The Christmas cactus is not very demanding when it comes to the soil in the pot. It shouldn't be too nutrient-rich, as Christmas cacti are very frugal. What does the optimal substrate for Christmas cacti look like?
What does the optimal substrate for Christmas cacti look like?
The optimal substrate for Christmas cacti consists of normal garden soil, sand, gravel and optionally expanded clay or lava grit. The soil should be loose and water-permeable. Avoid nutrient-rich compost and pot the plant in fresh soil every spring.
Which soil is suitable for the Christmas cactus?
Of course, you can simply use cactus soil (€12.00 at Amazon) from the hardware store to care for Christmas cacti. It is important that the substrate is loose and water-permeable.
The earth can also be put together yourself. You need
- normal garden soil
- Sand
- gravel
- maybe. Expanded clay
- maybe. Lava grit
Do not use compost as it contains far too many nutrients. Pot the Christmas cactus in fresh soil every spring. Then you save yourself the trouble of fertilizing.
Tip
The Christmas cactus does not tolerate frost. Since it flowers in winter anyway and is therefore kept indoors, there is little risk that the plant will overwinter when temperatures are too cool.
