Holla to the Holiday Cacti!

You've likely walked passed them at the floral department in the grocery store. Or, maybe you have seen them in someone's office (and, person of said office declares how incredibly low maintenance they are--never a drop of water needed. Or, like me, you have a relative who swears they bloom all the time and they are sooooo easy. My Grandma has had one in her kitchen window for as long as I can remember...in a cup of water...with blossoms more often than not...with stems long enough to cut to root in a new cup of water. Color me jealous. Historically, my luck with any sort of cactus or succulent can be summed up as tossing good money after bad and a WILTED cactus in the trash, rotten from the massive amounts of water I would give it.

Since then, the best "thing" I've learned about caring for plants is to find the plant that suits me. For example, because I like caring for plants, including watering, I typically stay away from cacti or succulents but own a peace lily because they don't mind having wet "feet." Also, because I live in a brightly lit place, I stay away from plants easily scorched by the sun; I have a few ficus plants that thrive in bright conditions. Once I learned what works, my home soon became and remains full of greenery. Just ask anyone who comes over, it is typically the first comment people make, "Oh, you must have a green thumb." My thought, no, I just found plants that fits my lifestyle.

That was until about a year ago, while grocery shopping, I decided to take the plunge and buy a holiday cactus, determined to make it work this time. For $3.99, I figured I could take the loss. Pure luck, at first; however, I did some research. Over a year later, my Holiday Cactus are still going strong.

Holiday cactus are a great alternative to the Poinsettias or Amaryllis during the winter time. You will typically see them in full bloom around Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas (hence, the "holiday" in the name). The blossoms range in color from white, pink, red, lavender, orange, and all shades in between. The coolest way, to me anyway, to tell the difference between the three mentioned holiday cacti are the shape of leaves...

ISU Extension RG308 publication

They are epiphytic plants (meaning they live on another plant but do not hurt the other plant); see my earlier post about epiphytic plants here.

Like rubber plants, holiday cacti like their roots cramped, which is great because repotting needs are minimal (needed only when you see the roots coming out of the pot or even breaking a pot if big enough). If you must repot, use well-drained potting soil; outside soil will not work, especially in Iowa (too clayey).

According to Iowa State University (ISU) Extension, "Thanksgiving and Christmas cacti depend on short daylengths and cool temperatures to set flower buds, while Easter cacti will bloom with cool temperatures at the normal seasonal daylength." Further, you can keep your plant dryer than most (something I struggle with) until you see buds forming. Once blooming, keep the soil moderately moist and place the plant in a bright spot (if your home is one the dryer side, water more frequently; typically, once a week is sufficient though). Mine is right by the storm door. It used to be further away; however, once I moved it to within inches of the storm door, it has bloomed three times. Go me!

To find out more about Holiday Cactus, click here; the Iowa State University Reiman Gardens has additional information regarding Holiday Cactus.

Last, recently, I volunteered at the Des Moines Botanical Gardens, where there are TONS of holiday cacti throughout the conservatory and greenhouses. Here are a few snaps...

 

Thank you for reading!