Gardening: The Christmas Cactus
The Christmas Cactus is a plant that will bloom while others sleep!
Christmas Cactus. We see it sitting by the ever-popular Poinsettias and Amaryllises, a quite unassuming and almost lazy-looking plant sometimes blooming small white, orange, pink or red flowers. Yet this Christmas plant that lingers for weeks adds a welcome pop of color to the darker days of the season and is well-deserving of our admiration and attention.
This Christmas Cactus or Schlumbergera is native to the humid, coastal mountain rainforests of southeastern Brazil, where they grow on trees or on rocks in the filtered light and moist, cool conditions under forest canopies, not in deserts. Great news is that this easy-care houseplant can live for decades, thriving in our Texas indoors with only a little attention!
Place the Christmas in bright, indirect light.
Plant the Christmas Cactus in a well-draining mix that is rich in organic matter, but with excellent aeration. This soil is much like what one would find in its native rainforest habitat. The soil can be created by mixing soil with perlite, sand, or peat moss, or by using a pre-made cactus, palm, and succulent potting mix.
Water when the top 1 to 2 inches of soil is dry, and increase humidity around the plant.
Christmas cacti don’t need fertilizer year-round to produce beautiful blooms. Feed your Christmas Cactus from after blooming until Fall. Use a balanced liquid feed (like 20-20-20 or 20-10-20) diluted to half strength. Monthly use during the plant’s Spring/Summer growing season is best. A Christmas cactus begins to produce its flowers in the Fall as the temperatures lower and the days shorten, and it needs 13 hours of total darkness from mid-September to mid-November. During this time, stop giving it fertilizer and let it rest, or switch to a fertilizer that will help the plant focus on flower production rather than growth, such as a low-nitrogen or nitrogenfree fertilizer like 0-15-10.
Homemade fertilizer for the Christmas Cactus uses kitchen staples that mimic its natural tropical environment. Unlike desert cacti, the Christmas Cactus will thrive in slightly acidic, nutrient-rich soil. Homemade fertilizers are easy but dilution is key.
Used coffee grounds provide nutrition and acidity. Spread used coffee grounds on a plate to dry thoroughly. This prevents mold. Mix 1-2 tablespoons into the top inch of soil every 4-6 weeks during Spring and Summer. An alternative is coffee tea, made by soaking one teaspoon of used grounds in a cup of warm water overnight. Strain it and use the liquid to water the Christmas Cactus once a month.
Banana peel water provides potassium and is made by soaking chopped banana peels in a liter of water for 24 hours. Strain and use the water for regular watering once a month.
Christmas Cacti need higher magnesium doses than most other plants. For this, dissolve one teaspoon Epsom salt in a gallon of water. Apply this once a month during the growing season but NOT in the same week as other fertilizers to prevent nutrient lockout.
The cloudy water left from rinsing raw rice contains starches and minerals (B-vitamins and minerals) that nourish soil bacteria. Use room-temperature rice rinse water for regular watering once every 2-4 weeks.
Finally, crushed eggshells provide calcium. Wash, dry, and grind shells into a fine powder. Sprinkle a tablespoon over the soil surface and gently work it in.
In the late Fall and Winter, stop fertilizing once buds appear or the plant enters its winter rest period. Fertilizing during this time can cause buds to drop off. Note: Always dilute homemade liquid fertilizers at a weak concentration. Over-fertilizing can burn sensitive plant roots.
Encourage blooming with less light and cooler temperatures for 6 weeks.
Prune after blooming for the best shape.
Root the stem sections you pruned off the plant to create more Christmas cacti!