For me, Christmas isn’t Christmas without a half-dozen or more
Poinsettia plants decorating my home. I love their deep red flowers against the
mass of dark green. Although there are
other colors such as white or pink, I still stay with the traditional
variety. But what stunned me most was
when I went to Florida around Christmas to visit my parents and saw just how
big they grew. Bushes up to thirteen foot in height loaded with red blooms were
as prolific as Lilacs in Ohio.
So if you, like me, love to bring them home or enjoy passing
them off as a gift, here are a few suggestions.
**Poinsettias are a tropical plant that enjoys temperatures
between 60 and 70 degrees F.
**So if you need to carry them out into inclement
weather, wrap them up, but make sure you unwrap them as soon as you are in to
reduce the amount of damage to the leaves.
**Poinsettias can last long into winter months if kept by a
sunny window and away from drafts (hot or cold). And don’t let the leaves touch
the cold window.
Poinsettias will flower again next year with a little
TLC.
**After flowers
have died off (February-March timeframe), cut each of the stems back to 4 to 6
inches in height, leaving one to three leaves on each branch. Keep the plant in
a sunny window and fertilize every two weeks.
**In late spring or early summer after all
danger of frost has past you can plant it in a shady area outside and water
frequently. Then in August prune the
branches again like you did in late winter.
**Before first
frost take it inside, keep fertilizing every other week. In September make sure the plant is kept in
complete darkness from late afternoon until morning. Do this until red starts showing in the
leaves.
Poinsettia Toxicity:
On the whole toxicity from Poinsettia plants is
overrated. However, Irritation to the
mouth and stomach, can sometimes causing vomiting. From what I’ve read it would
take eating many leaves to cause a reaction.
I would, however, error on the side of caution.
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