Comments on: Christmas Cactus

By: Marilyn

Marilyn — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 02:47:51 +0000

I have 3 Christmas Cactus -1 white, 1 pink and 1 deep pink flowers. I live in the midwest. In the early summer I place the cactus outside under our patio awning on a table where they get indirect light. This summer all three bloomed around late July or early August. When the weather started turning cold I brought them in the house and thought there were bud flower buds, but decided I was seeing things. Well, about 2 weeks ago all 3 burst into flower blooms again. I was very surprised as I thought one flowering a year was normal. Believe me I sure didn’t do anything special to them outside. Guess conditions were just right so we could enjoy the flowers twice in a short period of time – once outside and once inside! These cactus are about 3 years old.

By: mayday

mayday — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 05:38:57 +0000

I recently received a Christmas cactus as a gift. I keep the soil moist, watering every other day or so. The plan does not receive direct natural sunlight but does get plenty of full darkness at night.The majority of the plant has already bloomed.
How long should the flowers typically last? Mine stay fresh for a couple of days and then start to wilt.
Is this normal? If so, is it recommended to pinch off the dead, wilting flowers or should I leave them be? Thank you so much for your help!

Hi Mayday,
Your Christmas cactus should bloom for 2-3 weeks. The flowers will last longer in cooler temperatures. Any type of drafts from cold or heat as well as improper watering will shorten the lifespan. I would suggest that you try to water less often. Keep the plant moist by giving it a good soaking so that all the roots get watered and then wait until the top inch is dry before watering again. The plant uses less water in cooler temperatures and lower light conditions.
Once the flower buds start to show, Christmas cactus like Poinsettias can be moved to bright indirect light and normal room temperatues 60-70F. It doesn’t need 14 hrs. of darkness. It is better not to move the plant when the buds have already formed, as that can cause them to drop.
To clean up the plant, pinch off the dried flowers otherwise they will eventually fall off.

By: cheryl kondrick

cheryl kondrick — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:01:04 +0000

Wilted, wrinkled,soft stems
My christmas cactus looks terrible, was doing great and full of flowers. Now the stems have wilted, drooped and have turned a dark color and wrinkled and soft. Can I save it, and how. Why did this happen? Would like to know so it doesnt happen again.
Thank you for any help you can give me. Cheryl

Hi Cheryl
Did you move the plant? How was the watering? Is the soil dry or wet?
Most Christmas cactus problems are water related. It’s possible that your cactus had too much water. Hopefully it doesn’t have stem or root rot which can also cause stem sections to fall off. Check at the base of the stems, if they are soft and mushy, then you have root rot, if not then let your plant recover on its own and reduce the soil moisture. During flowering keep the plant moist but not wet. Once it is done blooming keep it drier during the winter months.

By: Sophie

Sophie — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 20:23:28 +0000

Fungus gnats Hi, I have a Christmas Cactus and it looks really healthy apart from it's covered in little black flies. They look like fruit flies and are driving me bonkers.... Any suggestions? Many Thanks Sophie

Hi Sophie It's possible that you have fungus gnats which live in moist soil and feed on decaying material. Let the soil dry between waterings.

By: TFirerock

TFirerock — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:08:43 +0000

Ok well my grandfather had this xmas cactus for years and years. I thrived while he took care of it. Unfortunatly he passed away and my gram started taking care of it. Well the other day all the arms just fell off of it I snatched up one of them and have it in a cup of water hoping it will make roots. Will it make roots or is it already to far gone? Why did all the arms just all the sudden fall off any ideas?

By: Susan

Susan — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:43:02 +0000

I have a Christmas cactus that belonged to my mother. It is probably over 30 years old. I leave it outside on a water system when we go out of town in warm weather. This time, I returned to find the entire plant gone. There are a few leaves in the pot, but all of the rest are gone down to the woody stems. There are nibbled-looking spots on the stems. A few tiny leaves are sprouting, and a couple of the ones that fell into the pot have taken root.
I suspect the deer ate it. We never had deer here before, but I have seen some come over since they cleared land nearby.
I’ve brought the plant inside now that I’m home to water it. Do you think I should fertilize it to help it recover?

HI Susan
I had that same problem. Deer ate it down to the stumps. Going into winter (low light and low humidity) is not the best time to fertilize but I would give it a 1/2 dose of fertilizer just to get it going. Be careful not to keep it too wet in the winter months. Hopefully, it will recover and put on some new growth. Good luck.

By: Anne-Marie

Anne-Marie — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:01:23 +0000

Help! I have a cactus I rescued 5 years ago and it is finally starting to look healthy this year. Now I have noticed it has a few holes in some of its leafs. I don’t see any insects. Do you know what is causing this and if I should be alarmed? I have become attached to this plant.
Thank you for any help you can offer!

HI Anne-Marie
If your Christmas cactus is outside, then its most likely that some insect chewed on it. Are the holes, discolored borwn spots?

By: barb

barb — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 19:08:28 +0000

HELP! i have just discovered that there are little green worms eating my easter cactus and its dropping leaves. what could it be, can i treat it, will they infect nearby christmas cactus or is my plant just a goner?

By: barb

barb — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 18:34:11 +0000

thank you i needed someone to remind me to test the soil ph. it was 7, no wonder theyre turning pink. i had assumed (shame on me) that i had fertilized enough and that the rain water was replenishing the soil. lol, i love my cactus no matter what color it is but red is my favorite and im glad to know that with my attention on it now that the red will be back. thank you again and i love this site.

By: barb

barb — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 07:17:33 +0000

i have a pot of red thanksgiving cactus that i bought in 07. he was red, he was red in 08, he is now melony pink! i live in NW ohio and had all my cactus outside and they loved it. we got a very cool end of august and beginning of september and they set bud. i didnt discover that until i was several days into acclimating them to the house (so far no bud drop) so i continued. well now we have 80s days and nearly 70s nights. i have seen cool temps turn my white to pastel pink, could the warmth turn my red to the melon color? they were fertilized 1-2 times a month alternating between standard houseplant formula and root/bloom booster. do growers somehow chemically manipulate colors that fade later?

Hi Barb
Color changes can be due to several factors such as temperature, soil ph, light and genetics. To get certain colors, hybridizer combine one color gene with another. One gene may be dominant and as the plants get older, the dominant gene can take over the weaker gene (red) and revert to its original color.
I don’t know if growers chemically manipulate the soil to maintain color. The soil ph can have an effect of color. If the plant is in the same soil for a year or more, the ph can change from the water used and perhaps change the color. Temperature will also change color.