Poinsettias as cut flowers

by Carol H.
(Asheville, NC)

Do poinsettias make good (or decent) cut flower arrangements? Can you clip the stems and place in water in a vase?

Doug says the poinsettia is a member of the Euphorbia family and this family must be treated somewhat differently than other cut flowers.

They have a sticky, milky "sap" inside the stem and this must be stopped from leaking if you want to have them last as cuts.

So the "trick" is to cut the stem - and then *immediately* sear the end of the cut with a flame (have a candle going) to dry out and stop the sap flow.

You'll then get a few days from each branch in a vase of water before they start to wilt.

They're not the greatest of cut flowers but this is how you get them to behave (as best they will) in a vase.