Guide Note

The Christmas Cactus is a popular holiday gift plant. Despite the seemingly kitschy connotations of the name, it is not simply a cactus bedecked in Christmas tree decorations, but an actual variety of cactus, scientifically known as Zygocactus.

Fast Facts

1. Also called Holiday Cactus
2. Scientific name: Zygocactus
3. Given as gifts in Victorian England
4. Has flowers, usually in pink, orange and red

The Christmas Cactus is from a family of cacti native to Brazil's mountainous southeast. Unlike the desert variety most common in North America, it is a forest plant with a leafy appearance. The Christmas Cactus descends from a hybrid of different members of the Schlumbergera family, first bred in England in the mid 19th century, where it became a popular gift item.