Repotting my new Christmas Cactus into fresh succulent soil 🌵

Today I wanted to give you some tips on transplanting your Christmas cactus into a bigger container. I am using terracotta pots and planting them in some succulent soil, so the roots can breathe. This will also help with overwatering problems because the terra cotta pots are very porous and let's the soil dry out quicker preventing root and stem rot.
Here's an updated video about a year after we transplanted this Christmas Cactus
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As always, Thank you for watching and happy planting! I really appreciate every one of you for stopping by and continuing to support me throughout my journey!! It's so great to be able to grow with all of you!

[@joannabrister3384]

Hi Stacey. I moved from Kentucky to Houston, TX a 4 years ago and still struggling with plants, water and humidity. I tend to over water. I am going to watch more of your videos to I can learn more about gardening in humid climates. Have not been able to find any KZbin’s for hot to garden in Houston. We get so hot and so humid it is a challenge to learn about gardening here. Your video is the first one that mentions humidity.

[@daleandrews3552]

Hi Stacey! I'm a subscriber and my name is Dale Andrews. I live in a retirement facility in Lake Charles, LA (solid subtropical climate) that has a concrete back porch that measures around 25x30 feet. Perfect for a plant collection. I have a Christmas cactus my sister gave me last Christmas and it's still in the green plastic nursery pot. It would, I think, be a lot happier if it were in a SLIGHTLY larger terra cotta pot. Before I got around to it, one of the residents "borrowed" it and put it in her room! She's really not all there mentally and didn't understand why she shouldn't have it in her room. BTW, after a couple of weeks it had already started getting a couple of black spots on it from lack of enough light. One of the staff members here saw it in her room and we negotiated with her in getting it back it the porch (and in my possession!). Anyway, I got it back and will probably repot it tomorrow or the next day. I'm glad I watched your video b/c the first thing I would have done after the transfer was going to be to "water it in". These cacti are pretty resilient and probably won't even realize it's been moved. Thanks for the video and advice.

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Hello there! 😊 Thanks for sharing your story. I'm happy to hear that the cactus is back in such good hands. They are pretty resilient plants. Just remember to acclimate it slowly back into the sunlight, if you plan on giving it any direct sun that is. Since it's been in such a dark place for so long, it might get shocked a little bit 😉 Sorry my response is delayed a bit. Hope everything works out. I'd love some updates. I'm always here if you need anything. Best of luck to you 🌱 It sounds like you have a nice space to start a little garden for yourself. That's so exciting!

[@myterracegarden1067]

Beautiful plants Christmas 👌👌👏

[@joysteward8785]

Christmas cactus are my favorite 👍🌞🌹

[@enidhernandez5015]

Thank you!!! Right information, easy to follow 👍

[@brianferguson-connor2460]

Thanks Stacey... I want to repot a little Christmas cactus that has sentimental value (yep, plants can have sentimental value !!!). Your video is really informative and helpful. Maybe I'll get a few flowers next Christmas ! All the best. Brian

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Absolutely they can! I have a few that mean something special to me too! I'm so happy I could help!

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

I'll be doing a little update soon on how she's been growing. She has really filled out in this pot.

[@ourselfreliantlife]

Those roots definitely needed some room.😬 Great job with the repotting.

[@maybelltremblay6828]

Thank you for the information, nice video 👍

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Anytime! 😊 Thanks for stopping in!

[@HandsFullHeartFull]

Hey 👋 Stacey saw you on Just Living so I wanted to check out your channel. You know your stuff when it comes to plants 🌱 for sure

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Thank you so much!! 🦋 I really love being one with nature and all the beauty she has to offer! It's so nice to meet you! I really am so happy you stopped by 😁🐝🌸

[@em286]

I have a few of those and I forgot they're actually succulents. I thought they liked water! I better go change out the soil and hope it's not too late. Thanks for the great tips! 😎👍

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

If your Christmas Cacti is happy and in a good draining soil, I would continue to stay the same, but that's 100% up to you. For mine here, she likes plenty to drink in the summer with full soakings down to the bottom. Than I let her soil dry out completely, wait till the leaves are a little deflated on the bottom and than repeat the process. You will start to get a scense of when she likes to be watered over a few weeks time. Saying how much or too little is something different for everyone so it's hard to say how much yours might need.. How long the soil dries out will all depend on what type of climate you have and where she is located. If it's struggling, than you can adjust but this is totally up to you.. I say if it ain't broke don't fix it lol, but that is always your decision😁Happy planting! I'd love to hear some Updates.

[@em286]

@@StaceyHerewegrowagain thank you! My sister gave me 2 of them a few weeks ago and I have been meaning to do some research on how to care for them. I got lazy and keep forgetting! They're starting to look sad. Maybe they need more sun. I'm gonna keep an eye on them and baby them a bit. Thanks so much for all your tips! I'm a newbie. Lol.

