False Christmas Cactus
4.6 out of 5 (279 experiences)
Survivor
Fast grower
About False Christmas Cactus
Did you know plants in the Schlumbergera genus are actually leafless? Instead of leaves, they use modified stems to capture sunlight! Unlike the Easter cactus, this species flowers in the later autumn or winter. They also have pointed wings at the corners, where its counterpart has more rounded edges. In the wild, they are epiphytes, meaning they grow on tree branches or rocks! 🌳 🪨
Taxonomy
Schlumbergera truncata
Schlumbergera
Cactaceae
Caryophyllales
Also known as
Holiday Cactus, Crab Cactus, Thanksgiving Cactus and False Christmas Cactus 'Thanksgiving'
How to care for False Christmas Cactus
How often to water your False Christmas Cactus
every 9
False Christmas Cactus needs 0.5 cups of water every 9 when it doesn’t get direct sunlight and is potted in a 5" pot.
Use our water calculator to personalize watering recommendations to your environment or download Greg for more advanced recommendations for all of your plants.
Water 0.5 cups every
9
Finding light for False Christmas Cactus in your home
a window
False Christmas Cactus can tolerate being far from a window and light source.
Place it less than 6 feet from a south-facing window to ensure it receives enough light to survive 💪.
Select your region to see how the current weather in your area affects the placement of False Christmas Cactus in your home 🏡.
How to fertilize False Christmas Cactus
Most potting soils come with ample nutrients which plants use to produce new growth.
By the time your plant has depleted the nutrients in its soil it’s likely grown enough to need a larger pot anyway.
To replenish this plant's nutrients, repot your False Christmas Cactus after it doubles in size or once a year—whichever comes first.
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Suddenly has gotten upset and I'm at a loss why. Following watering schedule on Greg was working well, (he's small because he's from cuttings) but suddenly the new growth starting dropping and shriveling. #thanksgivingcactus
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My thanksgiving cactus is not well I rescued this thanksgiving cactus from a grocery store. It had turned completely purple and was clearly stressed. I have been caring for it for a couple of years now, and after repotting it this spring, he started putting out new growth. I also moved, and he is now under grow lights with my Christmas cactus in a southern facing window that only gets some afternoon light. For the past month or so, he started dropping leaves like crazy. I initially thought this was good (shedding old growth in favor of new growth), but now I am seeing these blistery bumps all over, including on new growth. Is the new soil mix perhaps causing some overwatering problems? Is it too much light? Any help is so appreciated. I really want this little guy to survive. 😭 #thanksgivingcactus #helpneeded
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HELP!!! ⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️How often should I water my Christmas cactus? I watered it yesterday and I usually water it every Monday or Sunday.. 
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Why d the leaves have bumps #thanksgivingcactus
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For the past few weeks my #falsechristmascactus has been dropping leaves. Her roots were growing out so I finally repoted today, but I essentially put her back in the same pot since having to remove some of her roots. She wasn't sick and there was no rot. #thanksgivingcactus
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I’ve had this cactus for about 10 years. I got it at my great grandfather’s funeral. It’s not looking too hot. Does anybody have any ideas on what could be going on? #CactusClique
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I got a new plant makes flowers but don't really know much about it anyone know anything?
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Can I put my Thanksgiving Cactus outside during the summer? If so, what conditions would it need? #thanksgivingcactus
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Do I trim my plant or just let it grow wild #thanksgivingcactus
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Is can I get it to bloom? #thanksgivingcactus
Care Summary for False Christmas Cactus
False Christmas Cactus
Greg recommends:
Water
0.5 cups every 9 days
Placement
< 6ft from a window
Nutrients
Repot after 2x growth
Based on the 4” pot your plant is in, and that it doesn’t get direct sunlight.
What other plant parents say
Survivor 186
Fast grower 98
Blooms easily 88
Easy to propagate 86
Large, lush leaves 28
Pest magnet 5
Browns easily 2
04/01/2022
Such an amazing plant!! Can get a little leggy and has inconsistent blooming, but overall nearly impossible to kill and very rewarding when it does decide to bloom. ♥️
Fast grower
Blooms easily
Easy to propagate
Survivor
03/20/2022
Easy to grow. Not fussy. Can take drought conditions.
Blooms easily
Survivor
03/19/2022
It blooms in the winter, with small colorful dots which turn into big colorful blooms.
Fast grower
03/06/2022
I find the Cece.Helmers@gmail.com’s to be easy to grow. Blooms, well that’s different. Mine requires complete darkness for about 7 days then it will bloom.
Easy to propagate
02/27/2022
One of my long time friends
Fast grower
Easy to propagate
02/05/2022
It’s incredibly sensitive!!! It likes room temperature and not direct light and not to be moved around a lot.
01/23/2022
Find these to be tricky. Mine dropped all its buds when I brought it home. Evidently they don’t like changing environments. Settled in now but all blooms for the holidays were wiped out. Better luck this year.
01/18/2022
my grandmother had one, I have one
Survivor
01/10/2022
This is another new plant of mine which I had never seen before but decided to rescue it and it has plenty of flowers that will be ready to bloom soon
Blooms easily
Easy to propagate
12/29/2021
Very easy to prop but medium rate of growth using grow lights. Overall a very cute plant that’s pretty simple to care for though- just have to watch out for underwatering as the plant wrinkles up
Easy to propagate
Survivor
12/27/2021
Very pretty when it blooms! Fun even when it’s not!
Blooms easily
12/11/2021
Blooms in fall/winter 🍂🌸
Fast grower
Blooms easily
12/10/2021
Only blooms for a short time.
Survivor
Easy to propagate
12/05/2021
Can’t get to bloom for nothing. But easy to continue to grow lol
Survivor
12/04/2021
Water sparingly
Survivor
Large, lush leaves
11/21/2021
They seem to like to be neglected
Easy to propagate
Survivor
Blooms easily
11/16/2021
Gorgeous showy red blooms in November brighten up the room.
Blooms easily
Survivor
10/23/2021
Likes indirect light!
Easy to propagate
Survivor
10/23/2021
Very cute and grows really well, easy to maintain :)
10/12/2021
This one is flowering and like a cactus never dies.
Fast grower
Survivor
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