Poinsettias for Christmas

Countdown to Christmas

This Thursday is Turkey Day. For those of you who are unaware of the American holiday of Thanksgiving, this is the day we gorge ourselves with good food surrounded with family as we thank God for all we have before we make out our Christmas list for Santa. Yes, Thanksgiving is the official kickoff of the holiday season and with that comes the much loved Poinsettia. 

The poinsettia is a member of the Euphorbia family and originally hails from Mexico.  Starting as a simple red flower, hybrids have given us colors and patterns of red, pink and white. Each being more beautiful than the next.

But you know all this.  What you want to know is how can you keep it looking beautiful for the whole Christmas season.  So let's start at the beginning.

Choosing your poinsettia.  First you have to know that the coloring you see on the plant is not the flower.  The red (or what ever you have chosen) are leaves that have colored to attract pollinators to the little flowers in the middle of the leaves.  I hope you can see them in the picture I have included.  If you are buying your poinsettias early, be sure that you pick a plant that has not blossomed yet.  The buds should be tight and green.  Later they will open to reveal small yellow petals and longer stamen with read tips.  These plants will stay fresh the longest.  As for plant structure, choose a compact plant.  The branches are brittle and the compact plant branches will not break as easily. 

After you get you poinsettia home is when the hard part starts.  The poinsettia likes full sun but needs a minimum of 10 hours of complete darkness to set a bloom.  The bloom is already set so the complete darkness is not as important as the sun.  Where this becomes difficult is that most of us want to use our beautiful plant within our decorations. 

Here is what I have to say about that.  Place the poinsettia in an area where it will get what it needs to flourish.  Give it full sun that is out of drafts.  Keep it damp but not wet.  One hour before your company comes.  Place your plant where you want it to steal the show. Please do not put it too close to the fireplace. If you want to keep it in the same place all of the time you will have to plan to replace the poinsettia every 2 weeks.  The only other option is to buy silk.

After Christmas we will talk about keeping your poinsettia until next year.  If you have any questions, add a comment to this page or email me at joneskathee@gmail.com

Until next time, Happy Thanksgiving.
k.k.jones

Baby It's Cold Out There!

I have heard that snow has fallen, so winter is officially here.  By now your tender plants have come inside.  You have added the grow lights to the plants that need them and put the rest near the sunnier windows.  What next.

Winterize the windows.

When I lived in a cold region of the country my best friend was that film that you place over the window to keep the draft out.  Not the cheep stuff but the kind that you take your hair dryer to and it shrinks to a clear finish, allowing a maximum amount of sun to shine through.  About now I would be covering all the north and west facing windows with the film.  These are the two directions that most of the cold wind comes courtesy of the jet stream.  As it gets colder the next is the east windows. 

I liked to keep the southern windows uncovered for as long as possible to take advantage of the warm sunny days that surprise us throughout the winter.  It is wonderful to be able to open a window and get a little fresh air now and then.  Usually, I found that about the middle of January I would have "shrunk wrapped" the rest of the windows and even covered the coldest windows with draped for extra warmth. 

Now, why am I telling you all this?

It's because most of us think that winter is coming and everything has to be done NOW!  THIS IS NOT SO.  You do need to be prepared.  The film is available now.  It isn't as easy to find in January.  Planning for the placement of plants include grow lamps, bulbs, extension cords and you may need a fan or two to keep the air moving around tightly packed plants.  Try finding a fan in January.  If you find one now, it is probably on sale.  Buy it.  I have found that you can never have too many fans and all plants love some breeze.  Be sure to put down protection on the tables or floors against watering accidents.  Orchids that love to be misted all the time will need something to keep walls dry. 

Just because your plants are dormant doesn't mean you have nothing to do.  Late winter is early spring for houseplants so this is a good time to think about repotting your favorites.  Many garden centers have put their pots on sale to make room for the Christmas decorations.  Take an inventory of the plants that will need to be replanted and stock up.  Be sure that you have enough soil on hand or you will be working with frozen bags.

Well, I guess I have given you enough things to do before you get that bird in the oven.  If you have any questions, be sure to pass them on to me through this blog or my email address joneskathee@gmail.com.

I would love to hear from you concerning any specific problems you are having or just to say hi.  'Til next time, stay green.

Regards,
k.k.jones