Poinsettia care tips
When it comes to caring for cut flower arrangements, the guidelines are fairly simple. Plants, on the other hand, require a bit more care. Of course, potted plants will last much longer than any bouquet of cut flowers and you can get that much more joy out of them if you follow some easy care tips. Proper care will mean that your poinsettia will look great throughout the holidays and beyond!
There are a number of factors that will affect just how long any house plant will last. Like any other potted plant, the life cycle should always be considered. While many people use the bloom cycle to determine when to buy plants, the poinsettia doesn’t have actual flowers. Instead, they have clusters of brightly coloured leaves that contrast with the other green leaves and this gives the illusion of a plant in bloom. When buying a plant for yourself, you need to make sure that you are familiar with the proper care guidelines. If you plan on sending a plant to a loved one for Christmas, make sure that you provide them with some care tips as well. This way, they can get the most out of the plant without having to search for care guidelines themselves.
Like cut flowers, you will need to keep your poinsettias out of the wind and sun. You should also keep them away from any sources of heat or any cooling systems. This means that they should not be placed near any kind of heater, fireplace, fan, or air conditioner. These plants love indirect sunlight and six hours per day will suffice. If you have a window that receives only indirect light, then you can place your poinsettia on this windowsill. That said, make sure that no part of the plant comes into direct contact with the window. While your home might be comfortably warm, your windows are in contact with the icy weather outside and this can damage any plant.
If your poinsettia arrives in the traditional decorative packaging, you need to make sure that there are holes in the bottom of the plastic wrapping. If not, when you water your plant, the water will pool around the base of the pot and this will keep the soil overly saturated. In time, this can result in root rot and other problems. You want to keep watering to a minimum during the winter so make sure that the surface soil is dry before you water this plant. Keep a drip tray under the pot to catch any excess water but also make sure that you don’t pour too much water over the soil. All it will do is make its way to the drip tray which will eventually overflow.
You can fertilize this plant during the winter months but you should always use the appropriate fertilizer and follow the directions to the letter. If you make the mixture too weak, it won’t have much effect and if it’s too strong, you can damage the plant.
Remember, these plants prefer moderate to cool environments so, when the summer arrives, you should keep them in a cooler part of your home and expose them to as little indirect light as possible. If you create artificial darkness in the summer, you should halt this practice as soon as autumn arrives and allow your plant to flourish with a bit more light.