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Plant Propagation

repotting christmas cactus

12 years ago

I want to repot my Christmas cactus, currently in a six inch pot, but have heard how touchy they are and am nervous about it and looking for tips, especially what to avoid or be careful about. Also, currently the cactus grows low and forward and over the side of the pot and hangs down and I would like it to grow up and taller instead. Is there a way that this can be achieved in the repotting. Sentimental about this plant as cutting was given me years ago and don't want to hurt it. Thanks very much for any replies.

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Comments (3)

brandon7 TN_zone7
12 years ago
Christmas cactus (or any of the holiday cacti, for that matter) touchy??? Are we talking about the same plant(s)? I grow many Schlumbergera x buckleyi (Christmas Cactus) and Schlumbergera x truncata (Thanksgiving Cactus, often mistakenly called Christmas Cactus), and find them some of the easiest plants to grow that there is. Transplanting them should be very easy, and I doubt the process will even slow them down.

True Christmas Cactus does tend to be more weeping than most other holiday cacti. I doubt you could change this to any degree by doing anything at transplant. One thing you could try is keeping new growth in check by pinching/removing new segments while keeping the older segments supported until they are more mature (firmer). I've used bamboo skewers for this purpose with decent results. Another thing that helps is selective pruning. Removal of the more weeping growth and keeping the more upright growth can lead to a more upright plant.

Keep in mind that the plant's natural habit is weeping/low-growing, so you are fighting nature (an uphill climb) when trying to change that form significantly.
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
12 years ago
In agreement with brandon...these plants aren't fussy at all, and don't throw a fit when being repotted. Just be sure that you use a coarse textured potting mix. Don't go crazy about potting it in a huge pot, and be sure that it has adequate drainage holes. Though these plants are succulents and don't need to be watered all that often, it is important that you give them a good drenching on watering day. Little sips result in hard, dry pockets on soil and a lot of dead roots.
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If your soil is brick-like, you'll likely need to soak the whole rootball for a while, to help soften up that old soil so you can break it all apart & crumble off every last bit of it. The plant will be fine, they're pretty tough survivors even tho' they may not look it. I make a mix of roughly 1/3 each Potting (or African Violet) soil, Perlite & ReptiBark (from the Pet Store), drains well to allow for deep watering. I'd repot it all dry, wait a day & then water well.
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Yes to both questions. I prune the foliage regularly, and I prune the roots when re-potting. CC's will often make many new branches from a single cut. Judicious pruning will get your CC bushy in one season. Low but consistent doses of fertilizer really helps, too. I would ditch the self-watering container. These plants appreciate a fast-draining mix of bark, with a bit of Perlite and a pinch of AV soil or Orchid Mix as an afterthought. Here's a Thread I put together when I re-potted my Christmas Cactus this Autumn: Christmas Cactus re-potted Josh This post was edited by greenman28 on Sun, Jan 6, 13 at 20:04
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Chances are it is more likely to be a compacting peat based soil and is more than half. Then to imagine how much more profit the" pros " at the garden center would make with holiday cacti cuttings that they'll also try to root and still have the audacity to charge you to re-pot it.
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Hello all, I was taking a look back through my old posts and saw this and just wanted to share some newer pictures (February). My TC responded phenomenally to the bark mix and is looking great. Unfortunately, I misunderstood and used coarse orchid fir bark instead of fine, but when I repot next I will break what I have to smaller chunks. Live and learn! Josh, I think you mentioned 2 years to repot in this mix? If anyone reading this is curious, here is a link to Josh's repot post that Laura mentioned above ("CC Repot"). It is a great read and there's a ton of good information. Anyway, here it is (and yes that is a ton of snow in the background--almost all melted now): This 'little' one consisted of one 2-segment cutting and one 3-segment y-shaped cutting when I originally started this thread. I can't believe how much it has grown in the last nine-ish months! This is still in peaty mix, I'm going to repot it this spring. It's the one on the right! :-) Just out of curiosity, does anyone have thoughts on why the larger plant is cascading more while the cuttings are growing more upright? Most of the pictures I've seen on the forum tend to be more upright before cascading. Also, I'm thinking about turning the pot with the cuttings into a mixed container. Any suggestions for plants that may be compatible with TC or this soil mix? If they're ok with a slightly more water retentive mix, I'm thinking a cascading sedum (burro's tail) or senecio (string of pearls) along with a kalanchoe (paddle plant). Looking forward to another year of growth! Nathan
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
12 years ago
Just be sure that you use a coarse textured potting mix.

==>> that means.. if you want to buy a bag.. buy a cactus or orchid mix ... they tend to have big chunks of stuff to aerate the peat media ...

and i agree with brandon.. its a floppy plant.. and the only way to get it tall.. is to grow it so successfully.. that the flops start mounding on top of each other.. to get some overall height ...

your note made me go do mine ... as a fail safe.. i took the longest floppiest piece.. separated.. each segment.. and stuck them in another pot.. so just in case i fail ... i will have new rooting ...

i wanted to use the same pot.. so i took it to the hose.. and sprayed off about 1/2 of the old soil.. and put it back in the same pot.. with the new soil at the bottom and around the sides ...

ken

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