How to Care for Holiday Cactus

  

The striking flowers of the plant commonly called the holiday cactus, may catch your attention in stores and garden centers around this time of year.  Their bell-shaped blooms in shades of red, pink, orange, or white will add a cheerful note to your indoor garden during the holidays.  Sometimes labeled Zygocactus, it’s important to note that holiday cactus or Zygocactus are tropical plants- they aren’t from the desert.  

Each kind of holiday cactus typically flowers around the holiday it’s named for; Thanksgiving cactus is in bloom now, followed by the Christmas cactus later in the season.  

  

These plants belong to a group of mountain cacti which includes Easter cactus. All three are native to Brazil, the Thanksgiving and Christmas cactus are tropical rain forest plants, while the Easter cactus grows in Brazil’s natural forests.  

  

An easy way to identify each cactus type is to look at the end of the stem. Thanksgiving cactus leaves have claw-like edges while the Christmas cactus is rounder. Thanksgiving cactus flowers tend to bend upward, while Christmas cactus flowers tend to hang down.

The recent introduction of hybrid cacti tends to blur the line between Thanksgiving and Christmas cactus, but if you have a plant that came from a cutting of your grandmother’s fifty-year-old cactus, it’s most likely one or the other.  

  

Holiday cactuses need bright, indirect light and will do best in a cool, bright spot out of direct sun. An east-facing window is ideal. Holiday cactus bloom on their own in response to shorter days and cooler temperatures. Daytime temperatures in the low 70°s and nighttime temperatures in the 50⁰s to 60°s will help promote blooming.   

  

Holiday cacti don’t like drafts, so place them away from heating vents, fireplaces, ceiling fans and doors that open to the outdoors.  
 

 

From April to October, feed your cactus every two weeks with a water-soluble fertilizer such as 15-30-15.  

  

Holiday cacti have a shallow root system, so it’s important to know when to water them. An effective way to check the soil moisture level is to stick your finger into the soil. If the top inch or so is dry, then it’s time to water.

Another way to tell if it’s time to water is to stick a pencil in the soil. A clean pencil means it’s time to water. When you water, thoroughly enough so the water comes out the drain holes. Let the plant sit for a minute or so, then remove any excess water from the saucer.

  

Holiday cacti like high humidity and an easy way to increase humidity is to place small rocks in a saucer, add water and set the plant on the saucer. Make sure the pot is sitting on the rock, not in the water. 

Holiday cacti prefer to be root-bound and can easily go three or four years without repotting. When you decide to repot, choose a pot one size larger and use potting soil that drains well.  Spring is a good time to repot holiday cacti.  

  

With a little care, your holiday cactus will produce healthy foliage and beautiful blooms for many years to come.  

 

 

Now’s the Time to Put the Roses to Bed

  

While this fall’s weather has given us a longer than usual time to enjoy our roses, now’s the time to put them to bed. The main goal of winter protection for roses is to maintain dormancy. Cold damage occurs due to plant tissues alternating between freezing and thawing. Winter dormancy is achieved by keeping the crown, graft, and lower portion of the canes uniformly cold and hydrated throughout the winter months.  

  

The process of preparing roses for winter includes pruning, a thorough clean-up, deep-root watering, and mulching.  

  

  

Begin by cutting each cane back about to about 24" to 30". This is not an exact measurement, but it’s important to cut tall canes now to prevent damage from winter winds. Prune to an outward bud, so that future growth is toward the outside, away from the center of the bush.  

  

If you see any diseased branches and leaves, cut them off and dispose of them. Remove any spent flowers or rose hips at this time. Clean up fallen leaves and petals from around the rose bush, to prevent blackspot, mildew, and other diseases from wintering over. While you're at it, rake up any leaves on the ground around your roses.    

  

Next, water your roses thoroughly.  Roses with well hydrated roots will suffer less damage from winter’s cold, dry temperatures than roses with dry roots.   

  

All roses will benefit from applying a natural mulch to the bed.  This serves to keep the ground cold and stable and help prevent damage to the rose bush as the ground freezes and thaws, only to freeze again during winter. Adding organic mulch will also help retain moisture.

Cedar Mulch and Gorilla Hair are good choices for mulching your roses. A three-to-four-inch layer of mulch should be applied to the entire area under the rose canopy, with an additional two to three inches added to the central part of the bush.   

  

Once the mulch is in place, dust the area with sulfur. Sulfur will help control disease and insects trying to winter over.  

  

If you have climbing roses in the garden, wait until spring to prune them. Take time now to secure the canes to the trellis and wrap them in burlap to prevent winter winds from drying out and damaging the canes, then apply an organic mulch.  

 

 

Plan to water your roses (and other shrubs, trees, perennials) during the winter. Pick a day when the temperature is above 40°F. Water around midday and confine your watering to the base of the rose.  You want to get water to the roots, not the top of the rose.  

  

As always, you are welcome to bring your rose and gardening questions or concerns to the Diagnostic Center in the Hardgoods section of the store.