I have a 5' tall pencil cactus and it is drying up and dying. I have had it for 5-6 years, water it the same amount as I always have, it is in the same location as it always have been but the branches are slowly drying up and falling off. Any idea what may be killing me plant?
Have you seen any bugs? Including fungal gnats, looks like fruit flies, but very damaging to the root system. Could there have been a disease? Have you repotted it with new soil ever? Perhaps the cactus you have is senile. Some cacti, when they are mature, will lose the vigor of youth, and it will become harder to keep alive. As already said, any pictures would be a great help in diagnosing.
How long since the soil was changed or the plant moved to a larger pot? Soil breakdown is one of the things I suspect when a plant that had previously been doing well suddenly starts to decline.
