Living Christmas Gifts
Poinsettias
A bold and vibrant choice for the holiday season. Available in a variety of colors including red, pink, & white. Keep in bright light in a warm room and water when soil is dry.
Cyclamen
Cyclamen also make a great center piece or a gift. Cyclamen are traditionally sold during the Christmas season and into the winter. Most will bloom from mid-November until spring. Most of the blooms are white, red, pink or lavender and appear to hang upside down over the heart-shaped mottled green/gray foliage.
Norfolk Island Pine
An easy to grow conifer with many uses – seedlings for the terrarium, small plants for table display and tall trees as bold specimens in halls or large rooms. It is a slow growing tree (3 to 6 inches a year) bearing stiff branches covered with needles. Norfolk Island Pines resemble fir trees, and can be decorated at Christmas time.
Phalaenopsis Orchid
A great choice for a beginner to Orchids. Plants with long-lasting sprays of lovely moth like blooms in a broad array of colors are inexpensive and widely available, ready to give weeks of pleasure in your home or office. The main flowering season is late winter into spring.
Amaryllis
Amaryllis will provide you with the largest most exotic bulb flowers you can easily grow in your home. Flowers are 6 to 8” across. The amaryllis comes in many beautiful varieties including various shades of red, white, pink, salmon and orange. There are also many striped and multicolored varieties, usually combining shades of pink or red with white. They flower in late December for about 6-8 weeks.
Paperwhites
Paper whites (Narcissus tazetta) are popular indoor plants for winter and the holiday season. Unlike other Narcissus, paper whites don’t require a chilling period, so forcing them is as easy as putting the bulbs in water and waiting. The fragrant flowers bloom within about 3 weeks of planting, for almost instant gratification.
Christmas Cacti
Prefers a moist, well drained soil and moderate light. Blooms come in a variety of colors around the holidays, including red, white and pink.