Tag Archives: Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus)

HAPPY EASTER! Plus A Few More Plants…

Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus)

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE! The Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus) at Wagler’s Greenhouse bloomed right on time for Easter.

Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus).

I think it was worth the wait, how about you? I went to Wagler’s several times in the past week to check on it and always found something to bring back home…

Wagler’s has A LOT of plants getting ready to go. They have sold quite a few already but the rush for plants hasn’t started yet.

Click HERE to take you to the Schlumbergera gaertneri page.

New Plants on 4-3-21.

When I went out on Friday the greenhouse was closed for Good Friday. The door was open so I went in anyway. Three of Mrs. Wagler’s granddaughters came in for a visit while I was taking photos of the Schlumbergera gaertneri. I wanted to take their photos but I knew that was a no-no. They are Amish… There are five girls in their family and they recently had a baby brother. The oldest of the three may be around 5-6 years old.

One of the girls is very talkative and I told her I found a cactus I wanted but they were closed. I told her I could take it and come back and pay tomorrow. She said, “We can hide it.” She took the cactus from my hand and found a good spot.

Mammillaria spinosissima ‘Un Pico’.

Mammillaria spinosissima ‘Un Pico’

SO, why did we have to hide it? Well, a few days ago when I went there were maybe 40 of these plants. When I went out on Friday, there were none left where they had been. I looked around, before the girls came in, and found only a few left in a different spot. I didn’t pick one up before because I wanted to check to make sure I didn’t already have a Mammillaria spinosissima. Well, I knew I didn’t have one by that name, but I wanted to make sure the name wasn’t a synonym of one I already had. I looked the plants over already and it sure didn’t appear to be one I had, but I also know that had gotten fooled before by “variable” species… Luckily, these were labeled because they came from grower somewhere.

Now as far as the species goes, it can be somewhat variable. The species name, spinosissima, should indicate it is very spiny. BUT, if you look at this cultivar ‘Un Pico’ is doesn’t have many spines… The other weird thing is the common names of Mammillaria spinosissima is supposedly Red-Headed Irishman and Spiny Pincushion Cactus… Some descriptions of the cultivar say it only has one spine per areola, which is where it gets its name. Well, there is more than one spine per areole, but only one central spine…

Echeveria nodulosa (Painted Echeveria).

Echeveria nodulosa (Painted Echeveria)

Well, I screwed up only a little… I had one of these in 2016 but I put in the flower bed behind the old foundation. I had left it in its pot so I could easily remove it if it didn’t work out. HOWEVER, I got very busy over the summer and the flower bed grew up and I completely forgot about it. Then one day it dawned on me one day I had forgotten about it. I went to check on it and apparently had become a favorite meal for crickets. I put the pot back with the other plants on the table but it didn’t recover… I have been seeing several of these at Wagler’s for a few years so I thought I would bring another one home and take better care of it.

BUT, I was thinking it was a Kalanchoe… There were no labels in the pots at Wagler’s to remind me because she takes cuttings from her own plants. I came home, took the photos, and when I was updating my list there was no Kalanchoe nodulosa from before. No past photos either… Hmmm… I scratched my head a little and did some hunting. GEEZ! It is an Echeveria…

Kalanchoe beharensis ‘Fang’…

Kalanchoe beharensis ‘Fang’

I brought home my first Kalanchoe beharensis ‘Fang’ when I lived in Mississippi and brought it with me when I moved back to Missouri in 2013. I gave up most of my plants late in the summer of 2014. Mrs. Wagler always has several of these, and I may have given her the start, but I just never brought any home. SO, I decided I would go ahead and bring one home. You can’t have too many Kalanchoe but I am working on it…

Kalanchoe beharensis ‘Fang’.

Kalanchoe beharensis ‘Fang’ is the one that is also called the Stalactite Plant because of its weird “protuberances” that grow from the undersides of the leaves.

Sempervivum arachnoideum (right) and Sempervivum ‘Oddity’.

These are the two Sempervivum I brought home on Tuesday I didn’t post about yet. I have had both of these before, and Mrs. Wagler’s ‘Oddity’ came from a start I gave her several years ago. I really like its tubular leaves.

Sempervivum ‘Oddity’.

Sempervivum ‘Oddity’

Sempervivum ‘Oddity’ was developed by Sandy McPherson and introduced in 1977. It won the 1978 Best Bronze Award for best new variety. Information suggests it is possibly a mutation of Sempervivum x comollii, which is thought to be a natural hybrid between Sempervivum tectorum x Sempervivum wulfenii where the two species grow in the same area.

