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Many plants have become associated with the holiday season, and they do a great job of brightening up our homes during those gloomy winter months. They can be considered nice, long-lasting flower arrangements that can be discarded after they finish blooming, but some can become part of our homes and gardens for many years to come.

Poinsettias are by far the most popular holiday plant with over 100 million of them sold worldwide every year. They come in over 100 different varieties and have even been given their own special day. By an act of Congress, December 12 is National Poinsettia Day. The Ecke Ranch in California began growing commercial quality cultivars in 1963 and today produces over 75 percent of all poinsettias sold. Pretty good for a plant that was wild growing in southern Mexico when it was discovered in 1828.

Before transporting your poinsettia home, make sure it is well wrapped as even a few seconds of exposure to frigid temperatures can damage the plant. Unwrap it as soon as you get home and then remove any decorative foil from the base of the pot to provide good drainage. Poinsettias are very susceptible to root rot, so always check first before watering and use only lukewarm water. To extend the bloom time, use a diluted liquid fertilizer a few days after bringing it home. Place the plant where it can receive six hours of sunlight a day, but keep it away from cool drafts or direct heat sources.

Poinsettias can easily be kept beyond the holidays. It will begin to go dormant in February so reduce watering to once a week and cut back the main stems to half their length. When all danger of frost is past, it can be brought outdoors to a location that receives no direct mid-day sunlight.

Because poinsettias are "photoperiodic" it can be tricky to get them to "color" again. By the way, the colored parts of the plants are the "bract" and not the flower. The flowers are located at the center of the bract grouping. Special light/dark requirements to re-color should start in late August-early September and include 13-15 hours of total darkness a day.

Placing a cardboard box over the plant works well. Any leaking light will disrupt the process. Once the bracts turn color, the light/dark treatment can stop.

It is only a myth that Poinsettias are poisonous. No part of the plant is harmful, but some people with very sensitive skin can react when the skin comes in contact with the milky sap of the plant.

The Christmas Cactus is not really a cactus at all but is a tropical plant native to South America and is plentiful in Brazil. These days it is also called the Holiday Cactus due to the fact that different varieties also bloom at Easter and Thanksgiving time as well as Christmas. Because the Christmas Cactus is more in the nature of a houseplant, it requires the same care. It needs water only when the soil is dry to the touch, grows best in direct sunlight, and should be kept away from drafts and direct heat sources. It only needs to be fertilized 4 times a year but never during bud formation. Christmas Cactus are "Thermo-photoperiodic" meaning bud set is triggered by a combination of day length and temperature, however, if it is kept in a room that stays at about 55 degrees, the light/dark treatment in not necessary for re-bloom.

I believe the Christmas Cactus is a very forgiving plant once established and reasonably cared for and will last for many, many years Amaryllis are my favorite holiday plant. Those big dry looking bulbs produce the most glorious blooms and the bulb can be made to produce year after year. The Amaryllis we know today is not an amaryllis at all but is instead a hybrid of the Hippeastrum. It was discovered in South America and today, most all bulb production takes place in Holland and South Africa.

The easiest way to get started is to purchase an Amaryllis bulb kit which comes with the bulb, pot, planting mixture and easy to follow directions. These kits are inexpensive and the one I bought last year ended up with six big beautiful blooms.

When the blooms fade, nip them off so no energy goes into seed production and remove the stalk when it withers and turns yellow. When all danger of frost is passed, the plant can be moved outdoors, first to a shady spot and then a sunny one. In September, move the plant indoors to a cool dark place, stop watering, and remove foliage as it browns and dries. In late November-early December, bring the plant back to a bright location, add fresh dirt if needed and water thoroughly. The cycle will start all over again and in 6-8 weeks you will be rewarded with more beautiful blooms.

Some other suggestions for holiday plants are Norfolk Pine, Cyclamen, and Lucky Bamboo. If you would like more information on any of the plants mentioned in this article, please call the Master Gardeners at the Chisago County Extension Office at 651-674-4417. We will be happy to send you the appropriate publication or we can have a Master Gardener call you back.

Information on these and other plants is also available on our website at www.extension.umn.edu .

Happy Holidays from the Chisago County Master Gardeners!

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