Growing Gifts: Verdant Plants for a DIY Holiday

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Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Amélie Rousseau, GoLocalPDX Contributor

When you’re a gardener, part of the fun of winter (ha, ha) is figuring out how to bring your craft indoors. This year, gift both your brown and green thumbed friends these foolproof plants. Instant beauty with no work? Love it. 

Christmas Cactus

(Schlumbergera spp.)

Instead of the showy but ubiquitous poinsettia, give a plant that spreads Christmas cheer all year long. My 60 year old Christmas cactus is just starting to flower, a cascade of pale pink trumpets over the stairwell. The plant is somewhat of a family heirloom. My great grandmother Edna bequeathed it to my grandma Edna Mae, who bequeathed it to my mom, who bequeathed it to me. What makes these succulents a special gift? 1. They are virtually impossible to kill, and 2. They bloom in December, when the rest of the natural world has rotted away into a frost-bitten, muddy mess. Christmas Cacti are also really fun to trade. My coworker and I gleefully traded cuttings of her beautiful scarlet specimen for my pale pink one. They come in shades of white, peach, pink, orange, magenta, and red. Give cuttings to the collector in your family and let their hunter-gatherer instincts run wild. To take a cutting, pinch off a section of the stem and simply stick it upright into the pot of your choice. Water infrequently; it’s a cactus after all. 

Forced Bulbs

(Amaryllis, Hyacinth, Paper Whites, Tulips, Crocuses, Daffodils) 

Imagine it’s February outside, but April in your living room. Unlike the Christmas cactus (which could potentially outlive your recipient) forced bulbs are a low commitment, low-maintenance gift. These precocious bulbs are ‘forced’ to bloom in wintertime, and usually grown in containers of rocks and water instead of soil. All you need for this gift is an attractive glass container, some marbles or rocks, and a few spring flower bulbs. Amaryllis lilies are the showiest, while iris, hyacinths and paperwhites have an intoxicating perfume. Try Michael’s for colored marbles and stones, while your neighborhood garden store is sure to stock a selection of forcing bulbs this month. Let your recipient’s taste and home decor dictate the style of container, stones, and flowers. 

To assemble, fill a tall, open mouthed glass container with 3-4 in. of clean marbles, gravel, or small river rocks. Place the bulbs root-side down and nestle into the marbles. Bulbs can be touching but not crammed together. Fill the container with water up to the bottom of the bulbs. Never let the bulbs dry out. Some recommend adding a bit of vodka to paperwhites’ water to keep the stalks upright. Place the bulbs in a well-lit room. The flowers will take 4-6 weeks to bloom from the time they are started in water. Compost the plant when it is done blooming, as it will not flower again, sigh.  This is a heartfelt and affordable gift to make with the kids for their school teachers, babysitters, and carpool parents.

An urban farmer and master gardener, Amélie Rousseau writes for fellow explorers and eaters of the plant kingdom. It's a jungle out there.

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