What kind of sand? Actual beach sand or horticultural sand?

"watering a 1/4 cup once per week."

I think the plant has trouble taking up water due to its leaves being shriveled. It's either being underwatered due to being watered in sips, or overwatered because the soil doesn't dry within a week.

I would unpot it, check for root rot or rotting segments, and repot in a fast draining soil mix. I would use a mixture of Miracle Gro Cacti and Succulent mix mixed 50/50 with perlite. Others may recommend the 5-1-1 mix. Whichever is easier for you-I would move the plant into the 50/50 to overwinter, then change to 5-1-1 in the spring. If you can't find the soil, any soil is fine as long as it drains well.

Don't squirt water on the leaves-other people on the forum have said that any benefit from misting only lasts for a few seconds. I think that you should be watering so the entire root ball is saturated-water until water begins flowing out of the drainage holes (it has drainage holes, right?). Don't water on a set schedule-water when the plant needs it. You can check if the plant needs water by inserting a wooden dowel to check moisture levels underneath the soil level, or by lifting the pot to check how heavy it is. If it is really light, it most likely needs water.

I failed to catch the part about the sand. I tried mixing sand into the soil of one of my plants to help increase drainage many years ago. That was a big mistake. All it did was clog up the drainage holes and made it difficult for any water to flow thru. I ended up having to repot the plant all over again with new soil.

Thanksgiving cacti are epiphytes, which means they grow up in the canopies of the rainforest, clinging to the trunks of trees. They dont grow in the ground like most other houseplants. I would recommend using a 50% orchid mix (bark, perlie, charcoal), and 50% fast draining soil mix. You can find orchid potting mixes at most garden centers. My personal favorite is the Better Gro brand, which you can find at Lowe's for a cheap price. It's great stuff, and your thanksgiving cactus will love it.

Good job getting the plant on the road to recovery!

I'd feel eager to improve the soil, but I suggest getting the plant hydrated before putting it through the stress of repotting, You also want to flush out the salts that have accumulated from watering in sips.

Water it very slowly, wetting the whole surface of the soil, until the pot is draining from the bottom. I like to let it sit for 15 minutes, and then keep flushing water through. I remember reading something about using 10 times the amount it takes to water the plant normally, but I don't think I've ever been that patient.

After watering you'll want to get the pot to drain as much as possible. That will take some ingenuity because neither potting soil or sand drain well, which creates a layer of soaking wet soil at the bottom of the pot called a "perched water table" (PWT) that keeps the roots from getting oxygen and leads to all sorts of bad things. Try tilting the pot 45 degrees until water stops coming out, or put an absorbent wick into the drain hole and suspend the pant over its saucer. You can fertilize at this point, taking care to drain the same way you did when you flushed. From then on, wait until the soil is dry before watering again. Check every day with a stick or dowel pushed to the bottom of the pot to know as soon as it's dry.

The Christmas cactus should plump up pretty quickly after that, at which point you'll need to decide whether to repot now or wait until next June when the plant will have saved up enough energy reserves to get through the process easily.

" I remember reading something about using 10 times the amount it takes to water the plant normally, but I don't think I've ever been that patient."

Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I think it's 10 times the volume of the potting container.

Thank you all so much!

If it's not to late I'd like to offer slightly different advice. I'd suggest either African violet mix w/ added perlite (50/50, or equal part each) or bark mix & perlite (same 50/50).

C&S mix is too heavy for these plants (learned that the hard way).

As said above, these are tropical jungle cacti, requiring a fair amount of humidity. I watered mine abt once a week to 10 days in Summer.

Is the soil hard to the touch when you touch it? if so, it's hardened due to the peat content. If so, after thoroughly soaking I'd remove all the old mix & replace w/ new as suggested above.

What's under the plant on the plate, pebbles or big bark chips? If pebbles, that'd be great (called a pebble tray). Once waters to overflow, lets the extra flow onto the rocks UNDER the pot & that helps increase the humidity in safe manner.

Just soaking it & leaving it in this bad old mix will not solve the problems. Sorry to tell you that, but I learned that the hard way too.

Hi Goldstart,

I think you've gotten a bit confused here, when you said:

"I think the plant has trouble taking up water due to its leaves being shriveled. "

I believe you've got it backwards, it's actually that the leaves shriveled BECAUSE the plant isn't taking up water.

The leaves don't take up the water, it's the roots that do so (or not), resulting in wrinkly leaves when the roots CANNOT take up water.

Just so you know (& also not to share unintentionally incorrect info like that pls).

I meant that the plant seemed to be having trouble taking up water because its leaves appeared to be shriveling. Sorry about that, I'll be clearer next time. Thanks for catching that.

Personally, Black Gold cactus mix has worked great for my holiday cacti (several Thanksgiving cacti and a couple Easter cacti). However, I do add a good amount of perlite to the mix to improve drainage. I realize this is an old thread, but thought it may help someone, so... here it is.