All About Poinsettias
In the center of the colored bracts (modified leaves) that we think of as the petals, there is a small cluster of golden cup-like cyathia. These are the true flowers of the poinsettia. The best plant to buy is one that has cyathia still in the bud stage or just opening. It will stay fresh-looking longer.
The new varieties are much better adapted to conditions in your home than earlier ones. Quite often they will maintain their good looks and coloring on into the New Year if you keep them watered and in enough light. You won't find many poinsettias sold by their variety names, so I won't bother with a litany of those names, but you will usually find the newer ones at reputable florists and garden centers. The discounters usually have the older varieties that are not patented and so, cheaper to produce and sell. They were the best of their day, but they compare with today's cultivars like a model A Ford compares with a new model equipped with air bags, ABS brakes, stereo and air conditioning.
When you get yours home, take it out of the wrappings and set it in a saucer. Drop it into a decorative container if you don't like the plain pot. If you keep it "dressed" with the skirt and ribbon, you won't know when it is standing in water. Watering poinsettias sounds complicated, but really isn't. They want to be moist, not wet. Wet soil leads to root rot. It should feel like a well wrung rag, just damp. As soon as the surface feels dry enough that you could sit down on it and not get your underwear wet, give it a drink. If the soil dries out so far that the leaves begin to roll, there is damage done. In a day or two, the lower leaves will begin to yellow and fall off. The tighter they rolled before you watered, the more leaves will fall off. Keep the plant in a sunny window during the day and display it elsewhere, if you like, after dark.
I believe that poinsettias should be enjoyed through the holidays, then thanked and composted. If you are among those that want to give reblooming one a try, many of these new cultivars will make it more worthwhile than the older ones did. The "flowers" you produce yourself are never as large and beautiful as the ones produced
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