Christmas Cactus Plant Care & Growing Guide

Christmas cactus are anywhere throughout the holiday year, and with good reason. They are gorgeous blooming succulents which could live up to 100 years! That is perfect! This plant, if properly cared for, could endure for decades. That is a fairly fantastic investment for a plant that is so cheap and un-fussy!

There are various legends surrounding the Christmas cactus–one specifically comes from Brazil, in which the plant is native. As the story goes, a bad little boy outside from the humid jungles prayed into the skies for a indication of Christmas. Days went with his prayers left unanswered, until one day he woke to find himself surrounded with amazing bursts of flowers around the tips of the neighboring cacti branches.

Botanical Name: Schlumbergera truncata

Common Name: Christmas cactus, holiday cactus, crab cactus

Planting Christmas cactus

Potting Christmas cactus

When choosing a pot to get a Christmas cactus, then make sure you pick one with a drainage hole at the floor. This will help to maintain the soil from becoming too wet.

Christmas cacti grow nicely in many potting mixes which are devised for succulents. The main issue is your potting soil drains well.

Location

Plants must be kept in bright, direct light. An east-facing window along with even a bright bathroom is best. A lot of direct sunlight can whiten the delicate leaves.

Christmas cacti would rather have a more humid environment, that creates a smart bathroom or toilet a good spot to maintain them. Keep them from direct outside sunlight.

How to Care for a Christmas Cactus

Contrary to the desert-loving cacti most people have been used to, the Christmas cactus is a native of tropical rainforests and requires regular water to stay healthy. The grinds leaves are in fact stemmed sections that drape and hang from containers and baskets. Flowers will shape in the ends of those stems, therefore the longer stems your plant gets, the longer flowers it could boast. Traditionally the cactus blooms red, however, Now You Can locate Christmas cacti at a Plethora of flower colors, such as red, pink, purple, and crimson

To promote additional stems, grow your Christmas cactus for a hanging plant or put it someplace where it’s space to drape. Do not be concerned about rubbing against it. Christmas cactus plants don’t have thorns.

Light

The Christmas cactus prefers partial shade or even a diffused light, even though they’re extremely flexible in fixing to growing states. Should you expose them to full sunlight, create it through the winter –abundant sunlight at the spring and summer might produce the plant light and yellow.

Soil

Soil isn’t a driving element for your Christmas cactus–a common purpose potting mixture will do the job just fine, however it is fairly adaptable to many soil conditions. It will want a pH level between 5.5 and 6.2 to attain optimum growth.

Water

Even though the Christmas cactus is also, in reality, a cactus, its tropical roots mean it needs greater water than many. Allow the soil to dry nearly completely between waterings — you may know whether the soil is dry as soon as the leaves begin to pucker and shrivel.

Temperature and Humidity

The Christmas cactus needs considerable humidity, particularly if grown in the arid states of heated houses (that is frequently true in winter). Either Drain the plant or put a plate of pebbles sitting into the water below the plant to greatly enhance its humidity degrees.

But after the buds have been put, it takes low night temperatures (between 55 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit) and also at least 13 hours of darkness to really flower. Store it away from often opened doors and drafty windows; the cactus does not like abrupt drafts and will shed their buds or flowers should subjected to a single.

Fertilizer

Take your Christmas cactus per day using a diluted water-soluble fertilizer throughout the spring and summer months. As soon as you’ve noticed flower buds have formed, then start withholding fertilizer till it blooms (at which stage you’re able to restart monthly feedings).

Pest and Diseases

Blossom fall, In case a Christmas cactus is subjected to any sort of stress, the plant will probably fall its blossoms. This might be associated with the quantity of light, or even a sudden shift in temperature, as mentioned in preceding plant care department. Additionally, make sure your soil does not get overly humid while buds are forming.

The plant might be vulnerable to mealy bugs and, even in case over-watered, cause corrosion. In case you have issues, cut out contaminated places and repot in fresh soil.

Avoiding Problems With Christmas Cactus Health

Keep the right light/dark program. Interruption of those dark phases mentioned above will avert flowering.

Do not water too much. Surplus watering or an excessive amount of moisture from the soil may result in stem rust and cause corrosion. If the soil is holding an excessive amount of water, repot in fresh soil which drains well.
Do not water too small. Deficiency of water may lead to wilting.

Be certain that the plant gets sufficient sunlight but also keep it from direct sunlight. Too small light may result in wilting while direct sunlight may burn your leaves.

Keep the plant away from direct heat sources, such as, for instance, a heating or cooling vent.