I know that most of you think of cacti as these super resilient succulents that can withstand even the harshest of temperatures and weather conditions.
In a way you are right.
But also you can be wrong depending on the type of cactus as most cacti don’t actually prefer direct sunlight, at least not constantly.
So in short to answer the question, does a cactus need direct sunlight?
No they do not, in fact most cacti really just want bright light all the time but not necessarily intense or direct light.
What kind of light for a cactus
Generally speaking, you want to give your cactus ample amounts of light throughout the day, but for the vast majority of the time it should be bright but indirect light.
Direct light means you run the risk of your cactus getting scorched or at the very least, sunburned.
This can make your cactus develop brown spots, which are permanent and possibly even ruin your cacti altogether if the heat or light is too intense for too long.
So when in doubt, stick to bright but indirect light for your cactus until you are confident that it can handle full sun for small amounts of time, or if you’re sure your species can survive it.
Yes you just heard me right, some types of cacti will be just fine with direct light and below you will see which ones.
Cacti that handle direct light
While a ton of cacti don’t generally like to have full or direct light, there are some exceptions such as the prickly pear cactus, or Opuntia as it is commonly referred to as.
This cactus is known to have very sharp spines, and a lot of them which could account for the fact that they generally do fine in direct light as these spines can provide some shade.
Echinocereus cacti are also a type of cactus that can grow just fine in direct light as they once again have a ton of spines that are pretty close together which can protect from the suns harmful rays.
Lastly, barrel cacti can grow pretty well in full or direct light due to their shape and amount of spines so you don’t have to worry too much about this cactus when growing outdoors, even in warm temperatures.
How much light for a cactus?
Now that you know what types of cacti can handle full sun, you need to know how much light is actually needed for everything else.
If you have one of the above cacti then you can go for 6 to 8 hours of sunlight per day, with a reasonable amount of direct light thrown into the mix.
If you have a different type of cactus then I recommend that you only stick to indirect light as in light that also comes with shade, for at least 4 hours per day but ideally up to 6 hours or more.
You will still want the light to be bright, but also try to place your cactus in a spot where plenty of shade is provided.
You can do this by using a building or tree to block some of the light or you can use some shade cloth if you feel that is more convenient to do so.
Shade cloth is ideal for cacti that are already planted into the ground but not in an ideal spot with lots of shade.
This can also prevent you from having to repot your cactus which can take unnecessary time and cause your cactus unnecessary stress.
Signs of too little light for cacti
If you’re concerned that your cactus hasn’t been getting enough light then here are some ways you will be able to tell for sure.
The first and most noticeable way you can tell your cactus hasn’t received enough light is just by looking at it.
If the cactus is leaning in a certain direction, hint towards the closest light source then this means the cactus is experiencing etiolation.
This means you cactus hasn’t gotten enough light and is literally stretching towards the closest light that it can get.
Unfortunately, this stretching is permanent and your cactus will always look like this if it has stretched too much.
This is why you will want to provide adequate amounts of light early on, especially bright but indirect light to keep your cactus in great shape, literally.
Another way to tell your cactus isn’t getting enough light is by looking at the color of the plant.
Cactus are known to have vibrant green color, so if you notice the color has become more pale than you remember seeing at first then odds are your cactus is lacking light.
You should immediately place your plant in a location where it can immediately start to get some light.
Since this is more common indoors then outside, you should take a look at your window layout to see what area gets the most sunlight day in and day out.
If all else fails then it may be time to look into getting a quality indoor grow light.
Conclusion
If you only get one thing from this, just know that most types of cactus don’t want direct light and prefer bright but indirect light instead.
Even if you do have a variety that can handle full sunlight, indirect light is the way to go for the vast majority of the day, week, month and year.