Keep Holiday Plants Perky

With a little TLC, plants can spread cheer all year.

By Sarah Ehrhardt
Pewaukee, WI

Typically, holiday gift plants look great when they arrive at your door—lustrous green and full of bright blooms. Unfortunately, their glory may quickly fade before you can say “auld lang syne.”

Want to keep that festive feeling long after the season has passed?

Look to this holiday survival guide for plants—and watch your living gifts just keep on giving!

Tips for Amaryllis

The big, splashy amaryllis is a nearly foolproof bulb plant that’s easy to keep going from year to year. Place the pot in bright light, and increase watering as blooms develop—but don’t let it sit in water. Turn the plant every few days to encourage symmetrical growth.

Once the buds open, you can place the plant wherever you like. After the bloom is finished, pinch off the flowers, wait a few days and prune away the scape (flowering stem), leaving the foliage in place. Continue to keep your plant in bright light, stake its foliage so it won’t break, and feed the soil with a balanced liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks.

When outdoor temperatures remain above 65°, bring the plant outside and sink the pot into soil up to its rim. Healthy green foliage in summer helps the bulb to build food stores for future blooms.

In September, bring your amaryllis back inside and begin withholding water and applying low-nitrogen fertilizer. As it begins to lose its foliage and go dormant, place the plant in cool storage (such as a basement), keeping it lightly moist until leaf tips emerge in 2 to 3 months.

At this point, scrape away most of the soil, fill the pot with fresh soil and put the plant back into bright light and 70° temperatures.

Now get ready for this brilliant bulb to shine through the holidays and beyond!

Safeguard Gardenias

For all their beauty, gardenias are temperamental houseplants, sensitive to cool drafts, overheating and low humidity. Temperatures under 70°, humidity around 50% and a little fresh air make for a happy plant.

Misting your plant regularly can assure proper humidity. Several hours of morning sun followed by diffuse light the rest of the day is best. Gardenias prefer an eastern exposure.

After it completes its blooming cycle, prune your plant a bit to keep it dense and neat. If you notice yellowing foliage, it may have an iron deficiency. Treat it with iron chelates (readily absorbed by plants), following label directions.

Recycling Cyclamen

Cyclamen prefer diffuse light and lower night temperatures of around 50°. Placing them near a drafty east window may be perfect. If you continue to see buds develop, you’ll know you’ve chosen the right spot.

Keep the soil evenly moist, but not soggy, to avoid basal rot. Soil should be almost (but not completely) dry before watering.

When flowers cease and foliage begins to die, put the pot on its side in a cool, dry place until early September. Then keep checking the tuber for new growth. When it begins, place the plant back in its ideal growing location, and enjoy another season of blooms.