Prickly Pear vs. Christmas Cactus: What is the Distinction?

Prickly pear and Christmas cactus are two trendy flowering cacti which may be often grown as houseplants. And, whereas their leaves and kind look distinct from each other, the magenta-colored blooms might confuse anyone attempting to recall which one is which.

That is what it is important know regarding the distinction between prickly pear versus Christmas cactus and the way one can decide each.

Prickly Pear vs. Christmas Cactus: Important Variations

On the most straightforward diploma, the excellence between prickly pear and Christmas cactus is that they’re completely totally different crops. Every are members of the Cactaceae family, nevertheless prickly pear is a conventional spiny cactus native to every North and South America, whereas Christmas cactus is a smooth-leafed cactus native to the Brazilian rain forest.

These two cacti moreover bloom at completely totally different events, have vastly completely totally different appearances and growth habits, they often thrive beneath completely totally different conditions.

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Look

Every prickly pear and Christmas cactus are often inexperienced with pink blooms, nevertheless that’s the place the similarities end. Prickly pear has spiny, flat, club-shaped pads that appear just like the sort of cactus you often contemplate throughout the desert.

That’s the kind of cactus you do not want to get too close to—besides you might be prepared to start out out selecting barbs out of your clothes. When prickly pear blooms, it produces pink or yellow flowers which lastly flip into darkish pink fruit.

Christmas cactus, nevertheless, has flat, segmented leaves that cascade spherical it like a waterfall. It produces blooms which may be pink, pink, white, purple or orange. These flowers will go away behind fruit.

Growth Conduct

If you see a full grown prickly pear subsequent to a Christmas cactus, there is no such thing as a mistaking which is which. Prickly pears can soar to eight toes tall and intensive when grown exterior. Within the meantime, Christmas cacti are way more petite variety of cactus, maxing out at one foot tall and two toes intensive.

Normally, prickly pear will unfold in clumps, whereas Christmas cactus is a popular hanging plant as a result of manner during which its leaves spill over the side of a container.

Flowering Time

Prickly pear and Christmas cactus bloom at reverse events of yr, which is often a pleasant hack if in case you will have every in your home as houseplants and want flowers year-round.

Reminiscent of you’ll depend on from its determine, the Christmas cactus often blooms throughout the vacations. You may start to see blooms as early as November, they often’ll proceed by January.

Within the meantime, the prickly pear blooms late spring by early summer season.

Rising Requirements

Prickly pear is a desert plant that loves sunny, dry conditions. Give it full photo voltaic or six hours of direct daylight day-after-day. Properly-draining sandy or gravelly soil is best for the prickly pear to thrive, and you could have to restrict watering to as quickly as every two or three weeks. Be sure the soil dries out totally between watering and on no account let the soil become soaked with water.

Because of Christmas cactus is an area rainforest plant, it want 4 to six hours of indirect or filtered mild day-after-day. It does successfully with acidic, sandy cactus mix soil or frequent potting soil with perlite. It additionally must be allowed to dry out between watering.

One of the simplest ways to Set up a Prickly Pear

To acknowledge a prickly pear throughout the wild (or on the very least the greenhouse), seek for a cactus that has flat, club-shaped leaves with spines defending the leaves. Counting on the time of yr, it may have pink or yellow blooms, magenta fruit, or nothing previous the leaves themselves. Usually, you’ll uncover it rising in a clump-like conduct.

When grown as a houseplant, will in all probability be a smaller plant nevertheless, throughout the desert, it’ll in all probability attain eight toes extreme.

One of the simplest ways to Set up a Christmas Cactus

Christmas cactus is an merely recognizable plant, notably must you see it over the holidays. It has cascading flat inexperienced leaves which may be segmented from excessive of the stem to bottom. It infrequently reaches a few foot extreme and two toes intensive, and, must you see it between November and January, it’ll have its signature pink blooms.