The market in cactus house plants is booming and with very good reason. These prickly little guys are great fun, easy to keep and very attractive. So why do so many people ignore them?
Many people seem to have this idea that the cactus is a prickly little plant which doesn’t really add to the style of your room. Well these people need to think again.
The first and most obvious species which is far from small, prickly and boring is the Christmas cactus. This is a beautiful plant to have around the house. It is also an easy plant to keep. This indoor plant does not like to get completely bone dry, but will only need watering every couple of weeks. If you want to encourage the plant to flower you can leave it in a cool part of the house for about two weeks, do not put it in the freezing cold. This will then flower about four to six weeks after you return it to its normal place.
The simplicity of the care for this plant and the prettiness make it a great holiday season gift as it is guaranteed to decorate any home.
In addition to the Christmas cactus there is also an Easter version. This has a larger range of colours of bloom including yellow, pink, peach, red and white. Like its Christmas cousin, flowering is induced by the cold.
Admittedly the above two plants are slightly different from the usually cacti. But there are plenty of prickly cacti which have beautiful flowers which last a long time.
The Barrel cactus is a great example of a prickly plant producing amazing flowers. The blooms are found in a large range, from striking red to a calm yellow. These flowers grow at the end to the prickles and actually used by the Native Americans in stews and boiled to make drinks.
Another cactus offering a pleasantly surprising bloom is the Beavertail cacti. These plants may be low to the ground, but they have larger than expected red and lavender colored flowers. The flowers will usually be about three inches, so create a beautiful plant.
So rethink your image of cactus house plants and you will soon realise that these are not little, prickly, unattractive, desert plants.
