Christmas Plants - Living Christmas Decorations!

Throughout history, certain plants have always been associated with Christmas. Some are bulbs that people dug up and brought in to "force" for the season. Others were bred specifically for decorating and to give as gifts at Christmas. Still others have associations with Christ himself.

In this section I'll focus on a few of them, give instructions on how to care for them throughout the holidays and after, and hopefully entice you to try adding some living decorations to your Christmas idea list!

We've all seen them - they come out in great carpets of red, pink, white and even sometimes other colors right after Thanksgiving. The ever popular gift and decoration, poinsettias are common in every part of the country during the holidays. As a Christmas plant, they are the most universally known and purchased. You can find them in nearly every store. They are super easy to care for, tolerate a lot of abuse, and add the perfect red-and-green touch to any decorating scheme.

Christmas cactus, said only to bloom on Christmas Day, is another perennial favorite that is easy to care for. They are quite delicate plants, though, and care should always be taken to be sure they are out of harm's way. Otherwise, they are perfect gifts and decorations that will bring joy every year for years to come.

A traditional Christian favorite has been the Christmas lily. It, too, blooms for Christ's birth, and for a short period thereafter - usually dropping its blooms by January 6, Three Kings Day. Pure white with a gossamer glow and sparkle, these lilies are absolutely gorgeous. Being bulbs, they can be stored after the holidays to force again next fall.

Another favorite topping shoppers lists at the holidays are bulbs. Many types of bulbs can be forced, making them perfect Christmas plants to give or display. Among these, amaryllus is the most popular these days. As gifts, they can be forced ahead of time for giving a blooming plant, or they can be given as bulbs with directions and accessories for the recipient to force themselves.

Holly and Ivy have been associated with the winter holidays for millennia. Songs have been written, hinting at a time before Christmas was celebrated, when they symbolized the turning seasons of the year. Both tolerate much abuse, though holly is usually not kept living, but is normally used as a cut plant. Be careful if using holly branches to decorate - the spines on the leaves become very strong and exceedingly sharp - so keep them from children and pets.

Another favorite Christmas plant is the mistletoe. Mistletoe is a parasitic plant that grows only on oak host trees. Its white berries are ripe in the dead of winter. Every part of the mistletoe plant is poisonous, which is perhaps the reason it was hung from the tops of door frames or wrapped in lamps hung high over the floor. It will dry well wherever you put it, and it can be wrapped to use again and again.

In the south, many homes used magnolia branches and blossoms as holiday decorations before and even after Christmas trees became fashionable. As magnolias set their buds in the fall for a very early spring bloom, forcing them is rather easy. They are a great old-fashioned southern Christmas plant.

For an unusual touch of golden color in a Christmas plant, try forcing forsythia branches. Their leaves in the very early spring are a brilliant golden yellow. After they start to set leaves, they are as easy to care for as cut flowers.

Though not a traditional Christmas plant, I happen to love the scent of hyacinths, and these days they come in brilliant reds and burgundies, so they are great for forcing. The biggest problem with this is that you have to plan for it in the early spring so as to get the bulbs, and they have to be either planted in the yard or stored so they don't dry out. Forcing usually starts in late October, and is an uncertain process. However - because I love them so much, anytime they bloom in the bleak winter months is just fine with me!

Of course, small evergreens of every sort are available in pots at this time of year. They are perfect Christmas plants! Some are perfectly shaped to create tiny living Christmas trees, and others can be shaped into interesting topiary shapes for decoration both indoors and out. In the spring, these conifers can be planted right in the ground, or they can continue to be kept in pots indoors, or set out in summer and brought in in the fall.

Also included here should be fresh greenery boughs and garlands. Though no longer living plants, these items are traditional decorations for doorways, porches, stair rails and around frames and light fixtures. Collections of the branches can also be put into buckets and decorated much as a tree or bush would be. For garlands and festoons, no special care is needed, other than wiping up the spent and dropped needles on occasion. For branches, care for them is as simple as that for a live cut Christmas tree.