Out
On A Limb / January 2007
Saving Poinsettias
In nature, poinsettias are perennial flowering shrubs that can grow to ten feet tall. In retail, poinsettias represent over 85 percent of the potted plant sales of the holiday season. Priced according to the number of blooms, the more blooms, the more expensive the plant. The best selling flowering potted plant in the US, over 61 million plants are sold annually, $220 million worth during the holiday season. Eighty percent of poinsettias are purchased by women.
Used by the Aztecs in dyes as early as the 14th century, they were ‘discovered’ and named Euphorbia pulcherrima, meaning “very beautiful”, by a German botanist. The plant was rechristened after Congressman Joel Poinsett, the first US ambassador to Mexico, brought some of the spectacular samples back to his Carolina home. The showy colored parts of poinsettias that most people think are the flowers are actually colored bracts or modified leaves. The flowers or cyathia of the poinsettia are in the center of the colorful bracts. There are over a hundred varieties of poinsettias available.
During the winter holidays, poinsettias are decorative plant of choice for many people. With proper care, favorite plants can be kept through the holiday season and brought back into full bloom next year.
Keep poinsettias away from warm or cold drafts from radiators, air registers or open doors or windows or from touching cold windows.
Poinsettias will do one of two things after the plant blooms, either hold onto its leaves or drop its leaves. If the poinsettia holds onto its leaves after the holidays, it should be treated like any houseplant. Place it in a sunny location and apply a water soluble, complete, blooming-plant fertilizer once every two weeks.
If the plant loses its leaves, place it in a cool location where it still can get some light, like on a basement window ledge, and let the soil dry out. Don’t let it to get so dry at any time that the stems start to shrivel. Avoid setting the plant in places where the temperature rises above 60° F degrees - an average temperature of 50-55° F degrees is best. Just allow the plant to rest until spring before encourage new foliage growth.
In late April or early May, prepare resting poinsettias for re-growth by cutting their stems back to about 3-5 inches above the soil. When more than one plant is in the same pot, replant the poinsettias into individual containers. Use a commercially available soil-less potting mix. After repotting, place the poinsettia in a location with bright light and warm, 65-75° F degrees, temperatures. Water the plant whenever the soil begins to dry. When new shoots are about an inch long, apply a complete, blooming-plant fertilizer. Continue to fertilize plants throughout the summer ever seven to ten days.
As soon as night temperatures reach a minimum of 60° F degrees, the plant can be set outside. Place it in a shady location for two to three weeks to allow for acclimatization. Because above ground containers dry out quickly, sink the pot into the soil in a sunny location with well-drained soil. Turn the pot every few weeks to break off any roots that might be growing through the drainage holes.
Pruning helps shape poinsettias into attractive, compact forms. To keep the plant from getting too tall, pinch off or prune growing tips when they are about 4-6 inches long, removing one or two inches at a time. The last pruning or pinching, before encouraging the plant to rebloom, should take place around late August.
In fall, when night temperatures dip below 55-60° F degrees, move poinsettias indoors to a sunny location. Beginning September 25, the plants need darkness from 5 pm until 8 am daily and require night temperatures of 60-65 degrees. Lamp light will prevent normal flowering of an uncovered poinsettia. To arrange dark conditions, put a cardboard box or other cover over the plant. Once it begins to show color in the bracts, around late November, discontinue the long-night treatment and bring out the poinsettia for it’s holiday show.
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