Growing media for poinsettias depend on conditions and watering
Poinsettias bring beauty and color to the Christmas season. However, many growers know that they can be challenging to grow. Source: Premier Tech Horticulture.
Watering and root disease concerns
During a typical poinsettia crop cycle, rooted cuttings are transplanted into pots in July when it is hot, and when days are long and conditions in the greenhouse favor the rapid dry down of the growing medium. However, when planting small rooted cuttings into large containers, the sheer volume of growing medium will retain a lot of water, making it easy to overwater the crop. Watering must be monitored and the growing medium must dry down between waterings. You will know it is time to re-water when the color of the growing medium's surface turns light brown or tan.
Once the poinsettias have rooted out to the sides of the container, they will use more water, aiding in the dry down of the growing medium and reducing the potential for overwatering and root disease problems. This sounds good, but as the growing season progresses, day length becomes shorter, temperatures get cooler and there are cloudier, wet days in the fall and early winter. Even though in early November the poinsettia crop is full size and has a well-developed root system, the plant is using much less water due to the weather and plants are no longer actively growing when the bracts start to color. The concern for overwatering and root disease re-emerges. Often, in the final weeks of the crop cycle, poinsettias are susceptible to overwatering and root disease issues, which can lead to crop losses. Selecting the proper PRO-MIX product can help reduce potential problems.
Read more at the PRO-MIX website