How to Care for your Flower Bin Legendary Poinsettia Plant

  

Poinsettias are one of the top choices for holiday plants, and it's easy to see why. Available in a wide variety of breathtaking colors from frost white to solid red, poinsettias add sparkle to your holiday display like no other plant.  

  

The botanical name for poinsettia is Euphorbia pulcherrima, meaning “the most beautiful Euphorbia”, an appropriate description for the most popular holiday plant in the United States.  

  

Poinsettias are native to Mexico and Central America and were introduced in the United States by Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. They quickly became a popular Christmas plant, a tradition that continues today.  The poinsettia we know today is a result of the significant contributions of Horticulturalist Paul Ecke Jr., whose innovations transformed the poinsettia into the country’s best-selling potted plant.   

  

Poinsettias have thin foliage leaves that vary in color from pale to dark green. The showy parts of the poinsettia that most people think of as flowers are specialized leaves, called bracts. The actual flowers are tiny yellow clusters found at the very center of the bracts. In nature, the brightly colored bracts are there to protect the plant and to attract insects to the flowers to spread the pollen.   

  

  

At The Flower Bin, we grow all our own standard-sized poinsettias, a process that begins in late summer.  Every step of the way, from planting to bloom, Jose and his knowledgeable staff carefully attend each poinsettia, assuring you that the plant you are purchasing is locally grown and of the highest quality. That’s what makes them legendary. 

 

  

We also paint a few poinsettias in glittering blue, purple and gold to add some sparkle to holiday display. 

  

Proper care for your poinsettia begins before you leave the store. If you choose, we will wrap your poinsettia in foil and ribbon. We cut a drain hole in the foil on the plants we wrap so your plant will drain properly.  We will carefully bag your poinsettia when it’s cold, to protect it on its way home.  

  

Once you arrive at home, unwrap your poinsettia and place it in a room where it will get bright light, but not direct sunlight.  Poinsettias don’t like drafts, so keep your plants away from heater vents, fireplaces, doors, and cold windows. The ideal room temperature should be between 65°F and 70°F (18°C to 21°C). 

  

Water your poinsettia thoroughly when the top inch of soil is dry to the touch. Poinsettias don’t like to sit in water, so discard any water that has collected in the saucer under the plant.  

  

With proper care, your poinsettia will last through the holiday season and retain its beauty well into the New Year. If you decide to keep your poinsettia after the holidays, you should care for it as you would any other houseplant. Keep it in a bright location, out of direct sun, water regularly and fertilize with an all-purpose houseplant fertilizer such as Schultz 10-15-10. 

On the weeks you don’t fertilize with Schultz, water with SUPERthrive®.  The kelp-based formula in SUPERthrive® helps nourish and invigorate plants, enhancing their overall health and vigor.