Buy poinsettia plants now for color throughout the holiday season.
Pick plants that are rich in color and have no browning at the leaf tips. There should be no signs of wilting from lack of water.
Buy plants that are free from disease and insect problems. Turn several leaves over and inspect for unwanted holiday pests. And then, refuse to bring them home. I think there is a correlation here.
Poinsettia should have a group of tight yellow buds at the center of the colorful brackets (flowers). If the yellow buds have started to open, the plant is past its prime.
Once home, place your poinsettia near a window with at least six hours of bright indirect sunlight, avoid drafts and keep the plant soil slightly moist, not soggy.
These holiday plants come in a variety of colors. As with any design, try to coordinate the flower colors with the colors of your decorations.
Buy a colorful holiday container for your poinsettia. Those shiny plastic things that the plant comes in when you buy it are meant to be temporary.
Remember, one very large, colorful, healthy poinsettia makes a more dramatic and tasteful statement than a bunch of tiny plants!
One final note: If there are weird colors or sparkles on the leaves and flowers, your poinsettias will look like plastic. This Christmas, dont buy live plants that look like fake plants … yikes!
Todd Goulding provides residential landscape design consultations. Contact him at 478-345-0719, www.fernvalley.com or on Facebook.
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