Caring for Christmas Plants

Poinsettias are probably one of the most classic of all Christmas plants and come in a wide variety of shades and sizes. They are an excellent plant for holiday decorating, and the variety colour options allow them to fit into any decorative theme.

• Poinsettias are very sensitive to fluctuations in temperature. Bring your plant home wrapped in plastic or paper, and do not leave it in your car.
• Once inside, place your poinsettia in a warm, well-lit area away from drafts, radiators, or ventilating ducts.
• Poinsettias do best in moist soil. Water when the surface starts to feel dry. Overwatering a poinsettia can result in leaf wilt or leaf drop.
• Cut back the stems in late March until they’re about 20 cm (8″) tall to bring your poinsettia back into full colour for the following Christmas.
• Give your poinsettia a short resting period of a few weeks and water less often.
• Come June, transplant the poinsettia into a pot 2.5 cm–5 cm (1–2”) larger than its current pot. Keep the plant in a sunny window or move it outside into light shade.
• Fertilize with Parkwood® Water Soluble 15-30-15 and water regularly.
• Watch for insects and spray with an insecticidal soap if necessary.
• In September, bring the poinsettia indoors. For the next 8–10 weeks, your plant must receive 14 hours of complete darkness each night. Place a cardboard box over it or put it in a closet overnight. Continue to keep the soil moist and fertilize every 2–3 weeks. When small bracts begin to appear, you can return the plant to normal light conditions.

The Christmas Cactus is a succulent houseplant that acquired its name because it blooms around the Christmas season. Stems of these plants are in segments and arch gracefully as they mature, and bright pink, red, or peach flower forms at the end of each branch.

• Keep the cactus moist when in bloom.
• Let the plant rest once it has finished blooming.
• Place it out of direct sunlight during spring and summer.
• Fertilize with Parkwood® Flower Food 15-30-15 during bud formation and blooming.

 

 

Cyclamen are a small flowering plant that is popular around the holiday season as their soft scents and lovely blooms will brighten up any home.

• Cyclamen thrive in cool temperatures and are perfect for that vacant window in your home lacking colour.
• Flowers come in red, pink, magenta, mauve, and white.
• Cyclamen have attractive heart-shaped leaves with silver tracings.
• Cyclamen do best in a bright east or west-facing window with a daytime temperature of 18°C (65°F) and an evening temperature as low as 5°C–10°C (40°F–50°F).
• Water from the bottom, and sit the plant in a deep saucer. Add water to the saucer, and leave for a half hour.
• Fertilize every 2–3 weeks with Parkwood® Water Soluble Flower Food 15-30-15.

 

Indoor Azaleas are a beautiful holiday plant that come in a variety of fluffy white, red, purple and pink blooms.

• Azaleas produce masses of flowers over a 4–6 week period.
• They like bright light and lots of water.
• The soil must not be allowed to dry out, or flower buds and leaves will drop.
• To prolong the life of your azalea, take it outside during the summer months and place it in a partially shaded area.
• Water regularly to keep the soil moist and fertilize with Parkwood® Flower Food 15-30-15 every two weeks.
• Leave the plant outside until the end of October, spray it with insecticidal soap, treat the soil with insecticidal dust, and bring it inside. The contrast between the cool outdoor temperatures and the consistent warm temperature inside shocks the azalea into another round of flower production.

 

The Kalanchoe plant is a succulent that has cheerful blooms in shades of yellow, orange, pink, red, white, and peach. They are closely related to the Jade plant and are very easy to grow and maintain.

• As a succulent it loves the sun and only needs watering every 2–3 weeks.
• They have a particularly long blooming period for a succulent.
• When blooming has finished, trim back the flower stalk and keep it in the sunniest south or west-facing window.

 

Mumsettia are a combination of Chrysanthemums and Poinsettias.  These are a popular plant during the Christmas season due to their contrast of the red and white. The mums will typically stay in bloom for up to three weeks.

• A popular gift idea is a basket or decorative container planted with 3–5+ tropical plants that might include trailing variegated ivy, an African violet, a kalanchoe, a palm, or a prayer plant.
• Place this arrangement in bright light and water only when the soil is dry to the touch.

 

Looking for more indoor plants? Visit any of our Sheridan Nursery locations to find a wide selection of excellent quality indoor and tropical plants, pots and potting materials.