Everyone buys poinsettia for holiday gifts or for home
decorations. They are the flower that
represent Christmas. They are given as
hostess gifts every year in the thousands.
Many folks really enjoy receiving them and giving them. Now if you are a green thumb gardener the
thought of tossing a spent poinsettia in the trash is unheard of. Below we give you some tips on getting them
to rebloom.
When trying to get a potted poinsettia to rebloom you don’t
need to repot the plant. Just treat them
like you would any potted houseplant.
Make sure they get lights, allow them to dry out slightly between
watering and feed them with fertilizer according to the label. When the flower petals fade and fade off cut
back the stems to just below the flowers and let them continue to grow.
Come next spring, place them outside in indirect sunlight.
Let them grow and if necessary repot them into a larger garden container. By the end of summer bring the pot indoors
again. Now the hard part starts. The potted poinsettia needs 15 hrs of
darkness, so daily cover them with a box from 5 at night to 8 the following
morning.
If you do this successfully in November your plants will
color and you can end this covering situation.
Set them back in indirect sunlight and they should be good to go for the
whole holiday season.
During the festive holiday season many will purchase potted poinsettias from there local garden center or nursery as a holiday decoration. If you host a festivity at your house you may receive the potted poinsettia as a hostess gift. Either way we want to provide some tips that may help you to make that plant rebloom next Christmas.
Basically, Poinsettias are easy to grow and maintain. However if you want them to bloom into a second season it will take some effort but is not impossible. Start by thinking them of a basic houseplant instead of a Christmas only plant.
Start by placing the garden planter in a area with bright light, water slightly and feed with fertilizer according to the label directions. Unfortunately the leave or flower petals will fade and fall off. At this point cut the stems to just below the flowers and let them continue to grow.
Come next Spring, when the temps are consistently about 50 degrees. place the potted poinsettias outside where they can get bright sunlight. They will grow but will remain green all summer long. Prune back the plants to one third in midsummer and repot them in a slightly larger pot. Use new potting soil and feed with fertilizer during this growing time.
At the end of summer, bring the pots indoors when temps start dropping below that 50 degree mark. From Sept thru Oct the plants need 15 hrs a day of uninterrupted darkness and 65 degree temps. This is the secret to triggering new flowers and for the leaves to change color.
Every day at 5 pm you need to cover the plants. Uncover them at 8 in the morning. Absolutely no light can penetrate the darkness. Place a box over them if you must. In a spare room no light can come in thru a door or window crack.
If you successfully carry out this darkness routine by early November the plant will develop the red color and you can end the daily darkness and move the plant into indirect light to grow.
