I do not, but I do have one that got water-logged this summer and the roots rotted. The stems have sent out aerial roots to keep themselves alive, but I think they are slowly losing the battle now that it isn't raining every day or even every week. I clipped some and rooted them, but the others I am leaving to see how long they last.

Is that way I always see Christmas Cactus in hanging baskets, the plant is really meant to be up high in the trees?

That is interesting, I never thought of that.

I just bought 3 little Christmas cactus when I was at Selby, I told hubby that they live forever and bloom each year, I will always remember that I bought them for our 10 year wedding anniversary. I have no idea how to care for them yet, but I am thinking a low pot on the ground won't work!

Just make sure they have good drainage. They do not like wet feet, nor do they like direct sun. Keeping them outside is the best way to ensure flowering as they respond to the shortening daylight hours. People up north have to box or closet their Holiday cacti to induce flowering, but we can leave them outdoors for all but the coldest nights. I usually bring mine inside once they start flowering and then move them back into my lanai when they are done.

http://www.pecketts.com/images/christmas_cactus_tree.jpg

I have xmas cactus and other epi cacti in hanging plastic baskets on the edge of the porch overhangs. The sun comes in slanted and the cactus can either grow out towards the sun or in towards the porch to more shade. I make sure to take the saucer/water catcher thingy off the baskets. I also have some epis in one gallon black nursery pots and I use the wire hangers you can buy (2 to a pkg) from Home Depo. The larger epis like the nursery pots better than the baskets. I take them into the utility room on nights at or below freezing.

With ours, we do leave it out on a semi-shady porch all during the warm months. Then, right when it's getting too cold to be left outside, the days are shortening up and flowering commences. Really just that easy. We do tend to leave it get quite crowded in the pot, and in the summer when it's outside, it can take fairly regular watering in that too-small pot. Once inside, about once a week does it.

Since I've purposely let mine get pot-bound, next summer will probably be time to pot it up, but just one size. Something about being pot-bound def. seems to help with flowering. Ours is about as regular as clockwork.

Yes, they are epiphytes in nature. That's not at all to say they must be handled that way. I was just curious if any of you folks did that, since you have all that humidity in the summer. But I suppose, with the drier air of (most) winters, it might be iffy.

+oM

Hi

I've tried in fact still trying lol While I find they grow well in even a small pot with very little soil ,have never been able to get them to attach to the trees or even cork bark The larger species such as oxypetalum are easy in fact too easy they happily climb trees or anything though I find they must do it on their own they croak if started that way. So diffferent than orchids,broms or ferns of course they have specialized roots for hanging on lol

I saw some large groups in Costa Rica growing in trees but were either way up in the trees or surrounded by water so I couldn't get a good look at what they were growing in but always a large "clump " at the base . seemed to be collected organic matter. Also to make it even more difficult there were many other kinds of plants growing in the group along with vines and what appeared to be newly germinated seeds all overgrown with mosses .

None were in flower so really couldn't even ID which species !! Still was thrilled to see them,some of the groups were easily 6/8 feet wide !! Imagine them in full bloom?? gary

Sounds amazing, Gary. I got to get down to CR. I can imagine the profusion of lifeforms competing for limited space up on some knob high in the tree tops.

Oxys are easy though, interesting. Thanks.

+oM

Hi

If interested in tropical plants ,CR is definitely the place to go. Everything from lowland tropics to mid altitude mist forest and even a small area of high altitude wet/wet rainforest . Something like 40,000 species of natives and they're always finding new ones . Wonderful part is the country is small so almost all the reserves are accessible very easily with minimum travel.

One small warning if you like plants you better like bugs lol Over 10,000 species . Then there are the reptiles /amphibians,

I love that part but wife HATES it !! lol gary

Yes, I think my wife would hate that too....

Thanks just the same. Maybe some day!

+om