I bought my first ‘Oddity’ in 2013 and it did very well for several years then fizzled out. I brought my second one home from Wagler’s in 2016, possibly of a descendent of a plant I gave Mrs. Wager earlier. It didn’t do well and died soon after… I brought a third one home from Lowe’s in 2018 and it did absolutely great but didn’t survive the winter inside. These are NOT reliably winter hardy here… SO, this will be my fourth attempt. I am sure it will do well over the summer, but the trick is getting them to survive over the winter inside…

Sempervivum arachnoideum (Cobweb Houseleek).

Sempervivum arachnoideum

The third time is the charm, right? I brought home my first Cobweb Houseleek in 2014 labeled Sempervivum arachnoideum ‘Cebenese’ and it didn’t survive… Then, in 2019, I brought home one that was more colorful from Wildwood Greenhouse labeled ‘Berry Bomb’ that was introduced by Chick Charms. Well, it was really a ‘Cosmic Candy’ that Chick Charms relabeled… Anyway, it did great until the intense sun burned it to a crisp on the back porch over the summer. Yeah, I know. I screwed up and wasn’t paying attention. The new one, which is unlabeled, will go on the front porch where it won’t be in full sun.

Over the years I have tried several Hens and Chicks that just fizzle out. The only one that has lasted outside for several years is the cultivar named ‘Killer’. It has survived the winter again and will be in future posts. It is hard to find a reliably hardy Semp around here unless you get them from someone who has a few to spare from their yard.

I think that wraps up this post.

I hope you have a great Easter and maybe can spend time with family. This is the second Easter with COVID in our midst. Most families didn’t have much of an Easter last year because of the lockdowns. This community even had an Easter celebration for the kids at the park on Saturday and we had a parage in town. Both were canceled last year…

Until next time, be safe and stay positive. I hope you are all well and continue to stay well. Always be thankful and count your blessings. It is time to GET DIRTY!

 

Went To Take Photos, Brought Home 5 Plants…

New plants from Wagler’s Greenhouse.

Hello everyone! I hope this post finds you well. I haven’t posted for a while because I really haven’t had much to talk about lately. The weather has been nice but very windy. I was finally able to clean up some of the limbs and brush in the yard last week. Now the yard needs to be mowed already.

The last time I went to Wagler’s her Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus) was starting to bud and she thought the flowers would be open in a couple of weeks. So, Monday I went with my camera to check. Well, unfortunately, the flowers hadn’t opened yet.

Of course, I had to look around and I found a couple of interesting plants in one of the front greenhouses (the one with the cactus and succulents). Well, I went to the back greenhouse and there was another table with succulents they had bought for resale. Ummm… I found three more. 🙂

So, let’s begin…

Crassula perfoliata var. falcata (Propeller Plant) at 4″ tall x 6″ wide after I brought it home from Wagler’s Greenhouse on 3-29-21, #785-2.

Crassula perfoliata var. falcata (Propeller Plant)

Three of the five plants are members of the plant family Crassulaceae. Several years ago I had a Crassula cotyledonis that didn’t do so well. One of its common names was Propeller Plant and it was sometimes confused with the Crassula falcata. I had seen these online but never in person until Monday when I went to Wagler’s where there were only two to choose from. Well, I promptly grabbed one. The plant was unlabeled but I definitely knew what it was.

The scientific name was changed to Crassula perfoliata var. falcata (J.C.Wendl.) Toelken thanks to Hellmut R. Toelken in 1975. It was first named Crassula falcata by Johann Christoph Wendland in 1798. Some websites have it listed as Crassula perfoliata var. minor but according to Plants of the World Online, that name is a synonym along with 18 other names…

The Crassula perfoliata var. falcata is native to South Africa and produces a cluster of bright red flowers. Besides its common name Propeller Plant, it is also known as Airplane Plant, Buddha’s Temple, Red Crassula, and Scarlet Paintbrush.

Cyanotis somaliensis (Pussy Ears) after I brought it home from Wagler’s Greenhouse on 3-29-21, #785-4.

