Beside the poinsettia

Other houseplants can be festive for the holidays, too

Does the world need yet another variety of poinsettia? How have we allowed one plant to have such a defining role in the holiday season?

Logic and reason have little traction here. The poinsettia's link to the sacred Christmas is tenuous at best. Certainly no one in Bethlehem 2,007 years ago would have seen Euphorbia pulcherrima, a tropical shrub from the Americas, and definitely not one wrapped in foil.

The poinsettia became the holiday pot plant thanks to the marketing and growing skills of the Ecke family, four generations of nurserymen who succeeded in instilling the plant as a living icon of the season. About 100 million poinsettias will find their way into the collective heart of the United States this Christmas, most of them varieties developed at the Paul Ecke Ranch in Encinitas, Calif.

You probably sensed that I am not a huge fan of poinsettias. Many of the newer varieties of poinsettias reflect some brilliant hybridizing skills. Modern versions are more colorful, densely branched and tolerant of imperfect conditions than early varieties. However, the poinsettia is still fussy about its growing environment.

Are there alternatives? Yes. Let's take a look.

Christmas cactus

The Christmas cactus (a tropical succulent from Brazil) makes a great gift plant and is easy to get to reflower if you don't keep it in a warm room in the fall, when you should be trying to initiate bloom. Summer the plant in a shady spot outside, and leave it out in the fall but protected from early frosts. After a month of nighttime temperatures in the low 50s, bring it into a room with bright but indirect light and allow the top inch or so of soil to dry out between waterings.

Dutch hybrid amaryllis

Dutch hybrid amaryllis come close to the poinsettia in their gaudiness. Red Lion is the ubiquitous scarlet variety, but I prefer some of the tamer ones, such as Picotee, white with a fine red edge, or an orange bloomer called Solomon. The butterfly amaryllis (Hippeastrum papilio) is more refined, and with orchidlike striations on the petals. This species, though, is still hard to find, and it's expensive.

Moth orchid

If you live in a house with warm rooms, pick a moth orchid, the common name for the phalaenopsis. The plant will accept temperatures in the 70s and dislikes it cooler than the low 60s, and it will adjust to average or low light. Don't remove the flower spike after the blooms drop. If the orchid is happy and the spent flower spike is as thick as a pencil, a second flower spike should grow from the first. If a leaf begins to yellow, wait until it can be pulled off by hand rather than cutting it. This will be healthier for the plant.

If you insist...

If you still favor the poinsettia, you're not alone. "They're wonderful plants," says Karl Gercens, conservatory gardener at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pa. He likes the Winter Rose series, in red, pink and an off-white, in which the flowering bracts are small, downturned at the tip and puckered. He also likes the Silverstar series, which also come in red, white or pink varieties, with variegated foliage.

He advises seeking out these and other more unusual varieties, healthy robust plants available at independent garden centers.

Cyclamen

If you keep a cool house with a bright room or two, consider a cyclamen. The cyclamen has attractive flaglike blossoms, held aloft from the clustered leaves, in pinks, white and a deep red that fits the season. Temperatures above 65 degrees are likely to stop the plant's continuous flowering cycle. Also, the cyclamen should be watered from below, its pot placed in lukewarm water for a few minutes and then drained.

When spring temperatures rise above 70 degrees, the leaves yellow and die as the plant goes into summer dormancy. If the corm, the bulblike organ at the soil line, is cured and stored, it can be replanted in October and started again. A single plant can be as much as 24 inches across, bearing hundreds of blooms.

Norfolk Island pine

For something cheap and cheerful, try the Norfolk Island pine. Its feathery foliage and graceful form are a plus, but what it really has going for it is its ease of care. It prefers a room with bright indirect light, temperatures on the cool side and some humidity, but it will take a lot of abuse and still look good.

Buy a healthy-looking plant and expect some needle drop if the tree is moved to lower light conditions, said Karl Gercens, conservatory gardener at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pa. Unlike a lot of holiday gift plants, the Norfolk Island pine is definitely a keeper. If it has a drawback, it is that in the wild it grows to 200 feet. Indoors, it hits the ceiling after 15 or 20 years and doesn't take to a trunk reduction.

Gardenia

The gardenia, though fussy, has a sweet aroma. It is a tender shrub that doesn't like hot, dry, overheated rooms. It also needs even moisture. If you let it dry out to the point that the leaves are wilting, it will probably drop the developing flower buds and you will miss out on that waxy white blossom and its heady scent. Just bringing the plant home from the nursery can risk bud drop. Keep it away from hot or cold blasts of air.