Poinsettias can stay in landscape with care

Question: I saved several poinsettia plants from Christmas and would like to add them to the landscape. How much sun is needed and what other care is best?

Answer: It is hard to discard good-looking poinsettias that can give repeat performances next December. Find them a sunny-to-filtered-sun location. They grow in the sands but seem to do best when these sites are improved with liberal additions of organic matter. After planting, cut the poinsettias back to within 12 to 18 inches of the ground. Then keep them moist and apply a slow-release fertilizer every 3 to 4 months or as instructed on the label.

Allow the plants to make a foot of new growth, then remove the top 4 inches of each shoot. Continue to allow similar growth and repeat the pruning through the end of August. Also, look for mites and caterpillars throughout the growing seasons and control as needed.

Q: I have two dwarf schefflera plants with the variegated foliage. When is the best time to trim these plants?

A: Gardeners are planting lots of these attractive scheffleras with small palmate leaves that form dense shrubs 6 feet tall and wide in the sunny-to-shady spots of home landscapes. Like most tropicals, they continue growth year-round during the warmer weather and there is no special time to do the trimming. You be the judge and trim them as needed.

It's probably best to avoid shearing the plants and instead selectively remove the longer shoots back to branch angles or areas along the stems just above persistent leaves. If you wish, the cuttings can be easily rooted in vermiculite to grow more plants for the landscape.

Q. I pruned my hibiscus hedge last spring and never saw a bloom all year. I have two other leggy hibiscus plants that have been in bloom all year. Should I prune them, and, if so, when will they rebloom?

A. No blooms for a year is certainly a disappointment but not uncommon. Much of the recovery time needed depends on the severity of the pruning and the care afterward. Some gardeners do selective pruning with hibiscus by taking out or shortening the older stems. They leave a portion of the younger shoots that are starting to bloom. This way the plant is always producing some color.

When plantings are given a major pruning, the time to first blooms can be months to over a year. After pruning, give these plantings a light feeding with a blossom-booster product to encourage some growth. Too-heavy or frequent feedings can keep the plants producing only stems and leaves. Another feeding can be applied in June and August. Water during the dry times, but avoid overwatering that could encourage just foliage.

Q. My azaleas had black-and-yellow spots on the leaves fall through winter and the plants are thinning. Two appear to be dying. How can I help the plants?

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Poinsettias can stay in landscape with care