A cactus without spines that flowers in the middle of winter. It comes from the rainforest, so it wants water and no harsh sun – and a cool, dark autumn to set buds.

What it does for you

The Christmas cactus flowers when hardly anything else does: from late autumn into midwinter, in red, pink or white¹. It's easy to keep and can live to a great age – the more shoots it forms over the years, the more flowers it carries¹. And it's non-toxic to people, cats and dogs^2,3.

Origin & history

In the wild, the Christmas cactus and its relatives grow only in humid mountain forests of south-eastern Brazil⁴. There they perch as epiphytes in the forks of tree branches⁴.

The "true" Christmas cactus, Schlumbergera × buckleyi, is a hybrid that William Buckley bred at an English nursery in the 1840s³. Most plants on sale, though, are S. truncata or its hybrids – recognisable by small pointed teeth on the stem segments instead of rounded notches⁴. It used to be called Zygocactus truncatus⁴.

Caution

It isn't toxic to cats and dogs², and it's considered non-toxic to people as well^5,3.

Care

Light. Bright, but not in full sun; a window with morning sun is good¹. Harsh sun bleaches the shoots³.

Water. In spring and summer keep it moist but never wet. From early autumn, water more sparingly and let the top few centimetres dry until buds show; then water regularly again until the flowers fade, and rest it again after flowering¹.

Temperature & humidity. 18–20 °C in summer, never below 10 °C. It doesn't mind humid air: mist it or stand it on wet gravel¹.

Soil, pot & repotting. Cactus soil¹. Repot every one to two years in early spring, into a pot only slightly bigger¹. Kept a little snug, it flowers more⁶.

Feeding. Liquid fertiliser from spring to early autumn¹, about once a month³.

Extras

It's a short-day plant: it forms buds after about six weeks of long nights – 13 to 16 hours of darkness, depending on the source^6,4. So from early autumn, keep it cool at 12–15 °C and away from lamplight in the evening. If it gets warmer than 18 °C, it flowers late or not at all¹. Buds drop with fluctuating temperatures, overwatering or too dry soil, or when you move the plant while buds are forming^1,4.

It only forms flowers at the shoot tips. For a bushier plant, snap a few end segments off long shoots in spring after flowering – more shoots mean more flowers¹.