White Christmas Cactus brings a snowy festive vibe with its elegant flowers that contrast brilliantly with its trailing green foliage!
When we hear Christmas cactus, we generally imagine a plant with showy, red-orange flowers! However, do you know it has a white cousin, too?
What Makes White Christmas Cactus So Special?
White Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera × buckleyi ‘White’) is a hybrid plant from the Cactaceae family and has its roots in southeast Brazil. What differs it from the regular ones are its pure white flowers that have pink anthers.
The plant maintains a compact appearance, growing to about 1-2 feet in height with a similar spread.
White Christmas Cactus Meaning
As we associate white with purity and innocence, this plant symbolizes those same meanings — gifting it to someone means you are wishing them best luck for new beginnings.
Best White Christmas Cactus Varieties
- Schlumbergera ‘White Christmas’: It has pure white flowers with a hint of yellow in the centre.
- Schlumbergera ‘Snowcap’: Has white flowers with a red or pinkish hue at the base.
- Schlumbergera ‘Thor Carmen’: Grows large, semi-double white blossoms.
- Schlumbergera ‘Peru White’: This one has clusters of small white blooms.
- Schlumbergera ‘Aspen’: Has a darker green foliage than the other varieties.
- Schlumbergera ‘White Fantasy’: Offers feather-like petals in a creamy white shade.
- Schlumbergera ‘Angel Dancer’: Grows white flowers with a slight hue of pink.
Propagating White Christmas Cactus
The best time to propagate White Christmas Cactus is during late spring to early summer. This is the time frame when it is out of its winter dormancy period and gets ready for active growth.
Pick a healthy specimen and snip of a 4-6 inches long segment with a minimum of 2 stem joints. Let it dry for 1-2 days to form a callus. Now, plant it in a well-draining potting or cactus mix — make sure it gets plenty of indirect light. Water when the topsoil goes dry a little.
If you want quick flowers, getting a well-grown plant from a garden centre is always a good idea!
Best Pot Size for White Christmas Cactus
For a single plant, pick a 4-6 inches pot — it will be good for a few years to come while mature plant, go for an 8-10 inches container.
Requirements for Growing White Christmas Cactus
Light
As White Christmas Cactus is a flowering plant, it needs sunlight, but not a harsh, direct one. Pick a spot that gets bright indirect light all day long — an east-facing location would be the best!
Soil
Avoid growing it in 100% garden soil as it may soak in more water, which is not good for succulents. Go for:
- Coarse Sand: 1 part
- Peat Moss or Coco Coir: 2 parts
- Perlite or Pumice: 1 part
- Worm Castings: 1/4 part
Water
Remember, White Christmas Cactus is a succulent, and plants of this family hate too much water! So, the rule is simple — water the growing medium only when the top inch of it feels a little dry to the touch (about 1 inch).
Temperature and Humidity
The plant will grow well in the temperature range of 65-85°F (18-28°C). Just keep it away from AC or heating vents.
Natively, White Christmas Cactus loves a little humid environment, so keeping its pot on a pebble tray filled with water would be a good call!
White Christmas Cactus Care
Fertilizer
If you have used a good quality cactus mix, don’t worry about feeding the plant much. To boost the growth and flowers, you can go for any balanced liquid feed — dilute it to 1/4 of its strength and use it once in 3-4 weeks. This will ensure a constant supply of nutritions without overwhelming the plant.
Note: Avoid feeding it when it is actively producing flowering buds, as this will drop them.
Pests and Diseases
Keep an eye for spider mites, mealybugs, and aphids — use a neem oil solution if the infestation is too much. Simply clean the leaves from time to time and provide good air-circulation — they won’t be a problem.
Almost every disease in White Christmas Cactus can be due to overwatering, so avoid that at all costs.
How to Make White Christmas Cactus Bloom
Tricking the plant to produce more blooms is a careful play of light and darkness, something you can achieve by keeping it in a completely dark spot for 12-14-hours, each day.
Simultaneously, expose it to 8-9 hours of bright indirect sunlight every day. Keep on doing this till you spot it growing buds! For more details, you can read our article on it.
