Cactus with history comes full-circle

WASILLA — To some, an old cactus might not be the stuff of fond memories.

But to one family in Wasilla, the significance of a cactus that’s more than 50 years old and just recently rediscovered is making the holidays more special. This cactus has a name, it’s a special Christmas cactus and it’s been moved around so much the family that originally owned it simply lost track of its whereabouts.

On Tuesday, Misty Holler sat in her high-ceilinged home near Lake Lucille recounting the story of the cactus that started with her great-grandmother.

More on that later. First, just what is a Christmas cactus?

Long known as a good plant to pass down among family members, Christmas cacti are cherished because they bloom in the winter months and can be coaxed to flower more if the owner desires.

Cheryl Young, a clerk at Flowers By Louise in Palmer, said letting the plant dry out then applying water will cause the cactus to bloom. Also, it’s imperative to keep the cactus in a cool location.

Jeff Lowenfels, an Anchorage horticultural expert and author, said blooms on Christmas cacti are induced by temperature and day length, so they bloom the same time every year.

“They can live forever,” Lowenfels said.

That’s one aspect that makes the Christmas cactus in this story so special. Not only is it old, it was lost to the family then, amazingly found again.

Holler said the plant started out as a gift in the family, eventually ending up with her grandmother, Vivian Teeland, a storekeep prior to statehood. Teeland gave the cactus as a present to her hairdresser at Hairport, a salon off the Parks Highway in Wasilla.

When the salon changed owners, the cactus went to Pat O’Donohue at the Alaska Cheesecake Co., and there it sat until one day when Holler stopped in to get a cheesecake.

O’Donohue was talking to another customer about the cactus when Holler’s ears perked up. It was what O’Donohue called the cactus — Mrs. Jones — that attracted Holler’s attention.

That name comes from Bronwen Jones, Holler’s great-grandmother, who was married to Jonesville Mines founder Evan Jones.

“She (Holler) said, ‘That’s my great-grandmother,’” O’Donohue said.

After Holler and O’Donohue started talking about the cactus and its history, O’Donohue said it was clear what she had to do. The cactus would go back to Holler, returning it to the Teeland family again.

“It’s just the right thing to do,” O’Donohue said, adding she’s always been afraid she would kill the plant while it was under her care.

Not terribly tall, Mrs. Jones fans out of its pot in all directions. Red flowers cap off green stems and parts of the plant near the soil almost look petrified.

To some, admiring Mrs. Jones is like looking into the past. For Holler, the realization Mrs. Jones will come home has created much excitement.

“When Pat said that she thought the plant should really go back to the Teeland family I almost cried,” she said. “I tried not to dance … around and cheer.”

The exchange of the cactus was to take place Christmas Eve, with the plant being carried from the Alaska Cheesecake Co. and placed in the Holler household.

It’s the end of a journey for a plant some would write off as just that. For one local family, however, getting Mrs. Jones back in their home is the ultimate Christmas gift.

Contact Michael Rovito at michael.rovito@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.