Thursday, December 07, 2006

Pointsettia. I bought a pointsettia from a co-worker's daughter's fund raiser. It's large & very nice. The bright red bracts are perfectly beautiful BUT I think it might have gotten a "chill" in either delivery or on the ride home. The bracts are beginning to look limp. I cut the bottom out of the green decorative foil for drainage. The soil feels neither too wet nor too dry. I tried to be very careful on the trip home because I know how little tolerance pointsettias have for cold. The next few days will tell.

I bought one from the same source last year. It was perfect and cheery for weeks. I put it outside in the shade this summer and fed it several times with fish emulsion solution. I brought it in in fall and put it in a room with natural light but not much artifical light. I forgot to trim it this summer so it's fairly large. The bracts are now turning red. If the new one doesn't survive the old one will take it's place

There is an excellent blog in the Allentown PA newspaper, The Morning Call - http://blogs.mcall.com/master_gardeners . An article on pointsettia has lots of information and tips. The blog is written by Penn State Master Gardeners at the Lehigh and Northampton County Cooperative Extension. There are always tips, information and links for gardeners.

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