Prolong the Beauty of Christmas Plants

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service — Galveston County Office

December 26, 2018

Dr. William Johnson is a horticulturist with the Galveston County Office of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Visit his website at http://aggie- horticulture.tamu.edu/ PHOTO CREDIT: William M. Johnson galveston. Flowering pot plants, including poinsettia (pictured above), carried over from the holiday season extend the holiday spirit. With a little care, they will also continue News column printed in the Galveston Daily to brighten the home decor into the New Year. News, The Post, and Here's hoping you're other Galveston County CHRISTMAS CAC- shipped, unwrapped, Newspapers. among the households TUS: Christmas Cactus is displayed, purchased whose Christmas decor is an old favorite. It is and taken home. But graced by a beautiful hol- common for Christmas the majority of flower iday plant or even several Cactus plants to drop a buds will be retained, perhaps. Let's take a look few flower buds when and their great beauty at several of the more you get them home. in shades of magenta, popular Christmas flow- red, pink, orange, gold ers and how to care for These plants resent be- or white makes their them to prolong their ing moved at all while purchase worth it. beauty. blooming, much less being packaged, When they finish Page 2 Prolong the Beauty of Christmas Plants blooming, these plants should plant flowers when the days tive plant to give or receive. Or- not be discarded. The holiday (daylight hours) are short; conse- namental pepper plants will cactus will reward you with quently, they are difficult to- re thrive inside the home for sever- blooms every year for many years flower in the home if carried over al weeks, and will make an inter- if grown correctly. After all the for another year. esting potted or container plant flowers have dropped, Christmas for the patio or porch. However, cactuses should be given one- Lights used in the home provide do not allow the plant to be sub- month rest from active growth. long days and the kalanchoes will jected to temperatures below not set flower buds under such 35 degrees. Keep the plant in a well-lit win- conditions. They do make excel- dow, water sparingly and stop lent foliage plants once the flow- MOTH ORCHID: Moth Orchid, fertilizing until new growth be- ers are faded however. Just re- also known as the phalaenopsis gins in late winter or early spring. move the flower stalks and use as orchid, is the most commonly An east or west window will pro- a foliage plant. available orchid. Place these or- vide plenty of light. They also will chid plants in bright, indirect thrive on a porch or patio in a CYCLAMEN: Cyclamen is also light, away from direct sun and semi-shaded position during the called shooting stars as its large drafts. Orchids prefer warm summer. showy flowers really do resemble rooms with high humidity. Wa- falling stars. While flowers come ter sparingly and avoid pooling POINSETTIA: Poinsettias outrank in striking red, pink, salmon, or water where the leaves attach all other Christmas plants com- white colors, they fade and fall to the crown of the plant. Flow- bined in popularity. They are well fast, so they have a short "shelf ers are produced on a long slen- adapted to indoor temperatures life" as flowering plants inside the der stalk, and will open one at a so long as they are not allowed to home due primarily to tempera- time. sit in hot or cold drafts. Place ture conditions. them near a bright window and The blossoms will last several aim at keeping the soil evenly Cyclamen needs to be kept cool. weeks before dropping off the moist, but never soggy wet or A cool home interior will benefit stem. Allow the stalk to yellow overly dry. your cyclamen as well since it's and wither before cutting it off happy with temperatures are at the plant's base. Fertilize the Poinsettias used to be quite sen- around 66 to 68 degrees in day- orchid once a month with a di- sitive to changes from a green- time and about 65 degrees at lute fertilizer, such as a 10-10-10 house environment to that of a night. Keeping such temperatures or orchid mixture. When a new home, with leaf and flower drop this holiday season will be harder stem and flower buds appear, being a common problem. How- on the pocketbook given 80- stop fertilizing and enjoy the ever, with the new varieties avail- degree temperatures over the delicate blossoms again. able today you can just about a Christmas weekend and air condi- plan on your poinsettias looking tioners getting a winter workout. Flowering pot plants carried nice on Valentine's Day, if you over from the holiday season care to keep them around that CHRISTMAS PEPPER: Christmas extend the holiday spirit. With a long. Pepper is becoming more popular little care, they will also contin- each year as a gift plant. The col- ue to brighten any home decor KALANCHOE: Kalanchoes should orful red, yellow, orange, and into the New Year. be kept in a sunny window. This green peppers make it a distinc-