Christmas cactus care tips, how to rebloom & where to buy one
Colourful, unique, and easy to care for, the Christmas cactus has become a firm favourite in recent years as an alternative to the traditional and much-loved poinsettia.
Despite its name and the fact it flowers over the Christmas period, the Christmas cactus actually has nothing to do with any Christmas traditions, and the stunning pink blooms also have little resemblance to a desert cactus either.
With a cascade of green stems and an abundance of tubular flowers in red, white, yellow, pink and purple, a Christmas cactus will bloom just in time for the holidays with the right amount of TLC. Better still, this plant requires little care, making it an ideal gift for even the most novice gardener.
What is a Christmas cactus?
• It grows in tropical rainforests in the wild
The Christmas cactus is a Brazilian coastal plant known as an epiphyte. Just like an orchid, Christmas cacti grow on top of other plants, trees or rocks. Schlumbergera truncata and S. × buckleyi are the two species. Flowering normally lasts around two months, from late November to late January, with lots of little buds appearing throughout the Christmas period on healthy, happy plants.
Christmas Cactus Tricolour
Christmas Cactus White in Cream Zinc Pot
Red Christmas Cactus 'Caribbean Dancer'
How to care for Christmas cacti
• It's a relatively easy plant to care for
Christmas cacti like a bright spot, but not direct, scorching sunlight. Indirect light and an east-facing windowsill is ideal, and while flowers are budding, make sure to keep soil evenly moist but not waterlogged. You'll need to water regularly from April to September.
As they are tropical cacti, these plants also need humid environments, so a kitchen or bathroom is ideal. There are a few simple ways to create humidity around the plant: try misting it with water spray or stand it on a gravel-filled saucer.
Fluctuating temperatures and overwatering can usually cause flower buds to drop, so keep an eye on this. Plants exposed to cold in florists, at garden centres, or in the car are also vulnerable.
The RHS recommends repotting once a year (or at least every two years) to maintain healthy growth, usually done at the end of March, which is the beginning of their growing season. You should use a cactus potting compost or John Innes No 2 with added grit.
A Christmas cactus likes to be snug in a small pot, so choosing one too large for the plant will result in general poor growth. When repotting, only choose a slightly larger container. If there's little sign of new growth, remove the pot to check the roots. If necessary, remove the excess compost and carefully place it into a smaller pot to encourage new growth and recovery.
How to encourage a Christmas cactus to rebloom
• Christmas cacti will flower every year if it’s given the right treatment
A Christmas cactus is an easy plant to care for, but there are a few rules to follow if you want it to flower each Christmas. Your plant needs two resting periods with a reduction in watering and temperature.
From late January to late March, reduce the watering, only occasionally doing so, so that the compost does not completely dry out. Move it to a cooler room and aim to reduce the temperature to 12-15°C.
Then from April to September, which is the main growing season, you should increase the watering of your Christmas cactus (only water when the top 2-3cm of compost is dry) and start feeding it with a liquid houseplant feed. You ideally need to maintain a temperature of 18-20°C.
During the summer months, and only once the risk of frost has past, you can place your Christmas cactus outside. This will help to ripen new growth and encourage flowering, but make sure you keep your cactus in a shady spot and protect it from slugs.
From mid-September, the flowering buds will start to develop. You should reduce the water and temperature as before with a second resting period. Then once flowering buds have formed, increase the temperature back to 18-20°C and resume regular watering. Soon enough, your lovely Christmas cactus will flower again.
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