Wait for Christmas cactus to finish bloom before repotting

Dec. 16—Q: I just bought two Christmas cactus plants that are blooming nicely. They are both in 4-inch plastic pots. I would like to combine them and pot them into a ceramic pot. Would it be detrimental to repot them while they are blooming so profusely, or should I wait until the blossoms fall off? — M.T., Albuquerque

A: I truly believe that it'd be best for your plants to wait until the blooming is complete before repotting.

I will suggest that you could place both of the 4-inch pots into the new ceramic pot as is. You could run a wide ribbon around the lip of the pot to disguise it through the holiday season until they are done with the bloom.

The reasoning is, that a lot of times when plants that have their roots disturbed while in bloom, the plant gets nervous so to speak and tends to concentrate on itself and will sometimes effectively shut down trying to keep a bevy of flowers intact. Its aim is to survive and get used to the new surroundings.

I do want to ask if the ceramic pot you plan on growing them in drains. If not, please search out a different pot, one that drains. Once the bloom is complete, then do the repotting.

Also, I'd add a smidgen of clean sand to mix into the potting soil you choose to use. You can find a small bag of clean sand, sometimes called horticultural sand, in any well stocked nursery or garden center. Remember to place a shallow layer of potsherds at the bottom of the pot before filling and planting the babies. A paper coffee filter works great too.

I'd wait, enjoy the blooms to their fullest and later, next year, do the transplanting. Enjoy!

Q: What should I get, present-wise, for a coworker that just bought her first house where she'll be able to garden and is looking forward to doing so? — N.P., Albuquerque

A: I'll suggest a basket where you could snug a nice pair of garden gloves, a hand trowel, maybe several packets of seeds, a roll of stretchy green "tie things up twine," a selection of plastic plant markers and a permanent marker.

With those few things, she'd be well on her way to enjoying her coming gardening experiences. For a terrific reference book, I would certainly recommend Sunset magazine's "Western Garden Book." With this book in hand, she'd be able to look up plants to see if what she's looking at would work in her world. It's the best.

Another good read is "Down To Earth: A Gardener's Guide to the Albuquerque Area" written by the Albuquerque Area Extension Master Gardeners. It is chock-full of info. You can find that book at the garden shop at the Albuquerque Garden Center on Lomas Boulevard.

For fun things, a waltz through any one of our nurseries will offer you choices galore. You might find just the right wind-sock, statue or wind chime that she could display in her world and think of you fondly for years to come.

You don't have to break the bank to come up with things that your co-worker would be able to use, and whatever you choose, she'll enjoy it.

Q: We're new to Albuquerque and we want to get a cut tree to decorate with for the holidays, but are wondering what do we do with it after the holidays? — M.C., Albuquerque

A: Welcome and rest assured that you're covered when it comes to treecycling.

The city has collection spots that you'll be able to take the tree so that it will be treecycled. Rest assured there is an ethical safe way to dispose of the tree. So go shopping for that perfect tree, decorate to your heart's content, and enjoy the scent of having a real tree in the house. The first treecycling date is Dec. 26, and I'll have more information as the season progresses.

Meanwhile, Happy Holidays while you're out there Diggin' In!

Tracey Fitzgibbon is a certified nurseryman. Send garden-related questions to Digging In, Albuquerque Journal, 7777 Jefferson St. NE, Albuquerque, N.M. 87109, or to features@abqjournal.com.