How do I take care of my Christmas Cactus?
This is the first year my Christmas Cactus has bloomed so much. Now the blooms are dying and it looks bad. I need tips on how to care for Christmas cactus: do I pinch the dead blooms off?
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Looks really healthy, good. Yes of course the blooms die & you can pinch the dead ones off. leave it in same pot as long as you can & don't move the plant around the house they do better undisturbed. It looks really great!
Hi Candy,
They will probably fall off on their own & that is ok. Check out this article on caring for your Christmas cactus:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/cacti-succulents/christmas-cactus/limp-christmas-cactus.htm
You can pinch the blooms off or just let themfall-my method. Continu to care
as before. Mine must be 20 plus years old the longest plant I have ever had.
Your plant is beautiful.......it looks like you're caring for it very well.......i have one and I let the flowers fall off or you can dead head them.....your choice. Merry Christmas......
Christmas cactus is triggered to bloom by short daylight, so it will not bloom as the days start getting longer. I usually move it to another location, like my sunny basement window, until the fall when I start to see tiny red buds forming. But don't forget to water it occasionally! I have even moved it outside on my semi-shaded patio during the summer. Then as the days get cooler, I bring it inside and give it some fertilizer. Use a plant food for acid loving plants like azaleas and rhododendron. My grandmother used to dump a little pickle juice on hers once in a while, but the plant food for acid loving plants is not as dangerous!
I have one that is 3 years old. They really require very little care. I water it once a week but we have been gone for almost 3 weeks and it survived without any adverse results. It’s in our master bathroom and gets filtered sunlight
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=how+to+care+for+a+christmas+cactus
Let the blooms fall off - no need to pinch. They will last for a very long time with little maintenance. I just give mine a little water once a week and they have filtered sunlight all year long. Easy and beautiful!
My Christmas Cactus comes from 4 generations. I plant my slip 4 yrs ago. I water every 3 weeks. I don't have window sills because I live in an old mobile home. I keep it under a small lamp. This is the first yr it bloomed only one but I was happy. My sister has one from the same plant her Cactus has 130 blooms on it and is huge. Good Luck with yours. Sounds like your doing the right thing because it looks nice and healthy.
That is a thanksgiving cactus mot a Christmas cactus. You can tell by the shape of the leaves.
Whatever you are doing it is working for you. Some cactus do not bloom fully every year and some wait until Easter to bloom even though they may have bloomed for Christmas before. I had one that bloomed from October to the beginning of May so one never knows what you will get. They do like the light but not the extra heat or sun.
Once it starts blooming, make sure you don't move it, they may start dropping the flowers, I have even heard of problems with just rotating it to give another side more light. They also love to be rootbound and not to have wet feet.
Mine blooms every Christmas and then again at Easter. I love that it does this, but surprised as well!
I have one that is 42 yrs old and it blooms Easter,Thanksgiving & Christmas. I let the blossoms fall off their own and I fertilize mildly once a month and everyone is right do not move them around especially if it has buds or blossoms and avoid drafts.Yours is gorgeous, I have red and pink and white/pink.You can cut at joints and put in water when roots appear put in dirt.
Needs cooler temps at night and sun during the day! Will bloom for Easter and Christmas! Pinch of dead or drying flowers and enjoy!
My momma has had one for years. Her sister that has passed gave it to her. Momma says her only blooms around Christmas, blooms seem to open for a few hours early to late afternoon then close back up. This happens for 3-5 days, if I’m not mistaken... then it’s usually done until the next Christmas. She and my aunts call it “Christ in a Manger”
bc she says it looks like Jesus in a manger when it opens... never personally saw this occur... but she swears by it...
I have one that blooms every other week but my other ones don t bloom at all. I have brought some inside to see if they might bloom. They have nt as yet but will wait and see how they go. I live in Sydney, Australia so I don t have snow or extremely cold weather to handle.
I live in the South and keep mine under a covered patio (still gets afternoon sun) while it's warm. When it starts getting in the low 40s at night, I bring it inside and put it by a window in the sunroom. It still gets afternoon sun, but not as much, due to the location. It's over 20 years old and has done really well with plain old water and miracle grow potting soil. In fact, I had some of the stems break off, and I just stuck them in a pot with some potting soil and a little water, and they rooted on their own----and bloomed this year too.
I would love to find a coral colored one but none of the stores have the colors labeled.
I have one that is decades old, think 50 to 75 years. If you have a cool room or a shelf by a window that is the best place for these plants then when it is time to turn on the room lights just put the curtains over the plants, so they are in the dark. Mine bloom most at Christmas but I get a few more at Easter. They have been in the same pot for years and years. Yours looks like you are doing it right.
Can this plant be transferred into another bigger pot? What kinds of soil should I sure?