Need advice on poinsettia

I once visited a plant nursery in Enfield that were cultivating poinsettias . (About 40yrs ago now)
Their masssive green houses had to fool the plants for several months into flowering at our christmas , by managing the available light very precisely. Huge screens in the roof of the greenhouses could automatically to darken it.
As a tropical plant they require a fairly exact 12 hrs daylight and are very fussy about watering and temperature. IMO life is too short to pander to such pernikity plants. Pop out and buy one in bloom.
However if you are one of those up for a challenge do some reasearch and see what happens.

Exactly what I was going to say Nellie. They cost about £5.

I’ve been given them as gifts, but have never been able to keep them alive. Perhaps it’s because I don’t like them.

Tried it once and it started to turn into a tree very quickly. Despite being kept in the airing cupboard and brought into the light for the right amount of time (I thought) it refused to change colour. It just grew more.

I'm glad this thread has cropped up as I have one in the garden at the moment from last Christmas which hasn't grown much and stayed sort of red, so I'll bring that in and see what happens. When went to Bhutan they were growing as hedges. All red and glowing and enormous!

You might be better with an arthurium, I have one that was given me for christmas two years ago which has hardly stopped flowering since. It sits on a west-facing kitchen windowsill and gets watered when I remember. It is rather rude-looking - apparently one of its common names is boy flower.

Poinsettias need 12 hrs of darkness in a warm place followed by 12 hrs of daylight - not direct sunlight. No draughts or fluctuating temperatures then you might be successful in getting the leaves to colour up.

I'm afraid I CBA and always end up buying a new one.

I buy three or four every year, usually from Lidl and am always happy if they last until January. On Thursday I got one from a local supermarket, discounted to just 90p because it was going our of date!

Er......a plant out of date?? That made me laugh GA! Thanks for all the tips everyone, will try shutting it in the hall cupboard overnight for a while and see what happens.

Just to say that the red of poinsettias are the bracts, not flowers. The flowers are tiny insignificant little things.

But I am no help on trying to keep them from one year to the next - even following all instructions I till manage to kill them off!

still not till

I have luck with all my plants except the dreaded Poinsettia they always fail and die off quickly no matter what I do.

They grow outside in warmer climes and can become enormous.

Yes, I thought that Jalima ( thought flowers, wot flowers?)
I buy one in December and it lasts ages, as somebody said, put it out of droughts and not left on cold windowsills.

I usually buy a pale pink one, or a cream colour.

They have to be red in this house, they sit in the fireplace when the fire is not on, that's probably why they die because of the draught.

They look nice while they last.

I spotted one in the garden centre today that was a kind of dusky red rather than the usual bright ones.

Looks nice on the kitchen dresser.

Someone asked this question on local radio this morning. Apparently you have to put it in a box, black bag or dark cupboard (don't open the door) from 5.00 pm to 9.00 am and it will then gradually turn red. I have no idea myself as I kill every plant I have ever been given - SiL gave me artificial plants last Christmas!!

Nope, if I buy one they die. So I never do. Simples.

Is it worth buying daylight lamp?

Hmmm I might try covering my poinsettia from 7pm with a black rubbish bag. And I have bought a daylight bulb.
I wonder what the function is of the leaves turning red.