Cyanotis somaliensis (Pussy Ears, Furry Kittens)

I spotted this neat little plant that looked similar to the Tradescantia but was more of a succulent with hairy-fringed leaves so I gave it a look and decided to bring it home as well. The reason it looks similar to the Tradescantia species I already have is because it is in the same family, Commelinaceae. It will produce purplish flowers from the ends of the stems just like the Tradescantia, but this one’s flowers are more frilly. Well, it will have the same petals, but they also produce a mass of stringy looking, umm, ?. We will have to wait for flowers to be able to explain it. 🙂 There isn’t much online about this plant except from online stores. Apparently, it is an evergreen perennial that make good houseplants, similar to Tradescantia… One site says they have grown it for many years and it has yet to produce flowers. I am sure a little Miracle Grow will help. 🙂

I have never seen this plant available before but there are 50 species in the genus. Cyanotis somaliensis was named and described by Charles Baron Clarke in 1895 and is a native of northern Somalia in East Africa.

Echeveria agavoides ‘Ebony’ at 1 1/2″ tall x 3 3/4″ wide after I brought it home from Wagler’s Greenhouse on 3-29-21, #785-6.

Echeveria agavoides ‘Ebony’

Well, I have to admit I was beginning to get a little carried away when I decided to bring this Echeveria agavoides ‘Ebony’ home. I like Echeveria but they haven’t done well here for me here over the winter because I didn’t have adequate light. But, since I now have a plant shelf in front of a south-facing window I decided I would give this one a shot. Echeveria agavoides ‘Ebony’ will have reddish margins and reddish-purple tips. That is a characteristic of the species and not necessarily just the cultivar ‘Ebony’.

Echeveria agavoides was first named and described by Antione Lemaire in L’Illustration Horticole in 1863 and it is native to Northeast and Southeast Mexico. The original Echeveria agavoides ‘Ebony’ was wild collected from a habitat near Coahuila, Mexico, by John Trager and Myron Kimnach. It was first distributed by the International Succulent Introduction (ISI 92-44).

This plant may not be an Echeveria agavoides ‘Ebony’ because I have my suspicions. Mr. Wagler bought several cactus and succulents from the local pant and produce auction and several plants labeled Echeveria agavoides ‘Ebony’ were among them. The tags were generic… Anyway, it makes me wonder why a grower would be selling ‘Ebony’ at an auction when they are $25 and up on Ebay? I paid $1.50… 

Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnieri (Donkey Ears) at 5″ tall x 13 3/4″ wide after I brought it home from Wagler’s Greenhouse on 3-29-21.

Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnieri (Donkey Ears)

AHHH YES!!! A while back when I was doing some research about the Kalanchoe x laetivirens, I was on a website called Sucs For You and read about the Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnerieri (Donky Ears). I drooled… When I first spotted this plant at Wagler’s, actually there were only two of them, I thought it was possibly an actual Kalanchoe daigremontiana. Well, the plant I have that I thought was a Kalanchoe daigremontiana turned out to be a Kalanchoe x laetivirens, both have the common name Mother of Thousands and I have posted about it many times. ANYWAY, it seems I was always stuck deciding what species it was because of conflicting information online. Then I figured out that Kalanchoe daigremontiana actually has purplish streaks on its leaves and mine does not. SO, I had to change the name of my plant.

Besides Donkey Ears as a common name, it also goes by Life Plant, Palm Beachballs, and Velvet Ear Kalanchoe.

Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnieri (Donkey Ears) leaf on 3-29-21, #785-9.

Once I brought this plant home, I gave it a better look… I am 99% sure it is a Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnieri… Well, maybe 99% is an exaggeration. I went back to the website, Sucs for You, and then looked at other photos of smaller plants online and I think I actually found a Donkey Ears. WHAT A FIND! I am a classic car buff, too, and it reminds me of what they call a “barn find”. Well, this plant wasn’t in a barn, so I’ll call it a “greenhouse find”. 🙂 I just never know what I will find at Wagler’s.

ANYWAY, the Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnieri will produce flowers similar to the Kalanchoe x laetivirens, which could take QUITE A WHILE. It will grow HUGE leaves!

Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnieri Raym.-Hamet & Perrier is the correct and accepted scientific name for this species of Kalanchoe. It was named and described as such by Raymond-Hamet and Joseph Marie Henry Alfred Perrier de la Bâthie in Annales des Sciences Naturelles in 1912. The species is native to Northwestern Madagascar. It was introduced as a garden plant, it is now naturalized in tropical areas in the Amazon, Africa, Asia, Australia, and elsewhere in the tropics and in Florida… 

Rebutia fabrisii after I brought it home from Wagler’s Greenhouse on 3-29-21, #785-13, #785-13.

