Can I plant my poinsettias into the garden? Sure, but don’t expect blooms lke the original plants’ | Home/Garden

Garden columnist Dan Gill answers readers’ questions each week. To send a question, email Gill at gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu.

I bought several beautiful poinsettias for Christmas. It seems a shame to throw them away. Can I plant them in my yard? — Jessica

Don’t plant your poinsettias in your landscape just because you have them. I generally discard my poinsettias after the Christmas season is past (for me, the Christmas season ends at Twelfth Night on Jan. 6). They go into the compost pile and I don’t feel a bit guilty. I think of these plants as temporary decorations like flower arrangements.

However, they can be planted in the landscape and provide years of beauty. Plant them if there are spots where you think poinsettias would look good and fit in well with the existing landscape.

The time to plant poinsettias outside is late March after danger of frost has passed. Until then, keep the plants in a sunny window and water when the soil begins to feel dry. Cut the plant back about half way just before planting (even if the colorful bracts are still on the plant).

Plant your poinsettias in a sunny, well-drained location protected from north winds and frost. The south side of a house or wall is usually a good spot. Make sure the location receives no artificial light at night from flood lights, street lights or porch lights as this will prevent poinsettias from blooming properly.

Poinsettias grow to be fairly large over time (8 feet tall and wide), so to keep plants bushy and compact and to encourage more flowers, pinch them occasionally during summer. Pinching means to pinch or prune off the tip of a growing shoot. Branches that are pinched will develop several growing shoots where there was just one.

Do not pinch or prune poinsettias after the first week in September as this will delay or prevent flowering. Fertilize your poinsettias with your favorite fertilizer during the summer per label directions.

You also can continue to grow your poinsettia in a pot. For now, keep it indoors in a sunny window. In late March, repot your plant into a container about 8 to 8 inches wider than the one it is in. Poinsettias do best when grown outside in a sunny spot. So, after repotting, move your plant outside. Water regularly as needed and use your favorite soluble fertilizer following package directions.

After September, make sure your plant is in a spot that gets no artificial light at night. The long nights will stimulate the plant to bloom for Christmas.

When your plant blooms, don’t expect it to be as spectacular as when you purchased it. It takes professional know-how and the controlled growing conditions of a greenhouse to produce quality blooming poinsettias like the ones you see available commercially.

But some gardeners simply enjoy the experience of bringing a poinsettia into bloom — and that’s what gardening is all about after all. 

Please give me your best suggestion to remove dollarweed from a centipede lawn. Thank you. — Bill Waterson

Dollarweed is a common lawn problem this time of the year, and the recent warm weather has really encouraged it to grow. It is often most prolific in lower areas that tend to stay wet.

Atrazine is the most effective lawn herbicide for dollarweed control based on LSU AgCenter trials. Atrazine is labeled for use on centipede and St. Augustine lawns. Apply any time the weather is mild, 60s during the day and 40s at night, in January or February. Two applications may be needed for complete control. 

Garden tips

PLANT NOW: Vegetables to plant in January include beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, collards, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, mustard, radishes, shallots, snow peas, spinach, Swiss chard and turnips. Plant seeds of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants in greenhouses or under lights indoors in late January to produce transplants to be planted out in March.

ONLY IF YOU HAVE TO: Only use garden pesticides when the problem has been properly identified and they are absolutely necessary. There is no need to spray an insecticide, for instance, every time you see a bug or minor damage. When a pesticide is recommended, always ask for the least toxic product that will do the job.

A WARM DRINK: During cold winter weather, the water coming out of the tap can be decidedly chilly. When filling up your watering can to water your indoor plants, don’t just turn on the cold water tap. Turn on both cold and hot water and adjust the temperature of the water coming out of the faucet until it feels tepid or barely warm. This is healthier for tropical houseplants and will prevent the spotting of African violet foliage.

KEEP ON MOWING: Regularly mow lawns overseeded with ryegrass at a height of 1½ inches to keep them looking attractive.

STILL COOL: Petunias, snapdragons and other cool-season bedding plants may bloom less during the midwinter period but should pick up again in the late winter and early spring. If the foliage color is a good deep green and the plants seem to be growing well, you shouldn’t need to fertilize now.

Garden columnist Dan Gill answers readers’ questions each week. To send a question, email Gill at gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu.

Dan Gill is a retired consumer horticulture specialist with the LSU AgCenter. He hosts the “Garden Show” on WWL-AM Saturdays at 9 a.m. Email gardening questions to gnogardening@agcenter.lsu.edu.