8 Plants called Christmas

8 Plants called Christmas – a blog for you to read whilst enjoying a cuppa. And as well as naming the plants, I’ve included a few brief tips for looking after your festive florals and where you could grow them in the garden. (If they are outdoor plants rather than indoor of course!)

As usual there are links at the bottom for other blogs you might like to read. And, yes, they are Christmas-y – but why not?

8 Plants called Christmas – the List

And before you start wondering whether I’ve stretched too much of a point including a plant called ‘Yuletide’ rather than Christmas, herewith a brief definition. Originally Yule referred to the Scandinavian winter festival which began with the Solstice. These days, Yule can refer to either the Winter Solstice celebrations or to the Christmas festivities. And I just had to include this lovely Camellia…

Camellia ‘Yuletide’
Christmas Cactus
Christmas Rose
Cyclamen ‘Christmas Wish’
Helleborus ‘Christmas carol’
Rhododendron ‘Christmas cheer’
Sarcococca, Christmas Box
Viola odorata ‘Christmas’

There are two indoor plants in our list. But you could have the Helleborus in a cool room over the festive season and then harden it off to plant outside afterwards. Personally I tend to compromise and usually have potted ones in the porch or near the front door so I know I’ll see them lots. At different times, I have had either (hardy) Cyclamen or Hellebore sharing a pot with the Camellia or a mini Christmas tree. Which also looks good, especially with some festive red ribbon.

And now for the individual plants called Christmas

Camellia ‘Yuletide’

Camellia × vernalis ‘Yuletide’, syn Camellia sasanqua ‘Yuletide’ is a winter flowering evergreen shrub. Glossy dark green leaves and scented, single flowers of festive red with prominent yellow stamens, make it a winner from end of November to January.

Be sure to shelter it from the early morning sun, as buds and flowers may be damaged by the frost melting too quickly. (In the same way that rain can damage them). As Camellia need an ericaceous (acid) soil, you may be glad to know that this is a fairly compact shrub and will grow in a pot for some years.

Christmas Cactus

Christmas Cactus are Schlumbergera, a small genus of cacti originating from the humid jungles of Brazil. Unlike most cactus that like arid, desert conditions. your Christmas Cactus is used to shade and high humidity. And in order to care for the wonderfully flowered Schlumbergera, you also need to know that they’re epiphytes. Which means they live on another plant for support but are not parasites.

Over the flowering and festive season, keep this house plant in a spot away from both direct heat and drafts. Being a forest dweller, avoid placing it on south facing windowsills. It will need watering when flowering but don’t let the plant sit in water.

Christmas Rose

Just to confuse you, this plant is no relation to roses at all, being a member of the Ranunculaceae or buttercup family. This is because the Christmas Rose is a common name for Helleborus niger. Depending on the cultivar, these hellebores flower between mid-November and March. Helleborus niger is native to the mountainous regions of central Europe and has tough, leathery, dark green leaves. Above this are held flat, open, generally white flowers.

Hellebores like shadier spots and will often cope with borders under evergreen hedges. You can also grow them in pots and window boxes, where you can spy the bees appreciating their nectar-rich flowers.

Cyclamen ‘Christmas Wish’

With dark green foliage and rich red flowers these are real winners as a festive plant. It is one of the Florist’s Cyclamen, a cultivar of Cyclamen persicum, a tender perennial that naturally flowers during autumn and winter. in other words, treat this Cyclamen as a houseplant. They require cool conditions and a bright position but not direct strong sunlight. Water them from below to prevent rotting. Deadhead to encourage more flowers.

Cyclamen persicum are often treated as annuals, and discarded in the new year. However, they can often be encouraged back into flower for next Christmas, if you give them a dormant time during summer. Keep them inside but cool and shady, until about May when they can have some fresh air. Start watering and feeding when you see signs of new growth in the autumn and bring under cover.

Helleborus ‘Christmas Carol’

I am very fond of Hellebores and Helleborus niger ‘Christmas Carol’ is obviously reliable for flowering at Christmas. The evergreen foliage offers a background for the glistening white flowers with golden stamens. And perhaps this is a bit of a cheat as we’ve had Christmas rose too, but as this is a hardy perennial plant, its one you can plant, then pretty much let it do its own thing until it’s time to enjoy the winter flowers in December!

Rhododendron ‘Christmas Cheer’

A medium sized Rhododendron, this evergreen shrub often flowers for Christmas. To encourage this in northerly gardens, grow it in a sheltered spot or keep in in a pot to enjoy in the greenhouse or cool conservatory. Otherwise it will still be an early flowering Rhododendron, but in the New Year. And the flowers are a treat, as the carmine pink buds open to pale pink flowers that fade to white. As with most Rhododendron, ‘Christmas Cheer’ likes an acid soil, but as a compact shrub it will grow happily in a pot if your soil is more alkaline.

Sarcococca, Christmas Box

Another one of our 8 plants called Christmas, like the Christmas Rose, that is actually more than one plant. Sarcococca is also known as Christmas Box and Sweet Box, and is a member of the Buxaceae family. It is a delightful evergreen shrub to have alongside a path, gateway or front door, as the tiny white flowers pack a delicious scent.

There are various types (ie species and cultivars) and sizes of Sarcococca, but all have fragrant winter flowers loved by humans and pollinators alike. These evergreen shrubs are easy to grow as they’re happy with partial or full shade and any reasonable soil. Good for a woodland garden or woodland edge border, just be sure they’re somewhere you can enjoy that winter scent. The smaller Sarcococca such as S. hookeriana humilis and S. hookeriana digyna grow well in pots too.

Viola oderata ‘Christmas’

This sweet violet is a winner as far as I ‘m concerned. It looks such an innocent little plant, only 7cm tall – until you get closer and realise that it was responsible for sending out a sweet scent as you walked along your garden path.

The white – pale blue flowers are delightfully scented and start flowering in time for the festive season, hence its common name of Christmas Violet. It’s one to grow in a pot placed near a door so that you can enjoy the scent many times during the day.

Viola oderata ‘Christmas’ was introduced by Margery Fish in 1965. And when not in a pot, grows well in semi-shade or full shade in free draining, fertile soil.

And finally

These are only some of the plants called Christmas that I could have chosen. I hope that among those you recognise, there’s at least one that is new to you, that you could enjoy for yourself or giving as a gift.

Or if you’re looking for a Christmas gift with a difference, why not ask about our bespoke Gardening Lessons, where your classroom is actually your own garden? We can help with both gardening basics and more ‘expert tasks’, carry out worm and other experiments and for example, also show you how to plan a vegetable plot or kitchen garden. Have a read through this pdf download for info

For further gardening advice and inspiration, check out Plews Potting Shed blogs, including the selection below Plus we have a monthly Tipsheet You could come and find us on Instagram Pinterest and Facebook too.

And there are Gardening Gift Vouchers you can use for all our services – now there’s something to add to your Christmas list!

Feeling nosey? You can have a peek at the progress of my garden renovation, Spitfires and Slow Worms, on Instagram and Facebook

You’ll get to see it in person if you come to the Plews Gardening Workshops Although some dates still need to be finalised, there are a few up on Eventbrite for you to book into. Follow for updates on topics and dates on Instagram, Eventbrite, Facebook

And lastly, on a sombre note. There is much hype about Christmas being “the most wonderful time of the year” but it behoves us to remember that there are many people out there having their first Christmas without loved ones, whether from natural causes, terrorist attacks or disasters. To those people especially, regardless of your faith, I hope you find some peace this Christmas-time.