"If you've bought or received a poinsettia, remove the foil around the pot if you haven't already. Foil holds the water, and poinsettias don't like wet feet. They're also touchy about temperature (no colder than 65 degrees), nutrition, light (need strong sunlight at times), complete darkness (especially when building color for "blossoms" called bracts), insect invasions and disease. When the plant starts to look ratty, I discard.
If you are determined to keep it over for next year, you'll have to find a way to give it total darkness 14 hours a day from about Oct. 1 to mid- to late-November, and to give it bright sunlight at least three to five hours a day. Put it in a closet for 14 hours, and if someone opens the door, the total darkness is destroyed. This is one of the most difficult plants even for greenhouses to grow well."
(By Margaret Lauterbach)
OK. If, (when) I kill mine, remember, GREENHOUSES find it difficult to grow this plant.
Speaking of plants.....who isn't looking forward to spring already? I am. Well, sort of. I'm still anticipating our annual trip to the yurt next month. Always great. After that it will be time to start gearing up for spring.
Until then, I've been knitting, knitting, knitting. Made tube slipper-socks for the family for Christmas.
If you want the pattern, just email me. It was way easy and they fit great.
Now I'm starting "real" socks. (Socks with heels.) And a new sweater. Can't wait to see how they turn out. I'll keep you posted.
We've had plenty of snow so far here in Idaho. Makes for some interesting drives to work. And it's also just plain pretty.
These Junkos have been eating bird seed in our back garden.
And speaking of spring, I'm hoping to grow some of these luscious beauties this year thanks to Patsi at Heirloom Tomatoes.
(The great pictures are from her blog.)
Makes your mouth water, doesn't it?
Let me know if you've already started your spring seed planting.
10 comments:
Oh gosh . . . those poinsettias are too much work for me. They're so fussy.
But those tomatoes! I'll nurse along a tomato plant just to be able to slice one open and put in a sandwich - yum.
I totally agree supporting the green house growers is an admirable goal.LOL.
Love the colourful socks , I would like the pattern, please and thanks.
Looking forward to your pics of your annual trip to the yurt.
Good luck on starting your heirloom tomato seeds. I am just now going through my seed catalogues to see what appeals to me.
You do seem to have lots of snow but how nice to have the birds enlivening the winter landscape.
In warm temperate or sub-tropical Pacific regions we have to prune back the many overgrown 3 metre tall stalks of all our outdoor poinsettias hard (really hard) after they have flowered (being careful not to let the often-irritant sap crust hands or clothes), and then wait a month or two for them to grow back tall enough to make a great hedge . . . The plant is tough in the right conditions, but being grown in a greenhouse then sold by an air-conditioned shop to go to your something-else shelf environment makes life pretty challenging . . .
Just threw my poinsettias out !
I read that somewhere about keeping them alive. It's sorta like starting plants from seed under lights (16 hours light,then no light and keep cool). That's find for 5 or 6 weeks for starting plants, but all the time...get the heck out of here!
Wow,you made some colorful socks!
Everyone has to love them.
I want to go back to see your post to see what kind of bird you have but then I'd have to start writting all over again...for a blogger...I'm not crazy about typing. I know I saw snow so you must be in the mountains.Just rain here seems like everyday.
Cool, you were able to capture a pic of those tomatoes. If you need help let me know. I could just post a "how to" on starting plants from seed indoors. There's an idea!
Your socks look very warm and comfy...pretty, too!
We are enjoying feeding the birds here, too....lots of Juncos and the House Finches showed up immediately after we put out the seed, didn't even see one before. We also have Quail and Pheasants and wild Turkeys. I try not to encourage the turkeys, because they could destroy a garden in no time, but usually we don't see them in the spring/summer...they must move to higher elevations.
Oh, home grown Tomatoes sound sooo good right now! I hope to do a review soon on some new varieties I trialed this year.
I am ready to begin some winter-sowing of perennials.
www.wintersown.org
Have a gift for you if you stop by. Yes, it's a meme. Hope you know Spanish.
I'm eyeing up seeds in the catalogs, but we're a while away from seed planting up here. I can't wait though. I sure hope I am able to get organized enough to get my craft room/green house area put together soon.
Wow, no wonder no one can ever get their poinsettias to last! I'm more of a "Chia Pet" kind of plant person. If I can't just spray it and go, forget it.
Woo hoo, it's yurt time! I've only experienced one yurt trip "with" you. Can't wait to hear about it this go around!
Plus d'article ??? plus de mail ?? j'espère que tout va bien pour vous.
Bisous
François,
Poinsettias were invented for me to kill... and I do it well.
What happend at the yurts?
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