Rebutia fabrisii

Then I spotted this pot with a cluster of Mammillaria-looking offsets with a label. Hmmm… It said Rebutia fabrisii… I thought that was interesting because it wasn’t a Mammillaria and I didn’t have any Rebutia. There were a lot of pots to choose from so I brought this one home. 

Rebutia fabrisii was named and described as such by Walter Rausch in Kakteen und Andere Sukkulenten in 1977. The species has a very limited range near Jujuy in Northwest Argentina. Llifle says this species produces deep red flowers but the photo looks more like bright orange-red. There is also a yellow-flowering variety called Rebutia fabrisii var. arueiflora and a smaller variety called Rebutia fabrisii var. nana although both are considered synonyms of the species at this bump in the road. 

Apparently, this species has no common name… 

Mrs. Wagler’s Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus) on 3-29-21.

So, as I mentioned, the reason I went to Wagler’s was to get a photo of the Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus). Jim of How I See It was kind enough to send photos of his with flowers and it was AWESOME! 

Mrs. Wagler’s Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus) on 3-29-21.

The cuttings Mrs. Wagler gave me a while back really struggled so she gave me another pot a few weeks ago. Her plant, the original one with the buds, would be MUCH bigger but she keeps taking cuttings. I guess that’s what you do when you are in the plant business. It will be quite a treat when the flowers open and I can see what they look like in person.

I went back out to Wagler’s today, Tuesday, to tell her what I found out about the Donkey Ears. The flowers still hadn’t opened… I did look around quite a bit more and, umm… Yeah, I brought home a couple more plants. I couldn’t resist bringing home another Sempervivum arachnoideum and another Sempervivum ‘Oddity’ (anyway it has the tubular leaves.

I didn’t add their photos when I wrote this post because of an issue… I first uploaded all the photos for the plants I brought home on Monday and all was well. Then, when I went to finish the post on Tuesday, apparently WordPress had made another upgrade and the old Classic Editor was gone AGAIN. I finished the post then chatted with a WordPress Support member for A LONG TIME. They explained how to use the NEW Classic Editor then made a support ticket. Then I received an email from a support member that explained how to fix the issue so now I am back with the OLD Classic Editor again. THANK GOODNESS!!!

SO, until next time, be safe, stay positive, be thankful, and stay well. It is getting about time to GET DIRTY around here. 🙂

 

IT WORKED! WE HAVE FRUIT!

Schlumbergera truncata (Holiday cactus) on 12-13-20, #770-1.

Hello everyone! I hope this post finds you well. The Schlumbergera truncata are doing very well on the kitchen windowsill. I have been watching them for signs that the hand-pollinating experiment worked…

Schlumbergera truncata (Holiday Cactus), the yellow-flowered plant, 12-13-20, # 770-2.

As the flowers started wilting I started watching and waiting to see what would happen next. As the days passed by, I could see that something a little different was going on with the wilted flowers. The flowers I hadn’t pollinated just fell off but the ones I did remain on the plants.

Schlumbergera truncata (Holiday Cactus), the yellow-flowered plant, 12-13-20, # 770-3.

The next thing I knew, a small swelling appeared which continued to get larger. WE HAVE FRUIT!!!

Schlumbergera truncata (Holiday Cactus), the red-flowered plant, 12-13-20, # 770-4.

The two flowers I hand-pollinated on the red-flowered plant did the same…

Schlumbergera truncata (Holiday Cactus), the red-flowered plant, 12-13-20, # 770-5.

Now I have to wait for a year before I can remove the fruit and seed to see if they will germinate. Just an experiment…

Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus) on 12-13-20, #770-6.

The new Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus), also on the kitchen windowsill, is doing well and its new segments are starting to grow. They looked a little strange at first because they were almost black…

Schlumbergera russelliana (Christmas Cactus) on 12-13-20, #770-7.

The new Schlumbergera russelliana (Christmas Cactus) has perked up nicely and is also doing quite well. It looks like only three upper segments dried up (which I removed after I took the photo).

On Monday, I am supposed to receive the package sent by Tony Tomeo… SO, I am anxiously waiting…

Until next time, be safe, stay well and positive, and always be thankful.

 

NEW Schlumbergera-Holiday Cactus

Three new Schlumbergera from Wagler’s Greenhouse after I brought them home on 11-17-20. A red and yellow Schlumbergera truncata in the back and a Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus) in the front.

