Common cerise Christmas cactus

At last within the few days my standard ordinary common Christmas cactus is blooming … its flowers full and statuesque jut out from its shark-egg shaped leaves. Magnificent.

… now … Christmas is surely on the way! :)

Many years ago, I had one of these beautiful plants and had grown it into a fine specimen of approximately eighteen to twenty inches across in every direction. I made the most dreadful mistake to listen to advice on a gardening programme on the television which recommended that these plants fared and flowered much better when allowed to sit outside for a few months of the year. Out went my prize possession, lovingly fed and watered as instructed by the same programme. That year we had an unseasonal extremely early frost - just a mild one, but it was a ground one. The next day my beautiful cactus plant was 'soft mush' not even one part was retrievable - not a leaf remained with which to take a cutting from. I am very careful about following advice from television or radio programmes now.

Flowering note: I usually allow my cactus to dry out for four or five weeks for a month or so before the flowering season. I then soak them with a liquid feed and plenty of water (just once) before going back to watering them with a splash about once each week. This produces a large quantity of flowers which last until well after Christmas. I often repeat the process a few months after Christmas which encourages a fresh blossoming at Easter and, if I remember, I sometimes have a third flowering season during the Summertime! :)