Sometimes a gardener’s favorite Christmas gift is a seasonal plant and with the nurseries coming up with new colors of poinsettias and amaryllis every year, the choices are fun for the gift-giver as well. But then the holidays are over and now what do you do with a two-foot amaryllis or a poinsettia that is dropping its leaves?
As tempting as it may be to drop those faded plants onto the compost pile, why not try your hand at keeping them going to celebrate the holidays next year?
With poinsettias, you will need to keep them in bright but indirect light. Keeping them in a cooler room at night (55-60 °F is best) will extend their bloom period. Water them thoroughly but only when the soil feels dry, and be sure and dispose of any water in the saucer underneath so the roots don’t rot. Fertilizing about every two to three weeks will keep your plant looking nice long into the winter. It might be easiest to schedule your poinsettia care to major holidays so you won’t forget. Here’s an easy list: fertilize on New Year’s Day, and check for insect invaders on Valentine’s Day. That’s a good time to cut it back to about 5 inches if it has gotten long and leggy. On St. Patrick’s Day, it is time to remove any dead parts and repot it, adding some new soil. It should still be kept inside in a bright area. On Memorial Day, trim the branches by 2-3 inches and repot again, but this time into a larger container. On Father’s Day, you can move it outside to a location with indirect sunlight.
On July 4th, it will be ready to be trimmed again and then moved into sunlight. Continue to water and fertilize, but now you can increase the strength of the fertilizer a little to promote rapid growth. By Labor Day, you should be seeing new growth so you can cut back on the amount of fertilizer. Your poinsettia is now ready to be moved inside to a spot with at least six to eight hours of direct light each day. On the first day of Fall, September 21st or so, you will need to reduce the amount of daylight to 11 hours a day by placing the poinsettia in an uninterrupted dark space like a closet or even under a box for 13 hours. Rotate it daily to give it equal light on all sides when it is in daylight. Continue to water and fertilize. On Thanksgiving, you can move your poinsettia back into direct sunlight for at least six hours each day, but reduce water and fertilizer, going back to the routine of watering only when dry. And by Christmas, you should have a blooming poinsettia once again.
Christmas cactus like to be pot-bound and grow best in soil with a good bit of sand mixed in for drainage. That means, though, they may need watering more frequently during their active growth period in spring and summer, but still only water when the soil dries out. Be sure not to let them sit in standing water. They also prefer high humidity, so a pebble tray with water may be in order if your home is dry. This plant needs periods of complete darkness for 11-12 hours per day as do the poinsettias if you want them to bloom in time for the holidays. Once you see tiny buds beginning to form, you can gradually move them into more light each day. When the buds grow larger, the plant can be moved into the display area. You can also choose to ignore a fancy schedule and just appreciate this lovely plant whenever it blooms later in the winter.
One of the most dramatic plants to give or get for Christmas is an amaryllis. These bulb-grown plants can get to be 1-2 feet tall and require a support for the flower stem. They now come in a wide variety of colors, with ones that even look like red-and-white striped candy canes. Usually, ones found in the stores will have been “forced” into blooming for the holidays and all you need to do is water them when the soil dries out. But you with a little care, you can get them to re-bloom the following year.
Once the amaryllis has stopped blooming, you may cut the flower off the stem. The stem will eventually start to sag and at that point it can be removed to the top of the bulb (which sticks out above the soil on a properly-planted amaryllis). For the next 5 to 6 months, continue to water and fertilize which will allow the leaves to develop and grow. In the early fall, when the leaves start to yellow, cut them about 2 inches above the top of the bulb and remove the bulb from the soil. Clean the soil from the bulb and store it for at least six weeks in a dark, cool place (40-50°F) like the crisper in your refrigerator. (But do not store around apples! For some strange reason, apples will cause the amaryllis bulbs to become sterile.) After the six or so weeks are up, you may plant the bulb in fresh soil, leaving the neck of the bulb exposed. At this point, they need to be placed in a warm spot with direct light. Water only in moderation until the stem appears. Then you may gradually increase watering using warm water. The amaryllis will bloom again in about 8 weeks, so plan your schedule accordingly, starting the cleaning and chilling process in mid-September.
Maybe too much work? Or maybe a really good challenge? That’s the best thing about gifts: it’s your choice to make.
(No blog the next 2 weeks due to the Christmas and New Years holidays. Enjoy the time with friends and family! I will meet you here in 2025!)
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