Poinsettia: The Christmas Star

Poinsettia (Euphorbia beautiful) is associated with Christmas from the 16th century. Legend has it that a poor Mexican girl did not have the money to buy a gift for Christmas. Angel prompted her to collect the weeds at the road and put them at the church altar. Weeds blossomed with beautiful scarlet flowers. Since the 17th century, Franciscan monks used poinsettia during the celebration of Christmas. The flower of poinsettia (more precisely, its bracts) symbolizes the Bethlehem star, which announced the birth of Jesus, and the red color of the bracts - the blood of the crucified Christ.

Poinsettia is a very popular Christmas plant. She is decorated with houses mainly in the NorthAmerica, but poinsettia is gradually becoming a very popular decorative indoor plant and we have. Christmas star blooms in December-February. The period of its flowering falls just on New Year's and Christmas holidays, why not take advantage of this and use this beautiful plant to decorate the house?

Poinsettia blooms for one and a half to two months, and sometimes more. During flowering, the optimum temperature forplants - a minimum of 14-16 ° C. To poinsettia blossom on time, you need to create conditions that are close to natural (short daylight hours). For two and a half months before the expected flowering (early December) at night the poinsettia is covered with black opaque polyethylene to conduct it in total darkness for at least 14 hours. After the emergence of buds, the plant can be transferred to the window.

When the flowering period is over, the bracts become pale, and then fall off. After this, the poinsettia passes into a short period of rest (it lasts about two months). At this time, watering should be significantly reduced, but at the same time the substrate must always be slightly damp. The optimal temperature for Poinsettia content during this period is 12-14 ° C.

Poinsettia grows fast enough, usually decorative hybrids reach 30 cm in height. This plant needs bright scattered light, poinsettia does not tolerate direct sunlight. Also poinsettia does not tolerate a sharp change in temperature and drafts. Most of the time (except for periods of flowering and dormancy), the optimum temperature for a Christmas star is 18-25 ° C.

In the summer, the poinsettia should be watered abundantly,The way the top layer of the substrate dries up. In winter, as we have already said, it should be watered moderately, but the substrate should not be allowed to dry out. Poinsettia needs high humidity, so it should be sprayed regularly. You can put a pot of a Christmas star on a pallet filled with wet peat or claydite.

In the period from spring to autumn, poinsettia needs to be fed. To feed it you need a mineral fertilizer inusual concentration. Transplant puansettia once a year, in the spring. Transplanting it into a larger pot, it is transferred to a warm sunny place and regularly watered.

After some time after transplantation poinsettia need pruning. The stems are cut to a third, leaving a few strong buds on the stem, usually 3-5 pieces. The rest of the time, the plant is cut slightly so that the poinsettia is more lush.

Propagation of poinsettia by cuttings. Cuttings cut in spring, they take root atsoil temperature 24-28 ° C in 2-3 weeks. By the way, as shoots, you can use shoots removed during pruning. Ideal soil for cuttings is a mixture of leaf humus, sand and dry manure.

Please note that milky juice poinsettia (as well as other plants from the family of spurge) poisonous. It can cause irritation of the skin and mucous membranes,an allergic reaction. Poinsettia can cause poisoning in domestic animals, especially it is dangerous for cats who like to bite houseplants, so make sure they do not have access to it.

If you decide to buy a Christmas star, it is better to choose a plant that was grown in a greenhouse in local conditions: this poinsettia is more enduring and less capricious. Poinsettia is a very beautiful and unusual plant, a real Christmas star, and with proper care it will please you not only New Year holidays.