Christmas Cactus
by Diane Heeney

Description: How to take care of your Christmas cactus.

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Whatever you call it…Christmas cactus, Thanksgiving cactus, or claw cactus…this plant makes a great gift.  It's inexpensive, easy to care for and long-lived, too-- over fifty years.  Its natural habitat is tropical Brazil, attaching itself to trees growing on the mountains. Its flowers were originally pink, but nurserymen have hybridized to include red, yellow, white and purple flowers.  Both the Thanksgiving form and Christmas form come into bloom in November.

Give your cactus direct sunlight all year long.  A summer vacation oute-mail box every Fridays is recommended, in a shady area.  Keep it out of artificial lighting for long periods in the autumn to encourage more bud set.

Keep its soil moist but not saturated.  Reduce watering after flowering.  Fertilize with potassium rich plant food, every other week year round, except for the two-month post flowering period.

You can take cutting in the spring using two or three joints.  Rooting will take 3 to 4 weeks.  You can also repot then, when the roots fill your container.  Use leaf compost, soil, sand, and peat, keeping the mixture on the dry side for two weeks.

If scale insects or mealybugs are a problem you can treat with alcohol, soapy water, or organic pesticide.  If the plant appears shriveled increase watering.  If you fail to have flowers, you have kept the plant too warm following the after flower rest period.

As you read this, I'm wishing you a peaceful and organized holiday season.  Happy Holidays from the Heeney's.

Reprinted with permission.

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