It seems too early to think about Christmas and poinsettias, but October is the time to turn your poinsettia red for the holidays. Every year we buy a colorful poinsettia to add to our indoor holiday decorations. Two years ago, we decided to try our hand at keeping it alive for the next year. It was not easy, but it was rewarding.

We kept the poinsettia inside during the cold winter weather, placing it near a window for as much sunlight as possible. It lost leaves and struggled to survive in the dry heat of the house, but as soon as we could, we took it outside to grow in the springtime air. We were amazed how it flourished over the summer with proper watering and fertilizing. The greenery was fantastic, and the plant, whom we named Ruby, loved her surroundings and morning sunshine.  

We researched how to turn Ruby’s leaves red for the holidays and began her wintering cycle in mid-October. Poinsettias must have six to eight weeks of uninterrupted darkness for fourteen hours every night to force the plant to produce its colored bracts, which are modified leaves that most people mistake for flowers. Even the smallest amount of light, like a streetlight or television, will interrupt the process. So we placed Ruby in the dark garage and covered her with a black plastic bag every night.

We put Ruby to bed at six o’clock in the evening, uncovered her at eight o’clock in the morning, and moved her outside to bask in indirect sunlight for ten hours. We repeated this process every night and discovered more leaves turning red each week. It was amazing! The garage protected her from temperatures below 50 degrees at night and if the daylight hours were too cool to suit her, we’d bring her inside the house. When the bracts had fully changed color, we stopped the long-night treatment and brought her inside to celebrate the holidays with us.

This year, we are covering her up again after she thrived in the summer and fall weather. She had one mishap in the summer when a squirrel jumped in the middle of her foliage and broke her top off. Ruby survived the shock. We rooted the broken piece and planted it in a separate pot, named it Red, and he is growing like a weed. Red is now being wintered in the garage with his mom, sleeping by her side under a black plastic bag until they both have red leaves to brighten our house for the holidays.