A tale of determination...poinsettia style!

Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it and Happy Holidays to those who have a different way of welcoming this time of the year!




I thought I'd share the story of the poinsettia plant that a well-meaning friend gave to my mother-in-law last year.

As the de facto gardener/greenskeeper of the household, I tried not to frown at her when she carried the gorgeous plant into the house, since guess who would have to care for it? She assured me that it was artificial and would require no care from me. Fantastic!

Fast-forward a couple of weeks...and the beautiful plant is starting to look...droopy? Uh-oh. I moved all of the decorative paper aside, stuck my finger into...soil! It was quite dry. Whoops. Time for water, which, fortunately, perked the plant right up.

The family friend blithely told me I could just put the poinsettia in the backyard. Sigh. I looked up the care and tips and the articles stressed how touchy the plant was and how the bracts needed these special conditions (pH, soil consistency, etc.). No way. I was NOT going to work that hard on a plant I didn't especially want!

Eventually, the leaves fell off and the plant wasn't as gorgeous, so I stuck it, pot and all, in the garden. It got erratic watering, and it couldn't help but be root-bound, in that tiny pot. But it lived, even when the pot fell over and it didn't get water for several days. Hmm...guess I'd better stick it in a larger pot! But it won't turn red like it should, right?

Well...it not only lived, but it cheerfully made the bracts (despite not having fancy soil and pH testing and whatnot). So...the moral of the story...be tenacious in whatever you do, like that little plant!

A month ago, after our rare Southern California rainstorm