Gardening with Sam: Care for your holiday greenery
By Sam Warf / Community Columnist
Christmas is just around the corner, and we all like fresh greenery in our homes and porches – but sometimes we forget that it is fresh, and it has to have water.
If you have a live tree, be sure the tree stand keeps water in it, and supply water to all plants in containers, inside and out. When receive something from a florist, be sure you check the water level in the containers: in delivering, we might spell out some of the water or not have it full for delivery. When you pick something up from a florist, too, just check – don’t wait until they look bad to water. They will last longer if you take care of them.
Poinsettias and North Fork Island pine houseplants are delivered more than any other. When watering, do not let the water touch the leaves, and if you can, put rocks or sand on top of soil so the moisture will not rot the bottom of leaves. Keep these plants away from windows, with cold air coming in, and away from direct heat in your house.
Christmas cacti need light to make the buds open, but be careful not to let the heat from the window damage them.
It seems like everyone wants to know how to take care of Christmas cacti and make them bloom at Christmas; this all depends on our weather here. This is what I do:
When we first start having warm spring days, and we will not have any more cold nights, I bring them out of the house and put them behind my bushes around the house or in shade under a tree. Water when you do the rest of your potted gardens. Sometime around the October, start watering heavily, and just before you bring the cacti inside, before it get cold, shock them with double fertilizer. Put them in a warm window and turn every three or four days so the sun will make the buds start to open.
There are all kinds of cacti –Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas – so whichever one you have, enjoy whenever it blooms. I do.
Poinsettia – someone always asks why they can never get it to bloom after the first year.
You have to water when the poinsettia is dry. Take the paper off or basket, whichever one it is delivered to you in, and place in a saucer. Clay pots are the best, but plastic ones are OK as long you do not let the sun cook the roots.
When warm weather gets here, replant the poinsettia in a large pot and loosen the roots on the bottom. Add good soil to the sides and water well. Place outside in the shade and water like your other pot gardens. About October, shock with double fertilizer and bring in to sunny window – and it should do fine. Remember what we call blooms are the leaves.
