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Getting Christmas Cactus to Bloom

By stacy ling

Gardening Tips & Tricks

Want your Christmas cactus to bloom for the holidays and beyond? Learn how to force your plant to bloom with these easy tips.

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In general, there are two things needed to get a Christmas cactus to bloom: light and temperature.

Because Christmas cactuses prefer to flower in a cooler environment  short day cycle, the blooming process needs to be several days of less  light to kick of the colorful flowers.

And that’s why you see it bloom in November as we approach the holiday season. Since it is a short-day plant it needs hours of darkness to promote flowering.

To initiate flowering, these holiday cacti need at least 8 days of 16  hours of darkness with 8 hours of bright light. So if your environment  isn’t providing short days, then Christmas cactus plants may not flower.

You can simulate this by moving it into a dark room without any lights, a  dark closet, or warm dry basement for 16 hours a day. And then give it 8  hours of artificial light.

It’s also recommended that since it loves cool temperatures to flower.  The ideal temperature should also be set around 61 degrees.

So, if your holiday cactus plant isn’t blooming? Pay attention to the light and temperature in the space you are caring for it.

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Follow along to learn more about how to care for Christmas cactus.

Gardening Tips & Tricks

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