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Gardening With Dora
Poinsettias fairly scream Christmas. They now come in all kinds of colors, not just the traditional, flamboyant red. You can now get white, yellow, even some with variegated foliage. A new one hit the market last year with ruffled leaves (they look a little like liver). The colorful part of the poinsettia is really leaf-like structures called "bracts." The flower is the little yellow "thingie" in the center. Pinch this out to prolong the life of the center foliage. Poinsettias have been around since 1828 when Dr. Joel Poinsett, a botanist from Greenville, S.C. and the first American ambassador to Mexico, found them growing wild on the hillsides around Taxco (wherever that is). Being a botanist first and an ambassador second, he dispatched some plants home to plant in his greenhouse. And thus it all began.
Poinsettias are reportedly poison, but a small child would have to eat around 70 plants for adverse effects. Most children don't even like salad much, so it is unlikely that they will consume your Christmas decorations. Your poinsettia needs good drainage and a moist growing medium. Over the heater vent is not the best place for it, nor is direct sun. Be sure there is a drainage hole in the bottom of your pot. They are not cold hardy, so they will need protection from frost. I once wrote a column explaining how to keep your poinsettia and have it bloom again next year. The University of Illinois had detailed instructions for this on their Web site and I read them carefully and faithfully reported all the steps. There was a lot of repotting, turning, pruning and hiding the plant in dark closets (at just the right time). It was all very confusing and I have forgotten all of it. These days I have reverted to the advice I always used to give people "Compost your plant, dirt and all, and buy another one next year." But buy at least one this year, you must. Three red ones on the hearth and you have instant decorations.
Dora Garrick Fleming is a native of Grove Hill. She was gone for years but is back home. E-mail her at doraflem-
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