Schlumbergera is a
genusIn biology, a genus is a taxonomic unit used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender" , cognate with – genos, "race, stock, kin" ..In addition, genus is a taxonomic rank in the hierarchy In biology, a genus (plural:...
of
treeA tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
-dwelling
cactusA cactus is any member of the plant family Cactaceae, native to the Americas. They are often used as ornamental plants, but some are also crop plants. Cacti are grown for protection of property from wild animals, as well as many other uses...
from
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
introduced to Europe by the Kew collector,
Allan CunninghamAllan Cunningham was an English botanist and explorer, primarily known for his travels in New South Wales to collect plants.- Early life :...
(1791-1839), in about 1816.
They are
tropical rainforestA tropical rainforest is an ecosystem usually found around the equator. They are common in Asia, Australia, Africa, South America, Central America, Mexico and on many of the Pacific Islands...
epiphytes, growing on tree branches where, despite the high rainfall, water drains off quickly so that "dry" conditions prevail much of the time. Not surprisingly these cacti are quite different in appearance from that of their
desertA desert is a landscape or region that receives almost no precipitation. Deserts are defined as areas with an average annual precipitation of less than per year, or as areas where more water is lost by evapotranspiration than falls as precipitation. In the Köppen climate classification system,...
-dwelling cousins.
Schlumbergera is a
genusIn biology, a genus is a taxonomic unit used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender" , cognate with – genos, "race, stock, kin" ..In addition, genus is a taxonomic rank in the hierarchy In biology, a genus (plural:...
of
treeA tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
-dwelling
cactusA cactus is any member of the plant family Cactaceae, native to the Americas. They are often used as ornamental plants, but some are also crop plants. Cacti are grown for protection of property from wild animals, as well as many other uses...
from
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
introduced to Europe by the Kew collector,
Allan CunninghamAllan Cunningham was an English botanist and explorer, primarily known for his travels in New South Wales to collect plants.- Early life :...
(1791-1839), in about 1816.
They are
tropical rainforestA tropical rainforest is an ecosystem usually found around the equator. They are common in Asia, Australia, Africa, South America, Central America, Mexico and on many of the Pacific Islands...
epiphytes, growing on tree branches where, despite the high rainfall, water drains off quickly so that "dry" conditions prevail much of the time. Not surprisingly these cacti are quite different in appearance from that of their
desertA desert is a landscape or region that receives almost no precipitation. Deserts are defined as areas with an average annual precipitation of less than per year, or as areas where more water is lost by evapotranspiration than falls as precipitation. In the Köppen climate classification system,...
-dwelling cousins. In 1858
Charles LemaireCharles Lemaire may refer to:*Charles LeMaire , American costume designer*Charles Antoine Lemaire , French botanist and botanical author...
(1801-1871) named this genus after Frédéric Schlumberger (1823-1893), a French collector of cacti and other succulents, living at
Chateau des Authieux near
RouenRouen is the historical capital city of Normandy, in northern France on the River Seine, and currently the capital of the Haute-Normandie region. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe, Rouen was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
.
This genus contains the popular
Schlumbergera truncata, also known as Thanksgiving Cactus, also known as Christmas Cactus, which may flower in white, pink, red or purple. The Easter Cactus or Whitsun cactus (Hatiora gaertneri) which produces vivid scarlet flowers belongs to Hatiora genus.
The stems of
Schlumbergera resemble leaf like pads joined one to the other and the flowers appear from
areoleAreoles are the distinctive feature of cacti, and identify them as a separate family from other succulent plants. Areoles give rise to spines or, on certain cacti, small, detachable glochids which are an additional form of protection. The areoles on cacti are clearly visible...
s at the tips. As might be deduced from the coloured flowers of this genus, they open during the daylight hours and close at night.
Synonymy
The following genera have been brought into synonymy with
Schlumbergera:
- Epiphyllanthus A.Berger
- Epiphyllum Pfeiff.
- Opuntiopsis Knebel (nom. inval.)
- Zygocactus K.Schum.
- Zygocereus Fric
Alberto Vojtěch Frič was a famous Czech botanist, ethnographer, writer and explorer. He undertook 8 voyages to America, discovered, described and catalogued many species of cactus....
& Kreuz. (orth. var.)