I gave a poinsettia in church at Christmas in memory of my father in 1968. I put it in a large pot by the front door and left it there. My friend Gord drove down from Erie once a month or so for five years to water it when I was at Westminster Choir College in the early 90s. When the house was sided I moved it out to the yard where it stayed all summer. It was very straggly and had filled the entire corner of the room so I couldn't use my front door. Everybody said I should throw it out.
I couldn't. She is part of the family. I cut her way back and brought her back in. She needs a little care at the moment but she is very healthy. And, yes, she does get smallish red bracts beginning around Valentine's Day lasting till summer. This year may be different as I've had the TV on at night which may disrupt the light schedule.
Poinsettias are desert plants and need water only when they get dry. I still have one from Christmas 2011 on my table. Someday I will put it in the big pot. Meanwhile, people, don't water your poinsettias until they ask for it.
The brown mess at the bottom right of the photo is a water
plant which is currently covered with moss. You can see a couple of the
leaves. My sister-in-law gave it to me many years ago. I need to remove
all the moss one of these days.
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2 comments:
Some people have the same opinion of poinsettias that they do of Christmas fruitcake. But lovers of green plants--especially green plants that invoke memories--feel differently. My husband rescued a nearly frost-killed geranium from his parents' gravesite in Ohio this fall, brought it home, and is waiting for a new bloom.
I bought a geranium for a dollar last year and put it outside the church door. Eventually somebody brought the scraggly thing in. It almost always has blooms tho it doesn't get watered very often. I've never really liked them because Mom took a liking to the scent years ago and I got tired of it. This hardy plant has changed my opinion.
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