Christmas Cactus - Schlumbergera
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Christmas Cactus is a Great Gift (if you don't keep it for yourself)
Christmas cactus is a gret gift idea on Christmas eve, when it is in full bloom.
Christmas cactus is native to Brazil and an popuar winter-flowering houseplant, the pendulous stems of Christmas cactus make it a great choice for haning baskets.
This lens is about the different christmas cactus, how to take care of them and where to buy them online.
My favorite is the yellow - so of course I added a bit about that too.
Enjoy!
[Photo shot by Danny Crump]
Let's Have some Fun
Watering
The soil should be evenly moist for best growth, but they are intolerant to constantly wet soil and poor aeration. If outdoors, an established plant may only need to be watered every two or three days in warm, sunny weather; or every week in cool, cloudy weather.
Lighting
Christmas cactus will do best in bright indirect light. Long term direct sunlight can burn the leaves and stunt growth. If taken care of properly, a single planting can last for hundreds of years.
Flowering
Christmas cactus will create flower buds when subjected to cooler temperatures 50-58 degrees Fahrenheit/10-14 degrees Celsius for 6-8 weeks.
Use tomato fertilizer and only when the flowerbuds appear.
Do not move the plant after the flowerbuds appear, as it does not like to be disturbed and is likely to drop all the flowerbuds.
The Christmas cactus (Zygocactus) is native to the South American jungles. The flowers bloom once a year and come in shades of fuchsia, yellow, salmon, pink, white, orange, red and sometimes will even have a combination of the colors. The Christmas cacti are tropical plants. They require sunlight and the blooms last longer with cooler temperatures. Keep them away from heaters, fireplaces, radiators, furnace ducts, and other heat sources. Place in a sunny location while indoors and if outdoors during the summer, find a place that has a sun/shade mix to prevent the plant from getting burned. The best way to be sure your plant is getting just the right amount of water is to wait until the soil is dry on the top and still a bit moist toward the bottom. Then water the plant until the soil is saturated. Drain off any excess water that accumulates on the bottom. Then do not water again until the top half of the soil feels dry to the touch again. Well-drained soil is very important.
Yellow Christmas Cactus on Amazon
Christmas Cactus as Houseplants
Christmas Cacti on eBay
Where to Buy Christmas Cacti Online
Directgardening.com - they have the yellow variant and they ship to The United States, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
From Amazon U.S.
From Amazon U.K.
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Close2Art
Nov 18, 2011 @ 8:39 am | delete
- very cool, never knew of these.
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WriterJanis
Nov 17, 2011 @ 11:29 pm | delete
- iT REALLY IS TRUE YOU LEARN SOMETHING EVERYDAY.
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surfsusan
Nov 17, 2011 @ 11:57 pm | delete
- Thank you ;)
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RaisedVegetableGardenBeds
Nov 17, 2011 @ 7:42 pm | delete
- I didn't know about the different varieties of Christmas cactus. Thanks for the info.
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surfsusan
Nov 17, 2011 @ 11:56 pm | delete
- You are ver welcome, it was a joy to write the lens and create the graphics :)
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CrazyforCollecting
Jan 3, 2011 @ 8:45 am | delete
- I've never had a Christmas cactus, but I've always liked them. Beautiful lens. Thank you.
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CrazyforCollecting
Jan 3, 2011 @ 8:45 am | delete
- I've never had a Christmas cactus, but I've always liked them. Beautiful lens. Thank you.
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eccles1
Nov 11, 2009 @ 2:55 pm | delete
- I HAVE 3 Christmas Cactus they have buds all over them right now.. this is when we don't water them .. I didn't know that ! I am glad I watched the video!
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LAURA
Nov 24, 2008 @ 10:11 am | delete
- I LOVE MY XMAS CACTUS TO I WISH THEY HAD COLORS I WOULD LIKE LIKE PURPLE AND RED, WHITE, HOW ABOUT PURPLE AND FUSHCIA THAT WOULD BE COOL.
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dori
Nov 17, 2008 @ 12:48 pm | delete
- how many different color christmas cactus?
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Oct 12, 2008 @ 8:50 pm | delete
- My Christmas cactus is 30 years old. I have heard of them living to be over 50. I don't treat mine very well, but it never disappoints me and blooms every Christmas. Last year it started blooming for the American Thanksgiving delighting us immensley because we always celebrate it too.
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BigGirlBlue
Oct 2, 2008 @ 12:23 am | delete
- Our cactus is ten years old. It has probably added 4 or 5 stems in that time and has only flowered the last two years. The first was by accident when I had to move it into the spare room while we were renovating in October. Last week for some reason one whole stem just dropped right off. I'm not a happy camper
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Charanne
Sep 29, 2008 @ 11:46 pm | delete
- Thank you for your kind words. I was a bit worried about the graphics because maybe I went overboard. Will use some similar on our other X-mas related lenses. On my way to your Orchid lens.
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PatinKC
Sep 29, 2008 @ 11:38 pm | delete
- I love my Christmas Cactus, I've had it for maybe 20 years. Some years it does great and some not so. Last year it had beautiful blooms until spring! ( I used the fertilizer sticks.)
Love the graphics on this lens. I'm lensrolling it to my lens Orchid Care .
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Christmas Cactus on CafePress
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by surfsusan
I am the "Traveller Sage", at the moment I travelling in Europe, visiting friends and taking photos, which is a dream I have had since my childhood. Read... more »
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Amazon Spotlight Personal Review
Complete Book of Cacti and Succulents
Amazon Price: $69.74 (as of 02/17/2012)
Terry Hewitt's Complete Book of Cacti & Succulents may not exactly be complete (it is not an encyclopedia), but it is thorough and is an excellent book especially for beginners. Hewitt discusses the anatomy and discovery of cacti/succulents, how to plant them, propogate them, how to keep them healthy, and even discusses how best to display the plants. And of course the most important part: the plant catalog. He covers hundreds of cacti and succulents in full color. In addition to the many desert cacti I'm happy to say that Hewitt also covers epiphytic cacti including aporocactus, aporophyllum, epiphyllum, and the Christmas cacus. In the back of the book the author includes Plant Selection Lists. In these lists he lists the plants that are best for beginners, as indoor pot plants, those that are easy to flower, those that grow best in the different climates, etc. And I again want to stress the many, many beautiful, clear full color photos throughout the book.
