Christmas cactus

a cactus, Schlumbergera bridgesii (or Zygocactus bridgesii), native to Brazil, having stems with leaflike segments and showy, purplish-red flowers, and often cultivated as a houseplant.

[1895-1900]

* * *

▪ plant

 (hybrid Schlumbergera × buckleyi), popular cactus of the family Cactaceae that has flattened stems and is grown for its colourful cerise flowers that bloom indoors about Christmastime in the Northern Hemisphere. Most Christmas cacti now in cultivation are considered to be hybrids of the crab cactus (S. truncata) and S. russelliana. Like other Schlumbergera species, it is native to Brazil, and it grows in the rainforest, perched on trees or shrubs as epiphytes or sometimes in shady places among rocks. The alternative genus name, Zygocactus, is frequently encountered.

      The Christmas cactus is often confused with the Thanksgiving cactus (also called crab cactus, S. truncata, or Epiphyllum truncatum); however, in the former, the margins of the stem joints are crenated (they have rounded indentations), whereas in the latter the margins are sharply saw-toothed.

      The Easter cactus, formerly classified as S. gaertneri, is now referred to as Hatiora gaertneri.

* * *