Poinsettias

[green pinky]

There was a lovely, 30-plus-year-old poinsettia that grew in my mother's neighbor's yard on the Central Coast of California. It eventually reached about 12-15 feet in height, and although rangy, it bloomed reliably every year. I had tried taking branch cuttings before, but all of them failed -- I don't seem to have a knack for cuttings! The owners recently cut the plant to the ground so they could park their boat next to the house. I noticed new shoots coming up, and attempted to dig up some with roots to pot. However, every one I got the trowel under came up rootless -- I think they were breaking off of the master root underground. (It felt hard as a rock and I couldn't cut it with a knife.) These rootless "suckers" have just done phenomenally well -- I planted them in potting soil in one of those peat pots, and they've all grown a couple of inches and sprouted lots of leaves, and there are now roots growing through the walls of the peat. I also placed one in a little vase of water, and it has rooted as well. Time to pot them up! I've read a great deal on the internet about how to keep greenhouse or potted poinsettias alive, but haven't had much luck. I'm hoping that because the parent plant was naturalized and grew outdoors all its life, these will be hardier. While it thrived on the coast, I live in the San Joaquin Valley, where summers are 100-plus degrees and winters sometimes hit 30 degrees. I'd like to make this an outdoor plant. Anyone have any experience and/or advice with a plant like this? Thanks, and sorry for the length of this post. :oops:

[pruninggal]

That's a great story green pinky. Unfortunately a propagated plant will retain the characteristics of it's parent. Poinsettias won't change what climate conditions, even if thrown out to the wind to "toughen up". You may get lucky with your winters but will probably experience some die back as the extremes are not what it likes.

Good luck!
Pruninggal

[Newt]

Hi Green Pinky,
Don't worry about the length of your post. It's just fine. Take a look at these two sites to see if they are helpful.

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/g...es/poinsettia/
http://www.mexconnect.com/mex_/mexfa...ochebuena.html

Newt