Schlumbergera truncata (Thanksgiving cactus)
Dorothy had a two of these Thanksgiving cacti (cultivars of Schlumbergera truncata) at school with her but she didn’t have a place for them this year so they stayed here. We have had them in a westward facing window in our dining room and this one has started to bloom. In the week between when I took this and now, when I’m posting it, the other one has started to bloom, also. Thanksgiving cactus can be differentiated from Christmas cactus by its pointy teeth on the leaf-like stem segments and from the flowers, which are held more horizontally and which are less symmetrical on Thanksgiving cacti. On Christmas cactus, which are cultivars of S. russelliana, the stem segments are rounded and the flowers hang down more and are more symmetrical. Both come from a small area of the coastal mountains of south-eastern Brazil.