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Christmas Cactus

Schlumbergera russelliana, Cactaceae

Sources last read 14 September 2026.

Not yet rated How forgiving it is has not been judged here yet.

Close view of Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera russelliana) foliage.
Sadambio, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Toxicity is partly unassessed

  • Listed as non-toxic to cats by ASPCA.
  • Listed as non-toxic to dogs by ASPCA.
  • Not assessed for people. NC State Extension publishes no harm statement for this plant. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.

What the sources say about its care

Light
Dappled Sunlight
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Water
Good Drainage, Moist
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Humidity

No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.

Most foliage plants prefer more humidity than a heated room gives; succulents are named as an exception
Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Soil
Loam (Silt), Sand; pH Neutral (6.0-8.0)
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to cats
Non-toxic
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to dogs
Non-toxic
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Harmful to people
No record of poisoning in people is listed for this plant; that absence is not evidence it is safe.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Routine care

Watering
Water only once the top 1 inch of soil is dry, and avoid overwatering.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Propagation
Stem cuttings can be used to propagate it.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Pests and diseases
Can be troubled by mealybugs and scale insects.
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Move something and watch

Loading the simulator. It needs JavaScript; the care table above does not.

About the plant

Schlumbergera russelliana is a species of flowering plant in the family Cactaceae. It is endemic to a small area of the coastal mountains of southeastern Brazil, where its natural habitat is moist forest and it grows on trees as an epiphyte. It is one of the parent species from which many of the popular houseplants known as Christmas cactus or Thanksgiving cactus are descended.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026

Native range
SE. Brazil
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Southeastern Brazil
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Climate
wet tropical
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Growth form
succulent epiphyte
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Epiphyte, Herbaceous Perennial, Succulent; habit arching, erect, rounded, weeping
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Size
Height 6–12 in; width 12–24 in
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Flowering
Flowers orange, pink, red/burgundy, white; blooms in fall, winter
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Other Schlumbergera

More of the Cactaceae family

Plants with similar care

Sources

What this does not cover

The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.

Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.

If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.