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| Executive | News How to care for Christmas plants We all like to give or receive poinsettias, Christmas cactuses and cyclamens around Christmas time, but how to make them last long and well?
To make poinsettias bloom longer, keep the soil lightly moist, keep the plant in a cool place but avoid drafts. Make sure the plant gets good lighting and fertilize every 10 days. To make it bloom again the following year, plant it in the garden for the summer. In the fall put it in a slightly larger pot and bring it inside. Make sure the plant doesn't get artificial lighting at night. Your plant will be ready for Christmas!
The Christmas cactus (zygocactus) has nice colourful flowers and is easy to grow. It often blooms twice a year. The soil has to be kept slightly moist and the plant needs medium light. The plant likes to grow in a rather small pot. Wait 4 or 5 years before repotting. Put it outside during the summer and in the fall place it in a room without artificial light at night. When the cactus starts blooming, don't move or turn the pot or else the flowers will try to reorient and fall.
For the cyclamens to be happy, keep the soil slightly moist and place it in a cool place at night. Remove dead flowers and stems completely to avoid rot and always water from beneath. After it's finished blooming, water very little and let the plant hibernate for 4 to 6 weeks. When it starts growing again, transplant in a slightly larger pot. Plant it in the garden for the summer.
African violets are popular all year long but make nice little Christmas presents. Place them on a windowsill where they will get bright light but no direct sunslight (window facing north or east). Avoid draughty places When the plant is finished blooming, remove outer ring of leaves as well as suckers, that might grow perpendicularly to the main stem. After a while the central stem will seem to long. Remove the plant from its pot and slice an inch off the bottom and repot. When the pot feels light soak it in a bowl of water for half an hour. When the first new flower stem shows up, remove it. This will encourage heavier blooming. MORE
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