In the southwest and other places with little rain, like our sweet home here in Albuquerque, Christmas trees tend to be replaced with Christmas cacti and succulents. But just because we don’t have the traditional Christmas tree doesn’t mean we can’t decorate our cactus like a champ!

What a lot of people don’t realize is there are a lot of different types of cacti, and there are different techniques for doing so. So we thought what better way to get in the holiday spirit than with a quick DIY cactus decoration. So, if you’re apartment is too small for a big tree or you just want to do something different this year, check out our tips for decorating your Christmas cactus!

Illuminating Desert Plants for the Holidays:

• It’s a bit more time consuming and a specialized task to adorn cacti, succulents, yucca, and unusually-shaped desert plants with string lights. Here are a few tips and tricks:
• Invest in a good pair of gloves, ones that won’t allow spines and needles to penetrate.
• For taller cactus or hard-to-reach branches, consider getting a reaching, grabbing, or pick-up tool.
• Net lights draped over a cactus are much easier than wrapping with string lights, although they have a different effect and don’t outline the shape as much.
• Use a light hand while decorating–don’t stretch the light strand or wrap it tightly around a cactus.

Barrel Cactus Decorated With Lights:

• Barrel cactus looks best wrapped with one color of string lights, like red or white, so that they sound out.
• Size: up to 5 feet high by 2 feet wide which can really give the Christmas tree effect.
• Flowers bloom on old growth, and are up to 3 inches wide and grow in a ring around the top. So it gives the effect of ornaments.

Go For The Cactus Garden Look:

• This is pretty simple if you’re not into getting a large cactus.
• Twist lights throughout the garden, be sure not to tangle them too much for simple removal.

Now that you have a couple of solid ideas for decorating your cacti, choose which one would be fit your living lifestyle! If you’re looking for a new ride that can fit your cactus we invite you to check out our inventory and schedule a test drive today! Happy holidays!