Holiday Plant Care

Learn how to care for your favorite holiday plants with our tops on holiday plant care.

1. Christmas Cactus

This beautiful holiday plant blooms around Christmas, adding a little extra color and warmth to your home. These Christmas miracles enjoy bright, indirect lighting; too much sun can damage the leaves. They do not like being near fireplaces, heat vents, or areas with an abundance of heat, but they do love the humidity!

Provide your cactus with a well-draining cactus soil and container. Be careful not to overwater or underwater your Christmas cactus. While this is still a cactus, they do not like their soil to completely dry out. These plants are the perfect way to add a little color and magic to your holiday season!

2. Poinsettias

First, let’s get this out of the way- eating the leaves of a poinsettia will NOT prove fatal toward you or your pets… that is a MYTH (as found by The Ohio State University and Cornell University)

Poinsettias are super low maintenance. These festive plants only need to be watered about once a week. It is better to underwater Poinsettias than to overwater them. Try to keep them away from air vents, as they are not a big fan of heat sources. Poinsettias can placed anywhere in your home to enjoy them for the Holiday season. They do not have to be in a bright, sunny window because when you buy them from Barlow’s, they have already flowered and no longer need a direct source of sunlight. We grow over 15 varieties, including Winter Rose, Jingle Bells, and the mini poinsettias.

Watch Stephen talk more about the varieties we carry and how to keep your Poinsettia thriving!

Right now is a great time to put them in your home for holiday parties or just to add the final piece of decorating! 

3. Cyclamen

Cyclamen are a great addition to your indoor holiday arrangements. These festive indoor plants enjoy a cool, yet humid environment and bright sunlight. Place your cyclamen in a shallow tray of water with pebbles to keep the pot above the water. Only water the cyclamen when the soil has dried out to the touch on the surface. To keep your plant flowering, continually deadhead to promote new flowers. After plant is done flowering, water regularly. If the leaves turn yellow, allow plant to dry out.

Apply fertilizer when new growth resumes in late summer or early fall. Continue to fertilize monthly until the plants begin to go dormant in spring or early summer. Cyclamen does not require fertilizer or water during its dormant period. In the summer, repot the corm (beet like root) and set the pot outside in a shady spot. Keep the soil lightly moist. Cyclamen can be placed outdoors if the temperatures are above 32 degrees. Be sure to bring your cyclamen in before the first frost.