Poinsetia - home care

Many of us are familiar with the bright potter who, under Christmas, begins to unravel extraordinary bunches in the form of red stars, known as the Star of Bethlehem, the most beautiful spurge , Christmas star or punch. The flowers themselves are fairly plain and small, but bright bracts, often red, but can be yellow and white, make it very spectacular.

Poinsetia - care

Poinsetia, home care beyond which is not at all complicated, grows to 35-40 cm. It is absolutely not whimsical and does not need special conditions for growing. The ground for punching should be loose, with good moisture conductivity and with ph 6-6.5. She prefers scattered sunlight, direct rays can cause burns, which leads to yellow leaves turning yellow in the punch. That is why it is best to put the plant in front of the curtain, creating a barrier in front of the glass. The flower grows well at room temperature, and watering requires only as the soil dries. Poinsetia absolutely does not tolerate the cold, and in the heat it must be irrigated from the atomizer.

Reproduction of a punch

If you plan to grow the most beautiful of the milkweed, you need to know how to multiply the punch. Let's look at this in detail.

1. Trim the apical cuttings with 4-5 leaves. Dip for 10 minutes in water, the temperature of which should be about 40 degrees. This is necessary in order to rid the cuttings of unnecessary milky juice.
2. While the cuttings are in the water, prepare the soil in flower pots. The root system of punch is fairly modest, so in one liter pot, you can plant two cuttings. For example, a red and yellow punch, you get a very beautiful bouquet.
3. Take the cuttings from the water, dip the bottom in the "root" and plant in a pot to a depth of not more than 1 cm. Then cover with a jar. Rooting of the flower should take place in 3-4 weeks.

Peculiarities of growing

Reproduction of punch is not all that you need to know. To grow poinsetyi passed without problems, it is necessary to take into account certain points. First of all, for that? so that the plant blossoms, he needs a light day like at home, in the tropics of Central America, Mexico, and therefore - fairly short, not more than 10 hours. Therefore, within 8 weeks, starting from mid-September, try to provide her with the necessary regime. Take your beautiful woman to the closet or cover with a dark package, no matter how, but you need to give her 14 hours of darkness. After the punchset blossoms, you can bravely violate the light regime and leave it on the windowsill.

Also, do not forget about the pests that can attack the plant: thrips , spider mites and worms - all of them can cause yellowing and twisting of leaves and their dying off.

Sometimes punching leaves fall. This suggests that, most likely you did not comply with the temperature regime, and it froze, or too much water. But also this may well be the beginning of a period of rest, in which there is nothing terrible. All you need to know about this period is how to cut off the punch. After the plant discard all the leaves, cut the stems to a level of 10 cm and cut the watering in half. Put the pot in a cool place until the beginning of May. In early May, return the Christmas star to the window sill, transplant it into a new soil, begin to water abundantly with warm water, and it will come to life again. Do not forget to remove water from the pan to prevent rotting of the root system. If you, for some reason, can not provide your beauty with a proper rest period, then do not be surprised why your punch does not blush. After all, it will begin to bloom only after a quality rest. And remember, prolonged lighting will keep the growth of buds and increase the growth of leaves. Practice a "short day", and the punch is not slow to please you with its extraordinary colors.