Brentwood garden nursery shares how to keep poinsettias healthy

BRENTWOOD, Mo. - Many people enjoy visiting their favorite local nurseries to pick out that fresh Frasier fur and wreath during the holiday time. The experts at Garden Heights Nursery in Brentwood share how to keep one notorious Christmas plant alive all season long and beyond.

Every year, as soon as Halloween is over, nurseries begin the transition, filling their stores with holiday décor, wreaths, and, of course, poinsettias.

“It’s just the color this time of year. I mean, that’s what people associate it with the holidays because it’s red and green. We have white, we got an orange one that we got in more for Thanksgiving. There’s endless amounts of color combinations that you can get in them,” Garden Heights Nursery Manager Denise DeGhelder said.

A cold-season plant, most commonly bought at the end of November and December, poinsettias are native to Mexico and Central America. They can rebloom annually with a maximum height of up to 15 feet.

“You want to treat them a lot like a regular houseplant, really, in bright and direct light. Which all house plants are going to want. You don’t want them to be wet, but you also don’t want them to go completely dry. So moderately damp at all times is probably a good plan,” DeGhelder said.

Although they have a reputation for being mildly toxic if consumed by pets, they are not poisonous. 

“A pet would have to consume an entire plant, and it still would not be fatal. It wouldn't be anything more than just an upset stomach," she said.