Hello everyone! I hope this post finds you well. As I am writing this post, it seems I have multiple tabs open in two windows. Normally, I just have one window with multiple tabs open but I had to re-read what I had already read before and didn’t want to get more confused all over again. Well, I had it figured out before, but then I ran across another website that was somewhat controversial. SO, I had to re-read some of the previous information again. Finding consistent accurate information on plants that are popular on a seasonal basis is tough!!! The only time most people pay much attention to them is when they are flowering and the rest of the year they just throw a little water on them. Ummm… I might be guilty of that on occasion myself. Hmmm… Maybe I am just talking about myself. Maybe I should delete the last few sentences. Ah, heck. I’ll just go with it. Only a handful of people will read it anyway. 🙂

I snuck this photo when I went back to Wagler’s on the 23rd before Mrs. Wagler came to the greenhouse. The photo may disappear later. 🙂

As I mentioned in the last post I went to Wagler’s Greenhouse on November 17 to see if she had any peach flowering Schlumbergera truncata. I was very surprised to see that she had A LOT of Schlumbergera truncata but not any peach. She had a lot of pink, red, and yellow. No peach, orange, or white… I picked out a yellow and another red one. I picked out another red one because mine isn’t flowering and it is a smaller plant. THEN she said,

“I have a few Easter Cactus in the back that are different. You can have one of those if you want one.”

I had just been doing research on the different species of Schlumbergera so I hoped she really did have a genuine Easter Cactus. I followed her to where she had them and she picked up a pot with three cuttings and handed it to me. SURE ENOUGH, I was holding a genuine Schlumbergera gaertneri!!! She had a few other pots with three cuttings in each one and another pot she had taken the cuttings from. MAN!!! Personally, I think she should hide them all.

GENUINE Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus) on 11-18-20, #761-1.

You may be laughing, but this is an important find. Now, I am laughing. 🙂 The segments are different with this species as they are thicker and the margins are wavy (scalloped) and have no “teeth” or “claws”. They have different flowers as well. You can go to the page I wrote for Schlumbergera gaertneri if you want to read more about the species and see more photos of the segments (close-up) by clicking HERE…

Schlumbergera gaertneri is one of many species of controversy. It has been in five other genera since it was first named Epiphyllum russellianum var. gaertneri by William Regal in 1884, then became its own species in 1890. Although it was first moved to the Schlumbergera genus in 1913, it was renamed five more times! Its most recent name was Hatiora gaertneri (1953) but DNA testing proved it should in fact be Schlumbergera gaertneri.

Many stores may sell Easter Cactus during Easter that are actually Schlumbergera truncata, S. russelliana, or x buckleyi hybrids they have forced to flower for Easter sales. You can tell by the segments and fowers.

Schlumbergera truncata, the yellow-flowered pot, on 11-17-20, #760-2.

The yellow-flowered Schlumbergera truncata I brought home looks very nice. Mrs. Wagler said the flowers will be kind of a creamy color, not bright yellow.

Schlumbergera truncata (Holiday Cactus), the red-flowered pot, on 11-17-20, #760-3.

There are two plants in this red-flowered pot. She said this one’s flowers will be kind of dark pinkish-red.

Schlumbergera truncata, yellow-flowered plant, on 11-18-20, #761-9.

This bud on the yellow-flowered plant is sharing the same areole as a new segment.

Schlumbergera truncata, red-flowered, on 11-18-20, #761-11.

I like the way the buds just push their way out of the areola. You can clearly see the segments have “teeth” or “claws” on the Schlumbergera truncata. That’s where one of the common names “Crab’s Claw” comes from.

Schlumbergera gaertneri (Easter Cactus), the biggest in the pot, on 11-18-20, #761-2.

You can see the difference in the segments with the close-up of the largest cutting of Schlumbergera gaertneri. The edges are scalloped or wavy with no claws… I don’t know what that pink thing is sticking out of the areole on this one is. Surely it isn’t a bud since they don’t flower until around April… HMMM…

Then it happened… ON Monday morning, the 23rd, I was greeted with this when I went to make my coffee…

Schlumbergera truncata, yellow-flowered on 11-23-20, #762-1.

Well, that was just AWESOME!!! 

Schlumbergera truncata, yellow-flowered on 11-23-20, #762-4.

