml) showing phytoxicity at higher concentrations of iso, but results varying by taxa. Anecdotally, i have seen burns from iso alcohol even when applied in cool & dark times of day. alcohol is also desiccant, pulling water from the surface of the plant. Just like how it dries your skin, it’ll dry leaves too. Im no biochemist, i couldnt explain whats going on between the alcohol and the plant tissue and why some plant families are weaker than others, but i know for damn sure that iso alcohols safety to the plant is inconsistent and not reliable. Perhaps cacti’s CAM cycle allowed the alcohol to penetrate the cacs wax & skin through the open stoma, allowing it to cause excessive damage.
Protection measure, maybe…. I want to know the same thing because I spray mines for fungus.
Chemical burn