The Poinsettia is a plant that is deep rooted in Christmas tradition. Every year people go out and buy beautiful red and white poinsettias to decorate their homes for Christmas. You can actually save those plants and keep them growing all year round, or you can even grow your own from seeds.

Sun – Poinsettias need 6 hours of sunlight everyday.

Soil – Peat soil is the best soil for poinsettias make sure it is slightly acidic peat soil.

Spacing – They only need to be watered when the top of the soil is dry.

Water – Water the soil whenever is dry on the top layer.

Food – Poinsettias need to be fertilized at the beginning of spring after the last frost.

Annual or Perennial – They are perennials and can live for many years. They will need some rest but not in the cold they need darkness in order to bloom again, 15 hours of darkness a day. Take it back out in the spring and sit it in the sun for 6 hours a day.

Climate/Hardiness – Poinsettias are tropical plants and are not cold hardy. You should only put them outside in the heat of the summer unless you live in a tropical area that never gets cold.

Harvest – You can harvest the seed pods from the poinsettias when they start to brown.

Transplant – Poinsettias are very tolerant of being transplanted.