Christmas cactus is so named because some people say it blooms most profusely in December, just in time for Christmas. But what are your expectations vs. the reality for Christmas cactus where to buy?
My expectations for this plant were that it would bloom easily and often. But the actual reality was a little different. While my cactus does flower every once in a while, I’ve found that it takes quite a bit of trouble to coax the flowers out. Keep them alive for any period of time afterwards.
Yours may be different, and if it’s blooming a lot more than mine, then disregard this article. But you should know that we had more than just a little trouble getting our Christmas cactus to bloom in first place.
Also,
Even though this plant is often sold in the greenhouse section of grocery stores around Christmas time, it does not like bright light. It needs to be treated as an indoor houseplant most of the year. If the plant is moved to a location that gets direct sunlight, the leaves will scorch and turn brown.
Even if the plant is kept in low light all year long, it takes a lot of work to get it to bloom.
Your Christmas cactus probably won’t bloom until it’s at least several years old. It has finished its growing cycle for the season.
Given all that, it was really exciting to see a few buds starting to form on our cactus. The first sign of blooms was many weeks ago and they were so tiny that I didn’t even realize they were flowers. The buds got a little bigger and the petals slowly opened.
The flowers don’t bloom at the tips of the stems, but appear in between the leaves of the plant.
Hence,
The reason why Christmas cactus took so long to get these flowers started was that my Christmas cactus is a “mimosa” hybrid. The plant I have is a double and it has taken several years for all the shoots in the center of this plant to bloom too.
The buds are also quite tiny, which I think is one reason they didn’t start blooming sooner. They soon became larger and more open, but still very small relative to their blooming cycle.
It turns out that the buds are blooming in response to heat. The reason they can’t bloom any earlier is because they’re only producing small amounts of nectar. And which isn’t enough to sustain large blooming periods.
The buds of an unbloomed Christmas cactus are so small that they’re not even visible to the naked eye. Some of these specimens had been growing for years before blooming for the first time.
Points to be Noticed:
As the weather gets warmer, you can expect to see more blooms on your plant. While most Christmas cactus need room temperature conditions to bloom at all. The buds will be more likely to open if the ambient temperature is about 60 degrees F or higher.
The plant shoots that are growing in the center of mine have finally started blooming. As you can see from the photos below, they’re not much bigger than they were when they first started producing nectar, which means that their flowers are very small.
As the flowers begin to open, the buds will turn from white to pink or red. That’s a sign that they’re ready to open and appear more colorful as they do so.
Conclusion:
As you can see, even in the late stages of blooming, it’s hard to tell if your cactus is in flower, because most of the buds are so tiny. And while these flowers are quite colorful and pretty, they won’t produce any nectar at this point. They begin to wilt, you can support them from below with toothpicks or floral wire. This will help them last longer. If you’re looking for guide on Christmas cactus where to buy then you can also check Propisk that provides an ultimate guide on gardening and all.
