Poinsettia Production Requires Precise Attention
(Continued from Page A 22)
ceptible to bacteria and rot, must
be kept in a sterile environment
in a shaded house.
The cuttings, about three inch
es long, spend about three weeks
in misting beds. In the beds they
grow roots and are ready to be
transplanted to various-sized
containers by August.
They spend August, Septem
ber, and October growing, but
“they also go through cultural
practices that define what kind of
plant they will be,” he said.
One example of a cultural
practice is whether the plant is
“pinched” or not. Taking off the
top ‘/2-1-inch of the stem causes
“the lateral shoots to become
prominent,” he said.
A customer studying a
branched poinsettia will see a
small light-colored scab on the
plant’s stem. “That’s where we
pinched the ‘heart’ out of the
shoot,” he said.
The plants are pinched in mid-
August, “which causes the re
maining part of the plant to
branch out. If the plants are not
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pinched, the axillary branches
are not as prominent, and the
plant grows into one strong
shoot.
“Most of the crop is pinched,
so we get multiple bracts (the col
ored leaves).” Pinching yields 3-6
bracts per plant. “The advantage
is that it takes fewer stock plants
to produce a multiple-bract
plant.”
“It’s very time-specific,” said
Fry. “The pinch has to take place
the right time to make sure
that the plant size and color come
at a marketable time.
“It’s not a crop that you want
to put on the back burner, with
nutrient management, water
management, and insect manage
ment issues. We have to stay on
top of everything or we’ll have
things that sneak up and affect
the quality of the crop.”
After the pinch in August,
“September and October are
when the plants put on the bulk
of their growth,” he said. By the
end of November, the plants start
to show color.
“The phenomena of the color
change is a product of the short
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ening days,” he said. However
“any aberration from the sun’s
natural light will cause them not
to color up. Shop lights, street
lights, a TV any light that you
can read a newspaper by is
considered light pollution, and it
doesn’t take much. Even head
lights on a busy highway may
cause a week or so delay” in color
change, said Fry.
“Once they have changed
color, it’s not a reversible mecha
nism. They won’t change once
they’re in your house, for exam
ple.” By mid-November the
plants have, on average, 75 per
cent of their color.
Although red definitely tops
the list of customers’ favorites,
hues of pinks, whites, marbles,
and specked poinsettias are also
for sale.
Customers tend to snap up the
novelty colors for the year. This
year, for example, they sold
yellow/white “Lemon Snow” and
the red-and-white “White Glit
ter.” Next year Fry is hoping to
add a deep “high-school jacket”
burgundy to the color offering.
“Whatever’s new will sell well.”
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Fry reminds customers to
think of the plants as a living or
ganism that needs basic care.
“If they want to move the
poinsettia to a table for a holiday
meal, that’s appropriate, but if
they want that plant to last and
stay healthy, it would do better in
a window.
“Generally plants will forgive
you with only one source of
stress; however, if it is dry and
has a low light situation,” recov
ery to full health will be longer.
“Add to that a drafty and cold
situation,” and the plant’s health
will be further compromised.
“Plants will generally respond
just fine, if they don’t get over
stressed,” Fry said.
The family operation includes
parents Morton and Beckie Fry,
along with children Vincent,
married to Caroline; M. Simon,
married to Karen; Victoria, mar
ried to Bob Gosling; and Antho
ny, married to Denise.
The brothers are involved full
time on the operation, with occa
sional help from the spouses and
their sister.
The business began in 1760,
when the first Fry was estab-
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Although there are a variety of colors to
choose from, “without question, red is
the top seller,” according to Fry.
Mixing poinsettias and tropical foliage
creates eye-catching displays.
These stock plants will
yield about 20 cuttings per
plant. The cuttings grow
into the plants the custom
er purchases.
lished on land that once hosted a
grist mill. After evolving through
several industries, most recently a
dairy, the land was put to use by
Morton and Beckie as a nursery.
Fry attributes the continued
success of the business to the
staff. “They certainly have
jumped in with their effort,” he
said.
“We owe a tremendous
amount of gratitude to the work
that our staff puts in, their input
and assistance."
Twenty full-time employees
form a core group of workers at
the business.