It’s a succulent houseplant with petals that bloom in a kaleidoscope of colors including red, white, pink, cream, and fuchsia. June 1: Move the potted plant outdoors to a partially shaded location when temperatures stay above 60 degrees. She has been associated with Rutgers Gardens for over a decade. Once you bring your poinsettia plants home, water them often—whenever the leaves are dry. The family business is on the line to deliver tens of thousands of plants for the town's annual parade. The legend tells of a young girl named Pepita or Maria who was so poor that she couldn’t afford to buy a gift to celebrate the birthday of Jesus. Linda Lum from Washington State, USA on November 08, 2017: We used to have poinsettias in our house each Christmas, that is, until a kitty adopted us. If you condition them correctly, each stem will last 10 days – time enough to keep them going over Christmas and well into the New Year. Keep the flower happy at its resting temperature (65 to 75 degrees), continually watering when the soil gets dry. They are native to Mexico. Care: Plant the bulbs in the fall or buy pre-planted container Amaryllis flowers. It's Christmastime, which means you're likely to fill your home with cheerful holiday decor—poinsettia plants included. Question: When should you start poinsettia seeds to have a plant for Christmas? You can use them as … In the fall, you will need to bring your plant back indoors when the nighttime temperatures are consistently below 45⁰F. To promote Poinsettias as a Christmas plant, he sent the crimson-leaved plants to TV studios across the country, including “The Tonight Show” and Bob Hope’s holiday specials. You can bring it outdoors during the day if you like. In June, the plant will be ready to move outside. The instructions post March are not quite as simple. Beginning October 1, keep your plant in complete darkness from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. Any exposure to light will delay blooming. As for watering, these quintessential Christmas plants need to be watered once every week. Flowers in a vase, houseplants, even the imitation/silk plants are chewed on. One of the most popular festive plants, our red Christmas Poinsettias are available from start of December with free next day delivery. A temperature of 15-18°C (60-65°F) is ideal Flowering and bract colouring is initiated by short winter day-length, occurring naturally in December and January. Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera). Poinsettias are a shrub that grows from 2 to 13 feet in height. While caring for poinsettias during the holidays (and even shortly thereafter) takes practically no effort, the process in the months that follow can be intimidating. This tropical plant loves heat and humidity – but not too much! Ideal air temperature is 60⁰F to 70⁰F. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. Answer: Poinsetta plants are sold in December which are already blooming. Poinsettias will bloom longest when kept between 70 and 75 degrees. Start your seeds in the spring, but don't expect any flowers until the second Christmas after you plant them. After two weeks, move the plant to a cool area of around 60 degrees. Y0ur instructions are very clear and the photos are beautiful. The plants are very sensitive to cold. Spring is in the air! To rebloom, poinsettias need about 10 weeks with 12 hours or less of sunlight per day. Make sure to cut the flower's stem about four inches and repot with new soil in a bigger container before you move it to its sunny new home. Poinsettias are always popular at Christmas so we like to ensure we have a great range of strong British Grown plants for the festive season. Once you understand why the bright red flowers develop, it’s easy to force your poinsettia to bloom year after year. Why are Christmas cacti becoming so popular? By this time, the flower will be ready to place back into the brightest, sunniest window you have. After Thanksgiving (the perfect time to begin getting excited about Christmas), you'll be able to keep the plant (hopefully with flower buds by now) in its sunny window full time. They can be red, orange, pale green, cream, pink, white, or marbled. The color is created through the process of photoperiodism, meaning they require a specific number of hours of darkness each night to change from green to red or other colors. Each day, you will have to keep your plant in complete darkness from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. Closets are the first thing we think of, but will not work if you plan to open or close those closet doors during their darkness period. I hope you have a wonderful day. Outside, it will need to grow in a semi-shady location. Poinsettias are shade lovers. In late February or early March, prune your plant back to 4- to 6-inches leaving between one and three leaves on each stem. Beginning October 1st, they will need 12 hours or more of total darkness a day for about 10 weeks. Count back ten weeks from the date that you want your poinsettia to begin blooming, usually the end of September or beginning of October for an early to mid-December blooming. The plant needs about 10 weeks of no more than eight hours of daylight to begin bringing forth red-blossom “leaves.” So around October 1st, start making sure your plant is in a dark place from, say, 4pm to 8am or whatever best fits your schedule. He even appeared on popular shows such as The Tonight Show and Bob Hope’s Christmas specials to promote the plants. Native to Mexico and Central America Poinsettias were considered by the Aztecs to be a symbol of purity and used them for dye and in medicines. During the holidays and throughout the winter, keep your plant in a sunny window.