How to Grow and Re-Flower Poinsettias

Keep Your Flower of the Holy Night Growing past the Holidays

Dec 19, 2008

Many people receive poinsettias during the holidays and don't know that you can keep them growing all year long and get them to re-bloom the next year - if you're lucky!

The poinsettia or “flower of the holy night” has been a favorite plant with which to decorate the house or church for years. They come in reds, pinks, whites and marbled varieties that have speckles in those shades. New varieties can be found in yellow as well, but they are hard to find.

A Little History

The poinsettia originated in Mexico; the Aztecs used them for medication and to beautify their surroundings. Legend states that a young boy wanted to offer something to the church on Christmas Eve but his poor status prevented him from doing so. He knelt to the ground outside the church and prayed that he too would have something to offer the Christ Child on Christmas Eve. When he rose the beautiful red flower of the holy night sprung from the ground and spread all about him. He gathered an armful and presented the flower at the altar.

Joel Roberts Poinsett was appointed US Ambassador to Mexico in the 1820s. He loved botany and wandered all over the Mexican countryside bringing back many plants to his South Carolina greenhouse. One plant was the red leaved poinsettia. This wasn’t really the poinsettia as we see it in pots today. In its natural setting the plant can grow to 10 feet height. William Prescott was a horticulturist that wrote a book and named the flower after the ambassador that brought it to America.

How to Keep your Poinsettia Growing as Long as Possible

You can get poinsettias pretty much anywhere during the holiday season. The red that we call the flower is actually not the flower at all. They are leaves of the plant that have turned red. They are called bracts and the red ones are called modified bracts. The flowers are the small green to yellow areas inside the red bracts that hold the pollen.

When choosing a poinsettia make sure that you get one that is not wilted or has yellowed leaves. The green bracts should be dark green and the red ones should have very little green to no green on them. Do not purchase flowers that are in plastic or paper sleeves or that have been packed together too tightly. The leaves will fall off quickly. If the small flowers are laden with pollen and look yellow instead of green or red tipped the plant is nearly spent.

Cover the flower with a sleeve when bringing home if temperatures are less than 60 degrees. This is a tropical plant and it cannot tolerate cold temperatures. Your poinsettia will need at least 5 to 6 hours of indirect sunlight per day in order to stay fresh. Keep them away from cold windows and any drafts including hot air registers in the house. Daytime temperatures should run no higher than 72 degrees and night time temperatures should go no lower than 55 degrees. The leaves will drop if the temperature is not just right. Poke holes in the foil at the bottom of the pot and place in a saucer. Water when the soil feels dry and let the excess water drain. Poinsettias do not like to have their roots sitting in a bunch of water. This will cause root rot and your plant will wilt and die even though the soil is wet.

How to Re-Flower the next year

If you like a challenge you can reflower the plant for next Christmas. It is very work intensive but if you just want to see if you can do it, this is how.

After the holidays fertilize the plant with a regular houseplant fertilizer once or twice a month. You will see more green leaves growing and pretty soon the red ones and some of the green ones will drop. In February or March cut back the plant to about 5 inches in height to promote growth. In late May repot the plant in a pot that is 2 inches in diameter bigger than the old one. Water the plant and place in a sunny window. When outdoor night temperatures stay around 60 degrees, place the plant in a protected shady place for about 3 weeks. Then dig a hole in a sunny flower bed and sink the pot in the hole. Turn the pot 2 times per week to prevent the plant from rooting into the ground. Pinching back tall growth will produce a full plant. Do this about every three weeks leaving two mature leaves underneath each pinch.

During the summer begin to fertilize with a water soluble fertilizer every 2 to 3 weeks. When night temperature falls below 55 degrees it is time to bring the plant in and place it in a south window. You will then reduce fertilization to once a month. Poinsettias need a period of short days to no sunlight at all to produce the modified red bracts. If too much light is introduced it will continue to grow green bracts but no red will appear. Early September cover the plant with a heavy bag, dark cloth or put it in a dark closet at about 5:00 pm to 8:00 am. If you miss one day, the plant may not turn red. In late September or early October the plant needs 12 hours of complete darkness. Even a street light will cause the bracts to stay green. If you put it in a closet be sure not to open it during the hours of 5:00 pm and 8:00 am.

Flower buds should start to develop around the beginning of December and the bracts should start to turn red. Do not stop putting the flower in the dark until around December 15th or until red leaves are almost totally red. During the day the plant should be given as much light as possible.

This process is so extensive that it is probably better to just purchase a new poinsettia the next holiday since they are so inexpensive. But if you like a challenge it certainly is one.

The copyright of the article How to Grow and Re-Flower Poinsettias in Plants & Bulbs is owned by Deborah Harding. Permission to republish How to Grow and Re-Flower Poinsettias in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.