HOUSEPLANTS > POINSETTIA
IN THIS GUIDE
POINSETTIA GUIDES
When you opine of poinsettias , you almost for sure mean of Christmas .
With their star - like leaves and ( most commonly ) red and green colour , these vivacious flowering plant life make a popular addition to many UK homes over the festal time of year .
Yet to bring it into your home during its December efflorescence period , only to discard it weeks later , does the poinsettia an injustice .
In fact , if properly deal for , this colorful plant life can survive the rest of the year in the UK , quick to blossom again next Christmas .
As the lobster plant is native to Mexico , it does require some fear and attention to keep it alive this far Union – this is not a flora you may exit to fend for itself.1Fishburn , J. ( 2020 , December 14).History of Poinsettia . College of Agricultural , Consumer & Environmental Sciences : Illinois Extension . Retrieved March 22 , 2023 , fromhttps://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/prairies-perennials/2025-04-25-history-poinsettia
We ’ve put together this guide to the best poinsettia fear and growing tips , to show you how you could keep a poinsettia sound throughout the class , and profit from its beautiful showing of festive flowers for a 2nd season – because a poinsettia is n’t just for Christmas !
Overview
PreferredBright Filtered Light
ExposureSheltered
Height0 – 60 centimeter
Spread0.1 – 0.5 thousand
Bloom TimeDecember – January
PreferredFree Draining Medium
MoistureWell drain
pHAny
The poinsettia ( Euphorbia pulcherrima ) is a recurrent bush , native to the sub - tropical forests of Mexico and Central America .
The works get its name from Joel Roberts Poinsett , a US diplomat ground in Mexico , who was the first somebody to bring it to the US in 1828 – from where it was cultivated and sell around the world.2A Publication of the International Society For Horticultural Science . ( 2011 ) . Chronica Horticulturae . recall March 22 , 2023 , fromhttps://www.actahort.org/chronica/pdf/ch5103.pdf
National Poinsettia Day is celebrated on twelfth December , to commemorate the anniversary of his death.3Poinsett ’s Popular Poinsettia . ( 2013 , December 12 ) . US House of Representatives : story , Art & Archives . Retrieved March 22 , 2023 , fromhttps://history.house.gov/Blog/2013/December/12-12-Poinsett/
Other name for poinsettia include Mexican Flame Leaf , Winter Rose and Noche Buena , as well as the more gay Christmas Flower and Christmas Star .
The Christmas star is a staggeringly popular plant for the festal season , and many households will purchase one to display as a decoration in December , and then discard it come January .
Potted Christmas flower typically touch a tiptop of up to 60 curium and a spread of up to 40 cm .
As well as the most popular flaming red people of colour , poinsettia bract ( as the colourful leave-taking are more accurately known ) can be orangey , yellowed , pinkish or white .
hybrid with bi - coloured and marbled leaves are also available – in fact , there are now over 100 different varieties of named poinsettias.4Poinsettia Facts – The Poinsettia Pages . ( n.d . ) . University of Illinois Extension . Retrieved March 22 , 2023 , fromhttps://web.extension.illinois.edu/poinsettia/facts.cfm
The bleached bracts smother the genuine flower of the plant , which are the xanthous and unripe clusters at the centre .
As the bract are leave-taking , not petal , they last much longer than regular flowers ( up to 12 weeks ) , which is what enables people to display them in their rest home for such a lengthy amount of time over the festive period .
Plant Care
Poinsettias require smart , filtered igniter in Holy Order to flourish .
Their ideal grow temperature is 15–20 ° C , although they can go down to 13 ° deoxycytidine monophosphate around pruning time ( April ) .
The best home to put them is on a windowsill or in a greenhouse , where they can bask in non - direct sun .
you’re able to also place them outside in a sheltered domain of the garden , during summertime only .
Poinsettias require sufficient water supply , but not too much .
You should propose to irrigate the plant only when the top layer of its soil is almost completely wry .
Be very deliberate not to over - water your Christmas flower , as this can lead to root rot and can kill the works .
Poinsettias flower in humid conditions , so you could obscure your industrial plant during winter to replicate this .
