Schlumbergera pinkish white

Very pretty.

mine finished early... soo pretty. My phals are budding though!

Thanks Klahanie, I always hated these cacti but the subtle colours have won me over.
Yes mine is Lori, as are the amaryllis , exiting isn't it at least some things are promising colour and beauty, alas no fragrance ? , these dark, wet and stormy days. Btw how many hours daylight do you get at the moment?

sorry to take so long to get back to you, M. we now have about 9 hrs of light... from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. we've had snow but none of it has stayed... they are saying we may have a green christmas this year. This is the first year for the schlumbergera to have bloomed so early... usually it's a lot darker time before they finally start. After the last two winters I cannot complain but it's worrisome.. with all the droughts and super storms, etc., etc.. First flower on the Phals opened today!

Our daylight hours now are 8.06 till 15.45, but daylight seems to struggle from about 2pm up here, at the moment our light seems to be on for most of the day. I read today that the coldest winter for 50 years is forecast! again!
Oh well it's nearly the shortest day and at least the days will start lengthening again. Phals flower stalks shooting up but flowers nowhere in sight yet..

so did the 50 yr cold arrive? We have had an amazingly mild winter...on Christmas day it was 15 C. Unheard of...
it didn't start to feel wintery til 29th Dec.... Jan. was wishy-washy... and winter set in late Jan./early Feb... had some temps in the minus 30's (about 3 days) then March came in like a lion and we got most of our snow... now it's melting and the sap is running...and we're headed into a week of minus temps again! ..a rollercoaster ride. The melt has raised water levels in the stream to about half what it has been in previous years.. crossing fingers that the freeze that's coming will slow down some of the melt and that will temper the amount of water and the rate of flow.
Don't know what's up but the early Easter holiday and the equinox being 4 days early ...things are a bit confused. or is it just me? My Phals bloomed in Feb... and are starting to die off now... I don't have enough room to house my collection of plants that I bring in each fall, and I must confess that I enjoy the effort of caring for them less and less... sad, aye? We had to replace the west wall of our house and most of the west facing roof last summer/fall. The man who contracted to do it for us was not well...the work was done sporadically and the result was that the roof is on..but the insulation isn't finished ( i did most of the ceiling myself.) then we found out we had vermiculite insulation in the attic! Horror story... don't know what to do about it...and on top of that both Terry and I had some kind of flu/bacterial infection/virus ..?.. and we were two whole weeks feeling crappy. Just starting to regain some strength..(and the will to live! ) How was your trip to the Netherlands?

So sorry to hear your tales of woe lori, I hope you're both feeling better and over that nasty virus now. Let's keep fingers crossed that your winter will finish like it started and you can look forward to that thing called Sun and smell spring...?
I don't know anything about side effects of vermiculite unless it is asbestos related! We had all the old storage heaters removed when we moved in and found they were filled with crumbling asbestos sheets, your heart sinks!!
I must admit I find myself pairing down on indoor plants and stuff in general the older I get, I love clean lines and light and work with that, the opposite of my garden which I like quite wild and not too tidy. I'll pm you...again! ?

Yes you must be tired of reading my whines!
the asbestos/vermiculite occur together in nature. There was a class action lawsuit about a decade ago here in N.A. with a family who allowed their children to play in an attic area that was filled with vermiculite insulation. The whole family sickened and eventually died of the lung infection from traces of asbestos in the vermiculite. It takes about 20 years for the effects to manifest and the lawsuit was settled about 10 years ago. I found that one of our walls is full of it winter before last when I made a doorway into the kitchen from the livingroom. It came cascading down on me... no breather, no mask; and the room was full of dust.
When we had the roof replaced last summer the extent of the vermiculite was daunting.. it's everywhere up there and I don't know how to address the problem. I wish I knew where to start. I want to have the stuff removed but the problem is the expense... on top of everything else that needs correcting in this old house. Wiring, roof, plumbing ...you name it.

Would it be possible to just leave it covered up as I think it is only harmful when it is floating around as dust and you can breath it in?

yes, I called the County Health Unit and they suggested that if I had to disturb it for any reason (???) to wet it down first! trouble is...it is right above our heads and you know how dust circulates....especially in old houses like ours. were told to put 6 ml. plastic on the ceiling?...how does one make that look like a design decision? I think we made a mistake buying this place. Now we are left with the risk (not to mention the expense) of cleaning it up. ...some days I want to sit and cry...others, I could chew nails and spit rust! Still doing my research and trying not to breathe!
but back to the Schlumbergera!... it is absolutely gorgeous. I have seven plants that are dying of neglect... all are trying to bloom. So many things I should be doing and I'm all but paralized by this. :-((

Why not put on the plastic layer and then cover it with white cladding, the swedish designer look..

Yes that is a great idea, M. That's probably what we'll do... but I'm still trying to find a company to do the removal of the vermiculite... then I have to take on the rest of it...
I went outdoors today to work in the yard... for the first time in a week...it's been snowy, cold and windy...yesterday and today we have had sun and warmer temps (plus 8) the streams are running high but not over the banks, thank goodness, and I'm doing the raking along the road. If only the lawn mower had held out to get the long grass cut I would have an easier time. Twisted my ankle...to add to my woes.. BUT I'm still here and the work is getting done. Now the bad news! I'm starting to dislike the weatherman... He keeps bringing us bad news when all we want is a little sunshine and some spring. On April 1st, nd and 3rd. we will be under the influence of an Arctic cell...cold winter temps right down into the midwest U.S. No it's not an April Fool joke. How I wish it was. I'll shut up now. sorry to be a downer.
So how much have you dug up? I'm sure you'll have a jungle in no time, now that you don't have to contend with hardpan and water problems. Is the change in climate agreeing with you? France mush be a lovely place to live but when we need our family around us there's no place like 'ome.

I sent you a pm lori.