The Fake Flowers Scandal

I PULLED ALL THE FLOWERS out of my cactus last night (it is a cactus not a succulent; it has carefully hidden spines...)... and found every little scarlet flower was on the end of a scarlet toothpick! It was my family who told me this might be the case, so I yanked at one and a one-inch wooden stave came out after it. So my poor cactus is in cactus-hospital with inch-deep wounds where these fake