I think it not being pink made it even more AWESOME! It’s a guy thing because I think pink is girly.

Schlumbergera truncata, red-flowered on 11-23-20, #762-6.

The red-flowered plant is just about ready to spring open but there seems to be a lot of white for it to be red…

Schlumbergera truncata on 11-25-20, #763-1.

Then, Wednesday evening, I noticed one of the red-flowered plant’s flowers had opened. I decided to wait until Wednesday morning to take a photo. By then, there were two more almost open.

Schlumbergera truncata on 11-25-20, #763-2.

Well, it isn’t exactly red. IT’S BICOLOR! 🙂

Schlumbergera truncata on 11-25-20, #763-4.

The flowers have no issues when it comes to showing their reproductive parts. The above photo shows the stamen with the stigma on the end and filaments with anthers loaded with yellow pollen. If this were a Schlumbergera russelliana or any of the x buckleyi hybrids, the pollen would be pink. I have never seen a flower of any type with pink pollen… Some stigmas open up to a star-shape when the ovaries are receptive.

Schlumbergera truncata on 11-25-20, #763-6.

Somewhere at the base of the floral tube, where the flower emerges from the areola of the segment, is where the ovaries are. At the point where the ovary is, with Schlumbergera truncata, the floral tube bends upward. I think it is where the first set of petals are. After that point, the flower bends downward somewhat but it still held more or less horizontal. With S. russelliana and the x buckleyi hybrids, the floral tube bends downward at the point where the ovaries are and the flowers hang downward.

Pollinating Schlumbergera is pretty simple since all the necessary parts are right out in the open. All you have to do is rub the pollen from the flowers of one plant on the stigma of flowers from another plant. The stigma is somewhat sticky so the pollen sticks to it. You can cross-breed S. truncata with S. russelliana very easily which is how the x buckleyi hybrids came about. I tried it out for the heck of it and rubbed pollen from the flowers of the yellow on the stigmas of the red one and visa versa. Even the stigmas are not opened up, it will probably still work. Don’t know for sure because I never tried it before. If it works, I think the stigma is supposed to swell up. THEN when the flower wilts, the fruit the ovary produces will remain intact. After a year, the fruit can be removed and the seed squeezed out, allowed to dry for a few days then planted. The seeds will germinate in maybe 2 weeks. Plants from the seed will flower in 2-4 years… NOT that I want to go through all that when I can just take cuttings that will flower MUCH sooner. But, it is an experiment…

What else do I need to talk about? Hmmm…

Schlumbergera is a genus of nine species from southern Brazil in the Cactaceae Family. It is weird for them to be in the cactus family since they grow on trees and rocks. The plants we grow as houseplants come in multiple colors and are likely cultivars rather than the species. Species of Schlumbergera have been moved around a bit like most other species of plants.

Schlumbergera are easy to grow in a similar potting soil as other cactus (or regular potting soil or a similar mix as orchids and bromeliads) but their watering requirements are a lot different. Their soil “should” be kept fairly moist but never wet. Just check occasionally, and when the top inch or so is dry, give it a little water. As with other cactus and succulents, they require more water during the summer when it is warmer and they have better light. Inside during the winter, you can slow down a bit. I am used to neglecting my cactus and succulents during the winter, so I will have to check these guys more often. Maybe I will keep them in the bedroom once they finish flowering so I will be reminded I need to water them more often. BUT, they are drought-tolerant, so if I forget them it will be OK. Their leaves will shrivel a little but they perk back up.

Holiday Cactus need light shade to partly shady areas and should NEVER get full sun. They are an ideal houseplant! They can be forced to flower just about any time of the year, but you have to experiment with that. Light and temperature have to be controlled to do that…

I did go ahead and order the Schlumbergera russelliana (Christmas Cactus, ETC.) from a seller on Ebay plus a couple of other early Christmas presents to myself. Hmmm… Well, I may as well tell you… The listing on Ebay was for Schlumbergera bridgesii but that species is a synonym of Schlumbergera russelliana… The plant is likely to be small so it probably won’t flower for Christmas. 🙂

OK, I think I am finished now… I will probably think of something later. It only took four days to finish this post

You can view the page for Schlumbergera truncata HERE and Schlumbergera gaertneri HERE. Information about hand pollinating is on the Rainy Side Gardens website which you can read about by clicking HERE.

Until next time, be safe, stay po, stay well, be thankful, and GET DIRTY if you can. 🙂