Can Christmas cactus be planted in the ground?

Can Christmas cactus be planted in the ground?

Christmas cactus can be planted in the ground, but there are many issues that need to be paid attention to, such as the substrate, terrain, light, rain, strong winds, etc. In addition, Christmas cactus originally grows on trees or in rock cracks. The space for Christmas cactus to take root in these soils is limited, resulting in the Christmas cactus's root system being weak and intolerant of waterlogging. Therefore, it is better to plant Christmas cactus in pots.

Planting Christmas cactus in the ground for winter

If Christmas cactus is planted in the ground well, it can be perennial. It can also survive the winter. It needs to be treated with cold protection when the temperature drops below 10℃ in winter. It is generally best to place it in a warm indoor place to ensure normal flowering of the plant.

Planting Christmas cactus in the ground for summer

If you want the ground-planted Christmas cactus to safely survive the summer, you should place the plant in a sunny place in the morning and afternoon, and avoid exposure to the sun at noon to prevent the Christmas cactus from being sunburned. After the soil surface is dry, you need to water the Christmas cactus immediately to keep the soil and air moist, and stop fertilizing the Christmas cactus to prevent it from dying.

Planting method of Christmas cactus

1. Use soil

Christmas cactus likes fertile and loose soil matrix, so it is recommended to use a mixture of garden soil, leaf mold, peat soil, fine sand, perlite and other materials, and disinfect it under sunlight before use.

2. Watering

Water to ensure that the soil is moist, and fertilize based on the principle of applying thin fertilizers frequently. During the peak growth period in spring and autumn, in addition to watering sufficiently and thoroughly, you can also spray water appropriately to increase humidity, and add decomposed liquid fertilizer or compound liquid fertilizer every 15 to 20 days.

3. Lighting

15~25℃ is the most comfortable temperature range for Christmas cactus to grow. When the temperature exceeds 28℃, the growth rate slows down and it approaches dormancy. When the temperature is below 15℃, it loses the ability to bloom. Except for summer, it needs to receive warm and bright light around the clock in the other three seasons.

Precautions for planting Christmas cactus in the ground

1. Christmas cactus likes warm and humid environment, is afraid of freezing, and cannot withstand temperatures below 0℃. If it is in the south, such as Hainan, Guangdong and other regions, temperature should not be a problem.

2. Christmas cactus is an epiphytic plant with a weak root system. It cannot withstand stagnant water and is prone to root rot.

3. First of all, the ground planting substrate cannot be random and must have good drainage. Then, the ground planting terrain cannot be low. It must be planted in a relatively high place so that water will not accumulate when it rains.