Beautiful plants that are as much a part of American Christmas traditions as mistletoe, holly and the Christmas tree, poinsettias are everywhere this time of year: home hearths, business counters, and church pulpits alike. Every December 12, they even have their own national day. But how to care for these holiday beauties after the holidays are over is a mystery to most.
Dr. Joel Roberts Poinsett, an American statesman for whom the plant is named, introduced the flower to the U.S. in 1825 after traveling the Americas. The poinsettia—also known as Mexican Flame Leaf, Christmas Star, and Winter Rose—had been associated with Mexican Christmas celebrations since the 16th century (Wikipedia.com). That the poinsettia bursts with red leaves (or bracts) and red blooms around the holiday season quickly made it a popular Christmas plant in the States as well. Naturally a subtropical plant meant to thrive in southern gardens, poinsettias were soon cultivated by northerners who began growing the plants in hothouses for those who lived in colder climates, a trend which continues today.
This trend also presents a problem for those wanting to grow poinsettias in their own southern backyards. Dr. Leo Bailey, a retired Texas A&M University Kingsville professor of horticulture, explains that because commercial poinsettias are grown in greenhouses, decidedly unnatural surroundings, they are difficult to acclimate to natural surroundings. However, he assures those who love the Christmas plant that there are ways to take care of the poinsettia that will give indoor and outdoor gardeners alike better odds of having them around for years to come.
Root rot from overwatering is the number one cause of premature poinsettia death. Whether the plant is white, pink or red, the care is the same. The soil should be allowed to dry completely between waterings. While the plants are indoors, usually in a bright window, a cup of water every two weeks is ample, and the best watering method is to place the plants in a bowl or saucer of water so that they absorb the moisture from the roots. After the leaves drop, the plant should be trimmed back.
Since poinsettias, like everyone’s favorite aunt, are highly sensitive to any temperature variation, they should be kept out of drafty areas and placed where they get at least six hours of sunlight. As long as the pot allows for space to grow, the poinsettia can be kept indoors like this year round. And to keep them indoors is not as dangerous as urban legend has it. While eating poinsettias is not recommended, they are not fatally poisonous as often rumored.
In planting zones 9 and higher, poinsettias can be established outdoors as perennials. For those wanting to garden poinsettias, the time to transplant them is in the spring after the last frost (approximately February 21 for Dr. Bailey and his zone 9 neighbors). Poinsettias enjoy partial shade and should be planted on the north-east side of a building (the north-west side being the worst as it faces the direction of on-coming cold weather). Loose, coarse, easily draining soil is the best for these subtropical plants.
It is also recommended that the gardener cut back the plants in spring and then again in August to insure that they are the right size for the Christmas season. For example, if a gardener wants the poinsettias to be around five feet tall in December, he or she should cut the plants back to about three feet in August. Well-established poinsettias planted near Dr. Bailey’s Kingsville home have been known to grow as tall as eight or nine feet.
Even better, there is a variety of wild poinsettia native to the South Texas region. A smaller version of the Christmas poinsettia, the wild poinsettia thrives like a weed and blooms unpredictably throughout the year: a nice addition to southern gardens as well.
So black-thumbs everywhere should not despair. Whether kept indoors or out, with a little care and regular watering, poinsettias can survive this Christmas and be enjoyed for many Christmases to come.
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