When November arrives with its gray and short days, it can be rather difficult on morale. A good way to liven up your decor, without anyone complaining that it’s too early to put up Christmas decorations: adopt a Christmas cactus!
The Christmas cactus is a very easy-to-care-for fat plant that blooms in November and can hold its flowers for a good period of time, giving it the name Christmas cactus. Like most cacti, this one doesn’t require much: good light, but not direct sun, not too much water and… that’s it! It doesn’t need to be repotted often either, as it likes to be a bit cramped in its pot. Are you the kind of person who forgets to water from time to time? It is definitely the plant for you. It will thank you for this oversight by making even more flowers. Additionally, Christmas cactus have a nice life span, you can have it for many years if you take good care of it.
Making your Christmas cactus bloom
To make your Christmas cactus bloom, nothing is better than a little stress. Indeed, plants bloom when they feel threatened because it is their way of reproduction: they produce flowers to avoid dying out. In the fall, you can take your Christmas cactus outside and leave it until the end of October. Don’t wait for frosty periods to bring it inside, but let it get cold for a while. When you bring it into the house, you’ll be surprised at how many flowers it will produce. You’ll even think it’s thanking you for bringing it where it’s warm!
Another solution is to cut off watering completely for a few weeks in October: no water at all for two to three weeks, dry regime. Wait a while and see the result.
Watering the Christmas cactus
Watering your Christmas cactus is one of the main keys to your success. You need to provide the cactus with just the right amount of water, not too much, not too little. There is no clear rule about frequency unfortunately, too many factors influence the needs of the plant. A good suggestion would be to water deeply, wetting the entire root ball, let the excess water drain away, empty the saucer after 15 to 20 minutes and wait until the soil is dry to the touch before watering again. 5 days, 10 days, two weeks? Your plant will tell you. We often think that soft, wilted leaves on a plant are a sign of lack of water, but it is often the opposite and the Christmas cactus is no exception to this rule. Be careful with the watering of your cactus: we go sparingly!
Maintaining your Christmas cactus so that it is healthy and blooms abundantly is quite simple. Bring joy to the gray days of November with this wonderful, easy-to-live-with houseplant!
