How do you get Poinsettias red again?
Can't see the video? Click here to watch
Poinsettias are fantastically popular at this time of year but their vibrancy doesn't last that long and they'll soon wilt and die.
If you want to experience the joy of seeing those colours again next year we have a challenge for you.
Our friends at BBC Gardening believe that it's almost impossible to grow their beautiful colouration again.
But we have faith that you can prove them wrong so we've scoured the internet for some top tips.
1. Re-fertilise your Poinsettia every couple of weeks until the plant loses it's coloured leaves.
2. Once the colour has faded, keep it in a cool but sunny place and don't water until the soil dries out and the stems begin to shrivel.
3. When May comes around you should trim the stems back to around 10cm.
4. Re-pot if needed.
5. Begin watering whenever the soil begins to dry. Be careful not to water too much until new shoots start to grow.
6. Once the new shoots reach about 2cm long re-fertilise your Poinsettia.
7. As Poinsettias are native to Mexico it needs careful light control to trick it into blooming again. From September you should cover your plant with a bag or cardboard box from early evening until the next morning so that the plant is in darkness for 14 hours.
8. Do this every day for about 8 weeks (until mid-November) and then treat the plant as normal. With a bit of luck your Poinsettia should be gaining their colour again by Christmas.
Good Luck!
Have you ever been successful with Poinsettias? Do you have any top tips? Let us know.
In order to see this content you need to have both Javascript enabled and Flash installed. Visit BBC Webwisefor full instructions
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~57~RS~)
Comments
Christine is quite right. Don't thow your poinsettia away!
The poinsettia we bought in 2007 for £1.99 was tiny with one big 'flower', now it is a foot high and a foot in diameter, with 30 dainty, crimson flowers.
We water this plant a little, whenever there is no sign of dampness under the plant. We feed it at the same time having added 1/4 teaspoon of phostragen to a 3 litre bottle of rainwater.
It lives on a windowsill that only gets the early morning sun. Once we need electric light in that room we remove the poinsettia to a room where it will get no artifical light. In the morning it returns to the usual windowsill.
Complain about this comment
[edited by Moderator]A good size one for less than £3 from a well-known supermarket - I can't be bothered to keep it going.
Complain about this comment
A good size one for less than ?3 from a well-known supermarket - I can't be arsed to keep it going.
Jethro
Cheshire
Complain about this comment
I had a small poinsettia given to me last November. It lives in my sun room with the rest of my house plants. I have treated it the same as the other plants. It stays by the window, and gets watered as neccessary. It slightly dwindled during the summer, but it is now back to the same red and green splendour it had last year. It gets no special treatment, and is thriving.
Complain about this comment
I buy my poinsettia's from the (formerly) 100 peseta shop. They are planted all round my garden and look fabulous at the base of my palm tree. Every one glows in glorious red all year round and never loses a leaf. I paid a mere 1e for each of them and they are made of plastic and fabric. Luvverly.
Complain about this comment
I've managed to rescue poinsettias a few times. Producing nice big healthy plants from tiny little table decorations gives a great sense of achievement!
I think the key is the 14 hours of darkness. The first time I kept mine in a cupboard - but we all kept forgetting them! - so now it lives on the windowsill and gets put to bed with a black bin liner which is then removed at breakfast 14 hours later. Voilá
Complain about this comment
my poinsettia is flowering for the third year it is in my conservatory and is healthy all year it was only £1 .99 from tescos gets watered when i think of it
Complain about this comment
Red or white poinsettia's, that is the question? Christine said that they're red in this country and usually white in the USA - yet I watched a film over the weekend and all the USA poinsettia's were red. Answer that Christine please?
Complain about this comment
About end of Jan 2008 repotted 3 small poinsettia in ericacious soil. Plants grew well but turned completely green. Watered with neutral pH water when soil seemed a bit dry. Left on south facing window-ledge. End Nov 2008 started to turn red in newest leaves. Now absolutely splendid bushes with red 'heads' at the end of every twig.
Complain about this comment
Water with Ribena (other fruity cordial are available.)
Complain about this comment
View these comments in RSS