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Your so welcome!!🌸Anytime🤗

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Succulent soil and sunlight should help a lot.. Just try and acclimate them slowly to more sun by increasing 2 hrs a day to avoid burning and shock. Using succulent soil will usually help with overwatering issues because succulents don't like wet roots for a long time and the soil is porous. I wish you the best of luck and I'm here if you need anything😁

[@Leo_vr_fr]

Hi Stacy - I live in Washington state near Olympia so we don’t get a lot of really hot weather. I just got a Christmas cactus bulb and I was curious as to whether some of the directions that you gave regarding growing it in central Florida are very different than what I should be doing up here in the northwest. I’m kind of a novice so any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Kevin

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

If you live in a different climate your watering schedule will be a little different. Just adjust to your climate and conditions. This is a basic guide on how I take care of mine here in Central florida. Your soil might dry out quicker or slower, it all depends. A good rule of thumb for watering is, to wait until the soil has dried out completely and let it stay dry for a few days to a week inbetween waterings. The amount of water and how frequent your watering will be determined by the type of soil it's in, the type of pot it's in, is it growing outdoors or inside, is it humid or dry etc..

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

The basic care is the same. Water when the soil has dried out completely. They like bright indirect sunlight, not so much direct sun unless it's really early morning sun and only for a hr or so or it could burn.

[@gamertag4253]

Stacy do you have a really good way to propagate a Christmas cactus do you think that putting it in water is easier?

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

I avoid rooting any of my succulents in water just because once they root in water, they still have to grow soil roots after planting which can stall them out a bit in my experience. I just take the cutting and let it callous for a few days before planting in dry succulent soil. Then I place it in dry soil and wait about a week to 2 weeks before watering the cuttings, this way there is no chance of rot setting in. I will post a video on propagating this one really soon.

[@gamertag4253]

Stacey Here we grow again oh thanks Stacey you really helped me a lot

[@noreenmillar1011]

Looking for the the planting in potato and then soil

[@saowaneej2095]

Hi Stacey, I have question between Christmas cactus and Thanksgiving cactus. How do you tell which one is Christmas cactus or Thanksgiving cactus? I bought Christmas cactus from Homedepot and the tag said Christmas cactus but when I post on Facebook, they are many people said it is Thanksgiving cactus. Too bad I can't send you pictures. 😕

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

That's a great question because the two are so easily confused and it's hard to tell the difference sometimes, especially when they're young plants. From my understanding, a Thanksgiving cactus has pointer ends on their leaves, while a Christmas cactus has rounded edges, not as pointy. Not sure how accurate it is because honestly I still get confused between the two. It shouldn't matter too much as far as care goes because they get taken care of the exact same way 😉 Hope this helps!

[@aiaiguntan3980]

What is succulent soil? What are the components if I am going to make /mix my own?

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Succulent, palm and citrus mix from miracle gro is what I use with added perlite. I dont make my own because its easier to buy it with all the plants I have. There are so many different ways to make succulent soil, it all depends on the type of material you want to use.

[@krakentacos]

Hello Great info. If you would please, restate what you said about re potting and not watering. I've been getting many new varieties. They are around 2'' size. I put them in 4'' clay pots with rich, well draining soil. Many have rotted at the base. Can you shed some insight. Thank you

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

I'm so sorry to hear you're having a problem. One thing I do when I transplant my succulents, is not water for a few days up to a week after repotting (depending on the condition and size, the time can vary) because the roots can be exposed and cause rot to set in, if watered right after repotting a succulent. I use a well draining succulent, cacti palm and citrus potting mix, by miracle gro and it works really well incorporated with a bit of perlite each pot, to help with drainage and drying the soil out faster. Succulents don't like wet feet (roots) for too long, so if your soil is not drying out after about 4 days to 5 days, you should add more drainage material like the perlite in with each pot.

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

The terracotta really helps with root and stem rot. When I water, I water all the way through to the bottom and let the soil stay dry completely, for a few days, to a few weeks between the waterings depending on the variety and if they're dormant or not. Knowing the dormancy is really important because that'll let you determine how much waterings are needed. My succulents that are dormant, I usually water once every 3 weeks to a month, verses in the summertime, I water once a week to twice a week when they're actively growing. It'll all depend on the variety and the season it is. I usually feel the bottom leaves and once they're deflated a little bit, not mushy, not squishy.. Deflated and wrinkly, then I water. Hope this helps, let me know if you need anything else

[@krakentacos]

Stacey Here we grow again Thank you for your quick reply. The new young plants I got were quite dry when I repotted. I got the new soil moist and put the dry root ball in a hole. Hoping to get the roots to reach out to the moist soil. I suspect the roots didn’t get much water. But still rotted at the base. Thanks again.

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

@@krakentacos your welcome!

[@bernadetteomalley3300]

When is the best time to transplant?

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Usually it's recommended to transplant in the beginning of spring, this way the plant re-establishes before it's time to bloom on the fall.