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Index : Miscellaneous Gardening Topics
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- 8. Poinsettias and Other Holiday Plants - Top
- What would the holiday season be without the poinsettia! It’s the plant most associated with the holiday season and the top-selling of all potted flowering plants in the United States. Over 75 million are sold annually in the 6 weeks prior to Christmas. Other popular holiday plants include the Christmas cactus and kalanchoe.
All provide long-lasting beauty if given proper light, watering and their preferred growing location. Be sure to read the care tag that comes with most pot plants. In addition, here are some important tips to keep your holiday plants looking their best!
Poinsettias are available in a variety of colors and forms. But regardless of the variety they’re all tropical plants native to Central America, so they like warm temperatures. Their leaves will drop if placed in a cold, drafty spot near doors and windows. They’ll also drop leaves and their colored petal-like bracts if they don’t get sufficient light and even moisture.
Place poinsettias in a bright location. Be consistent with your watering. Poinsettias don’t like fluctuations in soil moisture. Keep the soil evenly moist, but not wet! Water-logged soil will cause leaves to fall. If your poinsettia has a decorative foil wrap, poke holes in the bottom to allow water to drain out.
You can grow your potted poinsettia outside in an east exposure during the warm months. Prune the plant back heavily in March and occasionally pinch the new shoots to keep the plant full. To re-bloom in December, cover your poinsettia with a cardboard box for 14 to 15 hours each night, starting in October, until the colored bracts form.
If you prefer, you can plant your poinsettia in the garden. Select a location that receives morning sun and afternoon shade. Fertilize every 2 or 3 weeks, starting in April with a water-soluble plant food like Miracle-Gro, Peters or Shultz. As the days shorten your poinsettia will form it’s colorful bracts, without covering, in December or January.
Holiday cactus can refer to either Thanksgiving or Christmas or Easter cactus. Denoted by the season they bloom, these are true cacti from mountain regions of Brazil, not the desert. Flowers which can be red, pink, lavender or white, burst forth on the ends of cascading green stems. Stems are broad and flattened.
Holiday cactus respond to cool temperatures and shortened days by blooming. Therefore, keep these plants in a cool spot at night. During the day place them in a bright location, but away from direct sunlight. Keep the soil evenly moist, not wet. Fertilize every 2 weeks with a liquid plant food.
Holiday cactus can be re-bloomed by setting them outside in the fall, during the period when night temperatures drop into the 50's.
Kalanchoe have beautiful star shaped flowers in clusters covering the plant. Leaves are succulent, broad and dark green. Traditionally plants have either red or pink flowers, but can also be found with coral or yellow blooms.
With their thick, succulent leaves for water storage, kalanchoe don’t need a lot of water. Allow the soil to become nearly dry between watering. Shiny leaves turn dull green when it’s time to water again. Kalanchoes (Kalanchoes) like bright light indoors. At night, they prefer temperatures around 60 degrees.They can be re-flowered using the same technique as poinsettias (poinsettias).
Finally, keep potted flowering plants from ripening fruit! Ethylene gas given off by bananas, apples, pears and other fruits will cause flowers to fade.
Written by John Begeman, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the University of Arizona,
520-626-5161.
- Updated: December 10, 2006
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