Thanksgiving cactus falls within the genus Schlumbergera, along with other holiday-themed plants like Christmas and Easter versions. These low-maintenance plants are known for their flat, segmented deep-green foliage and magnificently layered flowers that appear to appear right as the events they are named for get here.
As you ‘d expect, the Thanksgiving cactus flowers right around Turkey Day– that makes it a wonderful focal point or person hosting present. Ahead, how to care for yours, whether you choose to gift or ultimately get one.
Thanksgiving Cactus vs. Other Holiday Varieties
Understood as Schlumbergera truncata, the Thanksgiving cactus is a fall-blooming range of the Schlumbergera genius. It is among three popular vacation cacti, and though they’re all rather similar, each has its own defining qualities.
Christmas Cactus
Thanksgiving cacti are categorized as epiphytes, which implies they typically grow on other flowers and greens, like orchids, moss, and fern. While Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera bridgesti) is also a kind of epiphyte, there is one key difference between the two. “Thanksgiving cactus varies from Christmas cactus in that it forms small teeth along the leaf margins, along with the formation of yellow anthers,” says Corwin Graves, the vice president of growing for Green Circle Growers.
Easter Cactus
Another variety of holiday cactus is the Easter cactus, or Schlumbergera gaertnerrii. Various from the other 2 cacti, this model has rounder edges. The care throughout the 3 plants stays primarily the very same.
Thanksgiving Cactus Care Requirements
Thanksgiving cacti are semi-tropical, so they’re best grown as houseplants or outdoors in USDA zones 10 through 12. When growing within, make sure to keep your thermostat at a perfect temperature level for the plant– about 58 and 72 degrees.
Light
Your Thanksgiving cactus requires different kinds of light depending on the season. According to Graves, the plant needs to be exposed to brilliant light during winter and filtered light in the summer season.
Water
Unlike real cacti, which can survive weeks without water, a Thanksgiving cactus requires to be on a routine watering schedule. Make certain to keep the leading couple of inches of soil moist to the touch– not dry or waterlogged.
Soil
Thanksgiving cactus must be planted in well-drained soil that has great aeration, as epiphytic cacti aren’t able to flourish in potting mixes that are damp. In addition, soil for this plant range should be pH well balanced.
Fertilizer
In spite of the truth that these houseplants produce a beautiful show of blooms during their growing season– in some cases for 2 to four months at a time– they need very little in the way of soil changes. This is why Graves states any commonly offered water-soluble fertilizer should be sufficient when applied at the low recommended rate.
How to Encourage a Thanksgiving Cactus to Bloom
The Thanksgiving cactus begins its flower show when the cooler temperatures and shorter days of fall technique– so you can motivate yours to flower by reproducing these conditions in your house. According to Graves, blooming is triggered by either cool temperature levels (50 through 58 degrees) or day length (much shorter days), though day length is the most typical blooming trigger inside the home.
“Plants will start flowers when days are 12-and-a-half hours or shorter, and they will stay vegetative at 14 hours and above,” she says. The delicate, multilayer flowers appear in different tones of white, yellow, red, and, pink.
