As the holiday season approaches, homes and businesses come alive with decorations that capture the festive spirit. Among these, poinsettias stand out as a timeless favorite. Surprisingly, they hold the title of the top-selling potted plant in the United States—a remarkable feat given their popularity peaks during just a few months each year. With the right care and attention, their vibrant beauty can last all season—or even longer. Here’s everything you need to know to keep your poinsettia thriving.
Poinsettia Care Guide
Protect Your Poinsettias from the Cold
When transporting your poinsettias from the store to your home, make sure they are protected from the cold. Avoid transporting them in an open vehicle and bring them indoors as soon as possible.
Unpack Your Poinsettias Promptly
Protective plastic sleeves that come with your poinsettias help during transport but can cause leaf drop and yellowing if left on for too long. Remove the sleeves within 24 hours of purchase to keep your plant healthy.
Choose the Right Spot for Display
Place your poinsettias in areas with bright, indirect light. Avoid direct sunlight whenever possible. Poinsettias thrive in steady temperatures between 65 and 75°F, so keep them away from doorways or entrances where drafts might cause temperature fluctuations. Their bracts (modified leaves rather than flowers) are delicate and can bruise easily, so avoid high-traffic areas.
Tip: To cut and use poinsettias in flower arrangements or on wreaths, plunge the cut end of the stem into boiling water for about a minute or singe the end with a match to stop the sap from running. Then place the stem in cool water for a day. Cut flowers can last a week or so.
Check Water Levels Daily
Test the soil daily by pushing your fingers into it. If it feels dry, water lightly. Make sure to moisten the soil without causing water to drain excessively through the bottom of the pot. If your poinsettia came wrapped in colorful foil, punch holes through the bottom of the foil to allow the pot to drain. Overwatering can lead to root rot, which is the most common reason poinsettias fail.
Debunking the Toxicity Myth
Contrary to popular belief, poinsettias and their sap are not deadly to humans or animals. While ingesting them can cause mild irritation, such as a rash in the mouth or an upset stomach, poinsettias are generally harmless. However, the sap may cause minor skin irritation for some people.
Download a Poinsettia Care Sheet
How to Make a Poinsettia Bloom
The poinsettia is a long-night plant; that is, it flowers when the days are only 8-10 hours in length. As this plant would typically bloom in the spring, following its natural winter conditions, tricking the plant into an early winter means spring-blooming can take place for Christmas. To encourage your poinsettia to bloom in time for the holidays, you’ll need to simulate these conditions through a process called “short-day treatment.”
Timing
To initiate flowering, limit the plant to only 8 or 9 hours of good bright light each day for six to eight weeks, starting at the end of September. The other 15 to 16 hours should be dark (in a closet, under a box, etc.) This will encourage the plant to produce the colorful bracts that make it so iconic during the holiday season.
Caring for Your Poinsettia While Encouraging Blooms
While undergoing short-day treatment, it’s essential to continue watering the plant as needed but avoid fertilizing. Any disruption to the plant’s long night period can interfere with bud formation, so be consistent with the light and dark cycles.
Ending the Short-Day Treatment
Once the bracts begin to darken or show color, stop the short-day treatment. At this point, the plant will continue to deepen in color naturally, completing the blooming process just in time for the holiday season.
Tip for Post-Holiday Poinsettias Care
Caring for a poinsettia after the holiday season ensures it thrives year-round and can bloom again next year. Here’s how to keep your poinsettia healthy during its off-season:
- Resting Period: When the leaves begin to fade, it’s time to give your poinsettia a rest. Trim the plant back and place it in a location with drier, cooler, and dimmer conditions. During this period, reduce watering and allow the plant to recover.
- Spring Care: When new growth appears, place the plant in a very bright to direct sun location. Resume regular watering and fertilizing (apply a general houseplant formula according to label directions.) Some people prefer to keep their poinsettia in color through the winter and spring, so give the plant regular watering and access to bright light.
- Summer Care: Poinsettias benefit from summering outside in the morning sun or a dappled sun situation with regular water and fertilizer. For a bushier plant, pinch the plant back a couple of times over the summer until mid-August.
- Bringing Back Your Blooms: Start the short-day treatment at the end of September. Continue this dark/light cycle for six to eight weeks.
History of the Poinsettia
The Christmas Poinsettia: The poinsettia is the most popular indoor Christmas plant. Its association with the Christmas season is because it blooms at this time of year in its native region. In the 1600s, Franciscan priests used the flowers in celebrating a nativity procession, Fiesta of Santa Pesebre. Mexican peoples regarded the poinsettia as symbolic of the Star of Bethlehem. There is a legend in Mexico that a poor girl, who could not afford to take flowers to the Nativity in her church, received instructions by an angel to pluck a weed and place it at the altar, where it miraculously transformed into a beautiful red poinsettia.
In the mid-1920s, the United States ambassador to Mexico, Joel Roberts Poinsett, sent some of the plants home. He shared some of his hothouse-grown poinsettias with botanical gardens, and eventually, his name became commonly used to identify this beautiful plant. Each year the poinsettia appeared as a short-lived, delicate flowering plant around Christmas time. Still, its popularity took off when hybridizers managed to give it more strength and a more extended flowering period in the 1960s.
Today, the poinsettia is not only the most popular Christmas plant, but it is the number one flowering potted plant in the United States, despite its short six-week season of availability. More than 65 million poinsettias are sold annually in the United States. Botanically Euphorbia pulcherrima, the poinsettia is not a toxic plant as it was long thought to be, although some people may be allergic to its sap.
Celebrate the Season with Poinsettias from Meadows Farms
Stop by any of our VA, WV, or MD locations today to take home your perfect poinsettia. If you need advice on how to make your poinsettia bloom again next year, our knowledgeable staff is ready to help. Celebrate the season with a poinsettia from Meadows Farms—the perfect addition to your holiday décor.