Bud Blast

This is very interesting. If you hadn’t said that the flowers never opened, we would have thought this looked totally normal. Christmas cactus flowers last only for a day or two and very quickly pass from bud to wilted. Your cactus looks like many at this time of year, with some flowers fully open, some in buds, and some on their way out. If, however, your flowers are shrivelling before they full open, the reason is probably bud blast, which occurs when flower buds get too cold or too dry or too wet. Usually it’s temperature related. A Christmas cactus can take temps down to 45 F but the buds may blast if temps get below 55. Check to see if your plant is in a draft or near a door that gets opened frequently. We notice your cactus is sitting inside another pot. Check to make sure there’s no water collecting at the bottom of the outside pot. Sitting in water could also lead to bud blast.