Showing off my Christmas cactus

GORGEOUS Christmas Cactus Iris!!!! And I enjoyed sharing the memories with you … :-)

-- "A beautiful garden is a work of heart" -- Royal Oak, MI

This is beautiful! Thanks for sharing the how to, the memory but as well, if not more, the gorgeous plant!!

-- Eklectic, Follow my Bliss, South East Ontario 5a

I’m so glad you enjoyed the pics. I really like this plant—-had it for several years now. It began as a little sprig in a 3” pot. :-)

-- 'To plant a Garden is to believe in Tomorrow'

Well this plant sure has done well in your loving care!!! It is fun to watch a plant grow from year to year and discover it’s “personality” ... I am the same with my African Violets.

-- "A beautiful garden is a work of heart" -- Royal Oak, MI

Wow! That is gorgeous! Mine has a few buds on it, but nothing compared to yours. I, too, put mine outside, but I did bring it in when frost was threatening in October. Does yours bloom twice a year? Often, but not always, mine blooms pre Christmas and again at Easter. I planted mine when I was 6 years old, and now it is 56 years old. Can you figure out how old I am? LOL

Thanks for sharing your beautiful cactus.

-- jroot

it IS beautiful
I’m not sure what happened to my cactus.. hmmm I used to have one. Where did it go?
I obviously have forgotten about it and now I’ll have get my hands on a new one to start.
Thanks for the reminder.

Jroot.. ah.. my math escapes me.. lol :)

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

I’m so glad you enjoyed the pics!
jroot, I don’t have enough fingers and toes to count that high.——-Yes, my plant will flower again sometime this winter—-it doesn’t seem to know when Christmas is or Easter, it’ll flower when the light conditions suits it. BTW, your plant must be huge!
MsD, I just bought a new one at Walmart. They had the prettiest colours! It is just a little guy and it will be years b/f I’m showing it off. I imagine the Walmart near you probably has some right now as well.

-- 'To plant a Garden is to believe in Tomorrow'

I had my parents’ cactus hanging in my gazebo when we sold the old house. Some prospective purchaser with a child on his shoulder let his child grab the cactus and rip it apart. It was older than me. I was heart broken. Nevertheless to make a bad situation good, a friend came and gathered up many of the ripped off pieces and planted them. They took root and are doing very well. In fact there are pieces in at least 3 provinces now, as I write.

-- jroot

What a beautiful cactus Iris.And yes my grandma used to have one in a wicker basket too.Thanks for the memory.
Jroot…that makes you 49 right…..(lol)

-- Bon,Hastings,Ont.....zone 5a....Always room for one more

Riiiiight! I wish I had the stamina I had way back then. ... and the patience. LOL

-- jroot

Hey Bon … what “math” are you using to calculate jroots’ bday … I like it!!!! Is it that “new math”??!!! hahaha!! Hmmmmmm, I think that makes me ….. :-)

-- "A beautiful garden is a work of heart" -- Royal Oak, MI

Lovely plant, iris, and an even lovelier memory.

My 10 year old cactus died this last winter, a snack to 2 young catlings

-- the day you quit learning is the day you quit living.

I know what you’re saying, dini. My cat will chew on the cactus too, if he thinks I’m not paying attention. I try to keep it out of his reach.

-- 'To plant a Garden is to believe in Tomorrow'

I have always wanted to try to grow one of these Christmas Cactus; but been a bit hesitant. May I ask, do they require a lot of sunlight and is there a trick to getting them to bloom, or do they just bloom pretty much on their own when the time comes? Any “tricks of the trade” to growing them? Iris, your’s is just beautiful!! After seeing your picture, I am seriously thinking about picking up one and giving it a try.

-- "A beautiful garden is a work of heart" -- Royal Oak, MI

I don’t give mine any direct sun, just indirect light. They are called Christmas cactus, but they are not like a typical cactus. They naturally grow in the forest in the crotch of trees and branches. They don’t like to be over watered either. Like Iris suggests, I put mine outside into a sun-protected area of my screened in porch for the summer and fall, bringing it in when frost threatens. It LOVES the outdoors, and gets a really nice dark green. When it comes into the warmth of the inside, coupled with the shorter days, it then sets buds and blooms. I also find that it blooms more when it is root bound. I find that mine is not a fussy plant at all, and can even stand a little neglect.

