Hatiora

Hatiora is a small genus of epiphytic cacti which belongs to the tribe Rhipsalideae within the subfamily Cactoideae of the Cactaceae. Recent taxonomic studies have led to the three species formerly placed in subgenus Rhipsalidopsis being removed from the genus, including the well known and widely cultivated ornamental plants known as Easter cactus or Whitsun cactus (cultivars or hybrids of the former Hatiora gaertneri).

==Description== All Hatiora species are found as epiphytes growing on trees or (rarely) lithophytes growing on rocks. They are found in the tropical rainforests of the Mata Atlântica in eastern Brazil. The plants are weakly succulent, growing more or less upright and becoming woody at the base when older. Spines are usually missing. The insect-pollinated flowers are borne terminally. They are small, with a diameter of about , actinomorphic (radially symmetrical), bell-shaped and always coloured (yellow, yellow-orange or pink). The fruit is a berry. By contrast with species of the genus Schlumbergera, most of which have flattened stems, Hatiora species have stems with a circular cross-section.