How to Grow a Christmas Cactus? Master These Care Tips

The Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera truncata) is an epiphytic succulent in the cactus family, also known as the Christmas cactus, crab cactus, and "adding beauty to what is already beautiful," among other names. It is often grown indoors as a potted plant and in park flower beds. So, what are the growth habits of the Christmas cactus? What propagation methods does the Christmas cactus have? How do you grow a Christmas cactus?

I. Growth Habits of the Christmas Cactus

The Christmas cactus is a tropical to subtropical plant that likes a warm climate and has a fairly strong tolerance for drought; in summer, take care to provide shade. The optimal growing temperature is around 20-25 degrees, and around 15 degrees during the dormant period. The soil should be loose in texture, well-draining, and high in fertility. The Christmas cactus is a short-day plant; if it can get 8-10 hours of sunlight per day, it will bloom in about 3 months, so when growing a Christmas cactus you can regulate the flowering period by controlling light.

II. Propagation Methods for the Christmas Cactus

1. Cuttings

Choose robust, plump segments from the stems of the Christmas cactus, cut off 2 segments, leave them in a cool place for two days, and once the cut ends have dried somewhat, insert them into a sand bed. The ratio of peat to sand in the sand bed is 4:1, and keeping the temperature at around 15-20 degrees gives a high survival rate. In addition, the cutting bed soil must not be too moist, otherwise the cut ends easily rot. Roots begin to form about 3 weeks after insertion, and after one month they can be transferred into pots for container growing.

2. Grafting

Grafting is generally done in June or October, and the rootstock can be something like Hylocereus undatus (dragon fruit). The scion should be a robust stem segment of the current year; generally one rootstock can take 3-4 scions. After grafting, place it in a semi-shaded spot for care and keep the air humidity above 60.

3. Sowing

The Christmas cactus needs manual assistance with pollination. The suitable germination temperature is around 23 degrees. Use a soil mix of peat, leaf mold, and coarse sand, and sterilize the soil at high temperature before sowing. After sowing the Christmas cactus, keep the soil moist; you can cover the mouth of the pot with a layer of plastic wrap. Sprouts appear about one week after sowing. Note that Christmas cactus seedlings grow relatively slowly and need careful management.

III. How Do You Grow a Christmas Cactus?

1. Potting Up

When potting up a small Christmas cactus, first place 1-2 cm of broken tiles or clay pebbles at the bottom of the pot as a drainage layer to prevent waterlogging and root rot, and sprinkle a layer of fully decomposed organic fertilizer as a base fertilizer, about 1-2 cm thick, to provide the nutrients needed for potting up. Then cover with a layer of soil; you can use a relatively fertile mix of leaf mold, peat, and coarse sand, with the pH kept between 5.5-6.5. Then place the plant in, keeping the fertilizer separate from the roots to avoid burning or rotting the roots.

2. Watering

Watering should vary with the season. Although winter is the growing season for the Christmas cactus, because temperatures are low and evaporation is slight, do not water too much; just keep the potting soil moist, watering once every 4-5 days. In summer, temperatures are high; although there is shade, the high temperatures cause a lot of evaporation, and the potting soil dries out easily, so generally water once every 1-2 days. In spring and autumn, water twice a week, depending on the weather, keeping the soil slightly moist.

3. Fertilizing

Fertilizing is mainly done in September-October before flowering and in April-June after flowering; once a week you can apply decomposed human manure/urine. As for seasons, spring fertilizing is to encourage more branches and leaves, mainly with nitrogen fertilizer; in summer it is best not to fertilize, otherwise rot is easily caused; autumn fertilizing is mainly with phosphorus fertilizer, which can promote flower bud differentiation. Note that before fertilizing you should stop watering so the potting soil stays dry, which helps the absorption of fertilizer, and never use strong chemical fertilizers.

4. Temperature

The optimal growing temperature for the Christmas cactus is 15-25 degrees. In summer it needs shade and shelter from rain; it is best placed on a well-ventilated windowsill or under the eaves of a corridor. After autumn it can be moved indoors to a spot with plenty of sunlight to promote photosynthesis. In winter, a temperature of around 15 degrees is fairly suitable; below 5 degrees it tends to grow poorly or even stop growing.

5. Light

The Christmas cactus likes light and also tolerates shade, and does not have high light requirements; placing it indoors can meet its light needs. Note that in summer you just need to provide shade to prevent direct sunlight from scorching the Christmas cactus.

6. Pests and Diseases

At ordinary times, pay attention to ventilation and light transmission, creating a relatively dry micro-environment, which can reduce the chance of pests and diseases. When necessary, chemical control can be used, such as a 800-fold dilution of thiophanate-methyl or a 1000-fold dilution of copper hydroxide, sprayed once every 7-10 days.

The above is the little knowledge on how to grow a Christmas cactus compiled for you by Tuliu.com. Do you understand it all now?