I don't know that Christmas cacti are actually considered "orchid cacti" but this seemed to be the place for this question, so here goes. I got 2 rooted Christmas Cactus cuttings on ebay. They arrived yesterday and the roots are so tiny that I had to put my reading glasses on to see them. The cuttings are about 3" long. I want to pot them up today and I'm wondering what I should do with them since they are just barely rooted. Should I go ahead and put them in some light cactus soil or just perlite at this point (until the roots grow a little bit). Also, how deep should I plant them? I'm thinking of just sticking them in some little pots in a ziplock bag under my seed starting lights for now-does that sound OK?
Any suggestions very much appreciated-
Deb
Christmas Cactus Question
Hello Deb. Not knowing your climate, I would just pot the pieces into what ever you have handy. I usually put my cuttings into a well draining seed raising mix. I have put them in straight ordinary potting mix. I would not put into any plastic as they can rot easily if too damp. It can be hard , buying from eBay , when you don't see exactly what you are getting, but they should grow anyway. . I keep all my zygos, ( Christmas cacti, Easter cacti etc ) in a shadehouse year round . We have temps down to around 4C in winter. These cacti like that cold spell.
Here's a quick pick of some of mine. Not a good pic, but it's overcast here this morning. You can see some of the cuttings down on the floor. . If you are lucky enough to have a sheltered place, by all means keep your new babies there. Hope this helps a bit. Jean.
What a beautiful set up! Nothing grows outdoors here it between Nov-April or May. Our temps go down to around -20F. I potted them up in some perlite and seed mix-hopefully that does the trick!
Thanks!
Deb
I'm glad we don't have your low temps Deb. It can get pretty cold here but not for the long stretches you get in Northern Hemisphere. My plants all live outside or in shadehouses. I hope your little ones do well. , Jean
It gets down to 32F here in the winter, and my plants are outside in part shade in the summer, getting watered weekly or more, and I probably abuse them in the winter with no water from November to March. I am trying to amend my ways and at least give them occasional water during the winter starting this coming winter.
Mine usually pull off a small bloom in the spring, but bloom again in the fall, more fully.
I usually water with 1/2 strength Peter's 20-20-20 fertilizer in the summer on a monthly basis.