You might have heard that poinsettias naturally drop their leaves and colorful bracts immediately after Christmas. This is not true! My own plants, when provided a cool (not above 65 degrees), sunny window, always keep their looks well into May. Would you like to see how I display these great gift-plants after the holidays, and rebloom them year after year? 
Decoratively speaking, the small, single-stemmed poinsettias in 4-inch pots are far more useful in the window garden than the giant, multi-stemmed (and very expensive) subjects that most florists sell. I give mine center stage on the music room sill during the holidays, and then bring them to the guestroom window (above) afterwards. There, set on glass shelves, they flourish in the bright eastern sun, and in temperatures that range from 55-65 degrees. (It is dim light, high heat and low humidity that cause leaves and colorful bracts to prematurely wither and drop.)
In June the poinsettias are brought outdoors. I cut their tops back to 3 inches at this time, and then repot the plants into fresh soil. To fit them back into 4-inch pots, I prune the roots a little. Plants thrive during their summer sojourn in light, open shade on the front porch, and I pamper them with regular watering and weekly feeding. As new leaves form, stems are pinched back frequently to keep growth low.
In mid-September the poinsettias are returned to the sunny, cool guestroom window. Since these are short-day, long-night plants, to bloom they must have definite darkness for at least seventy days, without so much as the gleam of a street lamp. Mine go into the guestroom closet -- 8pm to 8am is the dark schedule -- then back to the cool, sunny window.
With this schedule, your own gift plant of one Christmas can become your permanent houseplant for Christmasses to come. And let me tell you -- the satisfaction of reblooming a poinsettia is substantial indeed.
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Sunday, December 27, 2009
The Poinsettia Has A Future
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I've never had luck with poinsettias. That's probably because my house is too dry in winter. But your plants look wonderful. I especially like the window picture.
Something about that window reminds me of the old South. Maybe the poinsettias, maybe the urn...can't quite put my finger on it. Do you notice this, Kevin?
Samantha - yes, I did! Must be the red poinsettias, which we are so accustomed to seeing in association with evergreen boughs and Christmas trees. They look entirely different, and, I'll admit, entirely acceptable, in the after-the-holidays-window-garden! Guess I'll have to change my tune about the reds!
Kevin, what are the other plants in your guestroom window? I think I spot a fancy leaf geranium at the rear of the window.
Carol - YES! That is the fancy-leaved Pelargonium 'Mrs. Henry Cox,' a beauty in all seasons. Also on the guestroom sill is the Christmas Rose, Helleborus niger; Narcissus paperwhites and Sweet Olive, Osmanthus fragrans.
First shelf, flanking the two red poinsettias, is a white kalanchoe. Second shelf, a dusty rose poinsettia, between pots of hoya. The hoya vines are trained on wire, to serve as a frame for this simple but satisfying window garden.
The heleboris looks lovely in the window display!!!!!!
Anne - thanks!
Sue - Your plants are lacking humidity. Set them on a humidifying tray of pebbles and water. Oversized, pebble-filled saucers are a useful alternative to the tray.