Decembrist is white: what types of schlumbergera have such a shade that you need to bring out at home, what does a flower look like in a photo?

The flower, popularly known as the Decembrist, has several more names. Its official name is Schlumbergera (Schlumbergera - lat.).

It is also called zygocactus, "Christmas star" or "Barbarian beauty." No less diverse is its appearance.

Schlumbergera can bloom in various shades of red, gold, lavender or white. Read about the features of this beautiful flower in our article.

What species have such a shade?

Among the variety of Schlumbergera species, you can find different shades and shapes. Snow-white inflorescences look especially elegant on dark green branches.

Among the varieties of zigocactus with a white color of flowers, the following can be considered the most common.

White christmas

This variety of Schlumbergera managed to gain popularity around the globe thanks to elegant white flowers with pink stamens. The bush grows to 40 cm in height.

Bridgeport

It can be called one of the most beautiful among all varieties of white zygocactus. It has fairly large oval flowers with wide petals. In this case, the bush itself is quite compact.

Madame butterfly

Plants of this variety have large white flowers bordered with pink.

Angel dance

This variety of Schlumbergera can be called unique. In Angel Dance flowers, not only inflorescences are painted white, but even a pestle. The remaining Schlumberger have a raspberry pestle regardless of color. The fact is that Angel Dance is an albino, so the pink color never appears.

White bell

Plants of this variety are quite compact. Flowers consist of two tiers.

Aspen

This is a whole group of varieties, the selection of which continues at this time. Their color can vary from white to faint pink. A feature of Schlumbergera of this group is the shape of the inflorescence - the original delicate flowers have a double fringe.

Hybrid varieties

ATTENTION: Hybrid varieties are distinguished by their unusual color and superior qualities. The flowering time is often longer than other varieties. Inflorescences can combine several different shades that smoothly flow into each other.

Among the above varieties of hybridomas is Madame butterfly. It appeared as a result of crossbreeding between Schlumbergera orssichiana and White Christmas. The result is a plant with fairly large flowers and stem segments. The main difference between this variety is its flowering period. It begins almost a month earlier than most varieties of zigocactus.
A hybrid is also a variety Malissa. This variety has rather short stems and large flowers. Abundant flowering can last for 3-4 months. Snow-white flowers with a middle color of lavender can change color depending on the temperature of the content. If the bush is kept in cool conditions, a pink hue appears on the flowers.

Is it possible to achieve a similar color yourself?

A variety of zigocactus color palettes exists thanks to the work of breeders. Initially, the Decembrist had only pink and white flowers. However, today there are many varieties that differ in appearance.

In laboratory conditions, breeders can cross completely dissimilar species. At home, you can experiment with plants of the same species, but of different varieties. Schlumbergera is perfect for this.

Step-by-step instructions for home breeding

First you need to decide what properties the plant obtained as a result of work should have. Based on this, you need to choose parent plants. If you want to bring home zygocactus with white flowers, you should choose flowers with shades of white as parent plants.

Plant selection. Both parent shrubs must be healthy. One of them will be a pollinator, the other a seed plant.
On a seed plant, you need to select an unblown bud. You need to cover it with a linen bag before opening, and when it starts to open, you need to cut off all the stamens. This will protect him from pollination with other flowers.
When the flower is fully opened, it is necessary to apply pollen from the pollinator to it. This can be done with a brush, a cotton swab, or simply bring the pollinator flower to a seed plant.
Put his linen bag on the seed bud again. For best results, you can repeat the procedure several times. This can be done once every few days.

When seeds form, they can be planted. Plants that have fully inherited the appearance of one of the parent plants will not be suitable for subsequent hybridization.

TIP: In the process of hybridization, it is necessary to reflect all your actions and results in the diary. This will provide an opportunity to analyze the activities and the results.