-- jroot

put it in a cold spot, inside, and it will bloom

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

jroot, it is my understanding that it is the shorter days, coupled with the cooler temp that triggers the bud setting for the Christmas cactus. This is one of the reasons I put mine outside during the summer. I have it under a tree in light shade, and as fall approaches, the day gets shorter and shorter, naturally. I don’t have to worry about how many hours of light it is getting. I have read that too much light will stop the buds from setting. Even articial light from a lamp or if your plant is outside, from the street lights will stop bud production. ————That is why grandma’s always bloomed so well in the formal livingroom——-the family seldom used the room, especially in the fall when the warmer room was the kitchen and so the kitchen is where the family gathered, to read the paper or do their homework. I leave mine outside as long as possible bc other years when I brought it in too soon many of the buds stopped growing and dropped off. This year, I put the plant in my garage when the frosts began. My garage was so full of gardening junk that for awhile I couldn’t put the truck inside so I never entered the garage after dark. I (was only worried that I would forget about the plant and the temp would dropped too much bf I brought it in). But I cleaned the garage last week and decided the cactus had progressed enough to bring it in.
I hope this does not give GranT the idea that the plant requires alot of care bc it doesn’t. Especially in the summer, it just sits in the garden (in it’s own pot). In the fall bring it into the house bf it gets hit with a hard frost. The buds are usually set. Depending on the size of the buds, decide where to put it until they start to open and then put it on display. Do try one. They are inexpensive to buy———from Walmart or the grocery store—wherever. If you buy one now, try to get it home without chilling it too much. But unlike a poinsetta, chilling it won’t kill the plant, but it may not bloom well this year. It will survive for another year though.

Sorry, I’ve been so wordy on this subject! :-(

-- 'To plant a Garden is to believe in Tomorrow'

I always kept mine by my patio door, which faces west. The room was pretty cool in the fall/winter and it loved it there. (Still not sure where it went – probably with my Mom when she moved)
And my aunt’s was always kept in a small dormer window in her upstairs, facing the south. It was always filled with blooms in the winter.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

THANK YOU for all this great info and tips … I am definitely gonna get myself one and see how I do.

-- "A beautiful garden is a work of heart" -- Royal Oak, MI

My Christmas cactus is in bloom also. I’ve never tried putting them outside though … maybe next year.

-- Stop by and visit my homepage at http://www.craftygardener.ca or my blog at http://craftygardener.blogspot.com/ Thanks, Linda aka Crafty Gardener

Beautiful pictures….mine was given to me by a friend who was moving and it was to big to go with her, it didn’t bloom the first year I had it and since we have moved, it isn’t going to bloom again this year, I did put it out in the summer, so maybe next year it will be as beautiful as yours.

-- Derbyshire------- English Countryside

Thank you all for the kind words. On another gardening site that I posted a picture of my cactus, an American lady told me she thinks this is a Thanksgiving cactus as it has pointy leaves. Apparently a Christmas cactus has smoother, oblong leaves. Does anyone here know if this is true? It certainly is flowering at the right time for an American thanksgiving—-but then it will bloom again throughout the winter, but not to the extent that it is now.

-- 'To plant a Garden is to believe in Tomorrow'

Very nice looking Cactus. My father grows cactuses, but he water them once per month. When his brother(my uncle) visited him, he told that he used to dry plums and apples, but drying cactuses is new for him :).

-- Michal, http://gardentenders.com

lol that’s funny

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)

I used to have one just like yours Iris a few years ago.It had the same leaves as yours and it was called a xmas cactus when I bought it.Never heard of a thanksgiving cactus.

-- Bon,Hastings,Ont.....zone 5a....Always room for one more

mbulla, that is funny! :-> Maybe he has them in very large pots.
Bon, I think it is an American thing to called this variety a Thanksgiving cactus bc it blooms a this time when it is the American Thanksgiving. I googled Christmas cactus and there are several different varieties, but they seemed to still be under the same species name. They also call one an Easter cacus, but still looks the same.

-- 'To plant a Garden is to believe in Tomorrow'

I guess that mine are Christmas / Easter Cactus then. LOL I think I’ll still call it a Christmas cactus, though. Too confusing otherwise. LOL

I think the ones that mbulla is talking about are the true cactus. They certainly don’t need or even want to be watered too much or their roots rot.

-- jroot

Thanks Iris.I learn something new every day. :-)

-- Bon,Hastings,Ont.....zone 5a....Always room for one more