Meet the Thanksgiving Cactus
Thanksgiving Cactus | Schlumbergera truncata
How do you know it’s me?:
I am a small cactus shrub.
I have a growth habit that begins in more of an upright form, grows more bushy, and then starts to cascade.
My stems are flat and segmented, with pointed margins. These teeth are a key defining characteristics that differentiates me from the Christmas Cactus.
My stems have hair-like bristles (spines).
Buds form at the end of my stems.
Technically I don’t have true leaves, but my stems function like leaves.
My blooms are a tubular shape, and have showy centers (stamen and pistil). When in bloom, the pollen will readily fall from the flowers.
How big do I grow?: 1’ - 2’ height and 2’ spread.
Sun-seeker or shade-lover: Part shade.
Where I prefer to put my roots: Well-drained cactus or succulent potting mix.
Hardiness: Zone 10-12
Original home: I am native to South America.
Colors: My tubular flowers can be pink, red, orange, or white.
When I bloom: I typically bloom in late fall to winter (often around Thanksgiving).
Wildlife friends: In my native habitat, I attract hummingbirds, who help pollinate my flowers.
Flora Fun Facts: In my native habitat, I am an epiphyte that lives on branches and in the pockets of trees where branches meet the trunk.
More Info: As the holidays draw near, the Thanksgiving Cactus swells with buds ready to burst into long, showy flowers that hang off the segmented stems like decorative bulbs. This cactus is a signal of the holiday season, often presented as a gift around the end of the year.
The Thanksgiving cactus is closely related to the Christmas Cactus and the Easter Cactus. You can tell the three apart by the pointiness of the stem segments (Thanksgiving being the pointiest), the bloom time (hence the names), and the flower shape.
Often called “Crab Cactus” due to the pointed, pincer-like edges of its stems.
A member of the Cactaceae (cactus) family.
The name “truncata” refers to the square edges where each stem segment attaches to another.
As a house plant, this cactus prefers warmth, bright light in the winter, and high humidity. In the summer, it will need some shade. It does not like wet feet, so be mindful of overwatering.
May bloom a second time as the days lengthen right before spring.
Responds well to fertilizer, when applied in the spring as new growth is appearing.
Easily propagated by stem cuttings. Remove 2-3 stem segments, allow to callous over by sitting them flat (not potted) for a few days, and then plant the cutting (callous-edge down) in a well-draining potting mix. Water very sparingly, and only when the potting mix has completely dried.
Many plants sold in stores today are hybrids between the Christmas and Thanksgiving cacti.
In the US, this plant is usually kept as a houseplant, but in hot climates it can be grown outdoors in a rock garden.
