What Is the Peacock Cactus Called? Blooming Season and Bloom Duration Explained
"Variety of epiphyllum," also known as peacock cactus. In addition, because its appearance resembles a blooming lotus, it is also called "crab cactus" (English name: orchid cacti or epiphyllum flower). Besides peach-pink, there are also yellow, white and the common pink. So what are the cactus cultivation methods?
My peacock cactus came from a leaf branch a friend gave me; after I took it home and planted the cutting, it took about two weeks to take root. It counts as a plant in the cactus family, but it has very few spines. In hot weather, water it once every three or four days; in the dry, cold winter, watering about once every two weeks is enough. In LA they usually produce flower buds at the end of April, May is the blooming season, and after the flowers open they remain bright and captivating for 2-3 days. A gardening expert I know online said: "Peacock cactus" differs from "Asian epiphyllum" in that after the peacock cactus blooms, each flower's blooming period can last 2-3 days, while the Asian epiphyllum blooms in the first half of the night and withers in the second half, lasting only a few short hours; hence the saying "a fleeting epiphyllum bloom."
Chinese people can eat anything; I have a friend who says: after the flowers fade, she picks them and boils them in soup, and I hear it has a lung-moistening effect. Ha! But I have never tried it. Also, in an FB group I saw someone share photos of a peacock cactus bearing fruit. Tomorrow I will try hand-pollinating it, hoping this one at my home also has a chance to bear fruit.
This is the light pink crab cactus (peacock cactus) that newly joined the Little Vine Flower Garden last summer vacation. It produced flower buds in early February, and today it finally bloomed. Its bloom size is a little smaller than my original peach-pink peacock cactus, and its color is softer too. A gardening expert online said: peacock cacti of different flower colors have slightly different blooming seasons.