Habitat & Growing Conditions
The aboriginal home ground of poinsettias is in the sub - tropical forest of Mexico , where they grow on hillside and wooded ravine , and thrive in semi - nerveless , humid status , with Lot of sunshine .
Their flowering period is during winter , December to January , during which meter they experience short twenty-four hour period of 10 - 12 hour .
The idealistic produce temperature for poinsettias is between 15 - 20 ° C .
They spring up in loose ground with expert drainage – they wish it to be moist , but not waterlogged , as this can cause root rot .
In warm , tropic climates , poinsettia shrub develop outside can reach heights of up to 3 m – much larger than the potted edition turn in the UK .
Buying Poinsettia
The best space to buy a poinsettia is from a reputable garden centre , where it will ( hopefully ) have been taken care of in the proper path i.e. maintain lovesome and given the right amount of piddle .
Poinsettias are also available to buy from many supermarkets and shops around Christmas time .
However , they will often have been plow in the same way as the rest period of the flowers on cut-rate sale , and may have been under or overwatered , and placed in a draughty area near the door , which is too dusty for the plant to stay healthy .
We ’d apprize you never buy a poinsettia from an outdoor market , for the same reason .
You should always suss out the stain of your poinsettia prior to buying – the grime of a well - wish - for flora should be slightly damp , but not too wet .
Once purchased , roll the plant cautiously in paper or a plastic bag when taking it home from the shop during winter , to prevent damage to the leaves from cold temperatures .
A plant life which has been grown in the UK will be more hardened to our climate , so essay to corrupt locally if you may .
How To Make Poinsettias Rebloom
In Holy Order to make your poinsettia re - flower the comply December , you ’ll need to care for it throughout the year and replicate its rude growing experimental condition .
This include pruning it in spring and repotting it in early May .
You should then keep your Christmas flower in a wakeful shoes at a temperature of 15 - 18 ° cytosine .
Once the new growth has reached 15–20 atomic number 96 , pinch the tips to encourage branch .
The Florida key to making your poinsettia re - bloom is to replicate its short wintertime days .
fall fall , start leaving it in the light for 10 hour , then be active it to an totally dark room , innocent of any born or artificial light , for the remaining 14 hours .
If you do n’t have a suitable room , you could cover the lobster plant with a enceinte box alternatively .
Ensure the daytime temperature remains constant at around 18 - 20 ° snow ( the nightly temperature can be slimly cooler , around 13 - 15 ° C ) .
Continue to do this every day , without fail , until December , and the bracts should hopefully start to turn colourful again .
Getting a poinsettia to re - bloom is not an light labor , and you should n’t be disheartened if it does n’t happen .
“ Commercial raiser moderate the conditions for Poinsettia development very carefully , intimately supervise temperature , humidity and tripping photo to be ready for cut-rate sale at specific weeks in the year , ” read Master Horticulturist Colin Skelly .
“ examine to replicate this at rest home is not easy , so do n’t be put off ! ”
It ’s also important to be aware that , even if you do everything ripe , poinsettias will not be as impressive 2nd time around .
They are likely to be taller and more bush - like , and their blooms will be immensely deficient compared to the first class ’s show .
Two years is the maximum you could reasonably expect to get out of the plant .
Common Problems
Although they favour a humid surroundings , poinsettias are very sensitive to overwatering .
unreasonable water and hapless drain can cause origin and stem hogwash , and kill the plant .
To head off this problem , check that to only bestow water when the surface of the soil has almost – but not completely – dried out .
Poinsettias are also susceptible to mould and mildew , which can appear as anything from a dusty blank covering , to lesions and brown spots on leaves .
Botrytis cinerea(grey mould ) is one of the bad culprits .
Mould can be because of watering the leave , high humidity , and dead air in a greenhouse – fight it by increasing airflow , fall humidity and use a preventative antimycotic agent .
Another common problem that growers front is foliage - dropping .
This can occur as a result of excessively warm , ironic develop conditions .
If your Mexican flameleaf ’s leaves are choke , move it to a slightly cooler positioning , check that it has enough water and mist it using a spray nursing bottle to double humidness .
