Friday, November 18, 2011

How poisonous is a poinsettia? Will my cat become ill after eating a small amount? How much is too much?

Poinsettias are listed as low toxicity. I would keep an eye on your cat if he munches on your plants at all, and do what you can to prevent the cat from coming into contact with the poisonous plant.





From ASPCA website:


"Did you know that Poinsettias are not the deadly flowers that popular legend has made them out to be?





Poinsettias (Euphorbia pulcherrima) are part of a family of plants known as spurges. During the 1820s Joel Robert Poinsett, the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico at the time, first brought poinsettias to the U.S. from a Mexican city he had visited. It was during the early part of the 20th century that the myth of the plant's toxicity began when the two-year-old child of a U.S. Army officer was alleged to have become ill and died from consuming a poinsettia leaf.





As a result of this rumor, the toxic potential of poinsettia has become highly exaggerated. In reality, poinsettia ingestions typically produce only mild to moderate gastrointestinal tract irritation, which may include drooling, vomiting and/or diarrhea. Therefore, while keeping this plant out of the reach of your pet to avoid stomach upset is still a good idea, pet owners need not fear the poinsettia and banish it from their homes for fear of a fatal exposure."


http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pag...

How poisonous is a poinsettia? Will my cat become ill after eating a small amount? How much is too much?
my cat ate like half one. shes fine

fresh fruit baskets

Did You Know That Poinsettia are Toxic to Cats?

the aspca told me so.


Here's a very detailed list of other plants that are harmful ,in varying degrees,to our pets.





it's very informative.





http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pag...

Did You Know That Poinsettia are Toxic to Cats?
Yes, I have read that before and that's when I stopped keeping poinsettias around the house. I also don't put tinsel on my trees because cats can ingest it and die. Thanks for the information. I have 7 cats and don't want anything happening to them if I can help it. .
Reply:You're welcome. Thanks for choosing me. Report It

Reply:Yes I did!
Reply:Actually, that's fiction.





http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/p/p...
Reply:They're poisonous to children too....so be careful!
Reply:Yea every year I get one from a guy that comes in our office regularly. I've seen him look at it sitting on my desk and I assume he wonders why I never took them home but I'm not gonna poison my little meow-meows. I feel ungrateful but I don't know of any place to put it where my cats can't get to it.
Reply:Thanks for the info. I don't even have houseplants for fear that my cats would try to eat them. I would hate for them to get sick because I was stupid enough to pick a poisonous plant. This really helps...thanks!
Reply:No I didnt know that so Thanks for that
Reply:yes i knew!
Reply:Yes. Lots of plants are.
Reply:I knew but thanks for spreading the word! ♥♥♥
Reply:Yeah, and so are bullets.


Do I put my poinsettia hanging basket in full sunlight outside in Fl.?

you can, as long as it doesn't get below freezing.the cold will damage it.I am in Az and let mine stay out side year round.

Do I put my poinsettia hanging basket in full sunlight outside in Fl.?
no!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it will kill the plant, keep it inside with a little bit of sun


Can bees pollinate a Poinsettia flower? can it be cross pollinated by bee?

in -case it can be cross pollinate, is there a change it will vary color of leaves?

Can bees pollinate a Poinsettia flower? can it be cross pollinated by bee?
Yes, bees can pollinate poinsettias -- we do that artificially when we want new varieties of poinsettias. Just about any trait of the plant can be manipulated in this way -- leaves, the actual (yellow) flowers, the colored bracts, the size, etc.


Why do we buy poinsettia plants for Christmas?

It may be tradition, but why and where did it start please?

Why do we buy poinsettia plants for Christmas?
"Poinsettias


Poinsettias are native to Mexico. They were named after America's first ambassador to Mexico, Joel Poinsett. He brought the plants to America in 1828. The Mexicans in the eighteenth century thought the plants were symbolic of the Star of Bethlehem. Thus the Poinsettia became associated with the Christmas season. The actual flower of the poinsettia is small and yellow. But surrounding the flower are large, bright red leaves, often mistaken for petals."
Reply:I prefer the 'christmas cactus' myself





Some plants though are called Christmas plants because that is when they bloom. eg in South Africa we used to call hydraneas Christmas Flowers
Reply:The above answers are correct but it is a tradition I would like to see go by the by. I can't stand poinsettias. They look like phony, plastic flowers even when they are real and alive. They lose their blooms and are ugly, sticky barren plants that everybody agonizes about throwing away because some dear beloved person gave them the ugly thing. I see nothing Christmasy about a poinsettia. It clearly looks like a plant that suffers for being cultivated. And I love just about every flower that blooms except poinsettias and calla lilies. Calla lilies just remind me of funerals. No onegives me poinsettias for Christmas.
Reply:They don't offer them for sale at Easter, only Christmas.
Reply:The poinsettia is associated with Christmas because of a 16th century tale of a child who was too poor to bring a gift to baby Jesus on the celebration of his birth. Some say it was an angel that assured the child that it was OK to bring a bouquet of weeds found by the roadside to the altar as a gift because it really is the thought that counts. A miracle gave the child the present that could be bought by no one; the weeds blossom into a vivid, beautiful poinsetta. This flower reminds us that: "Even the most humble gift, if given in love, will be acceptable in His eyes." From that day on, the beautiful bright flowers were known as the Flores de Noche Buena, or Flowers of the Holy Night, for they bloomed each year during the Christmas season.


http://www.clickoncuernavaca.com/more%20...


http://www.just4kidsmagazine.com/poinset...


http://www.ipass.net/linspace/santa/chri...





The poinsettia was first used in connection with Christmas in the 17th century when Franciscans priests in Mexico included the flowers in their Christmas celebration.


http://www.ipass.net/linspace/santa/chri...


http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/...





By the eighteenth century, people had come to consider the plant as a symbol of the star of Bethlehem—and often called it that. It was also called flor de Noche Buena (flower of Christmas Eve), flower of the Holy Night, and flame flower.


http://www.peterli.com/archive/cat/1645....





The Poinsettia helps us celebrate the gift of Christmas %26amp; reminds us that miracles are possible.


This "Christmas flower" ... white, pink, orange and red poinsettias... bring wishes of mirth and celebration.


http://www.sandisflowershop.com/flowers....


Good Luck! Merry Christmas :)
Reply:because people like eating them.


so do i.


when they start dieing.


=]


yum


im eating one right now

Investing

How do you keep poinsettia's?

It is funny you should ask that, because a few years ago I just wanted to get rid of mine. So I stuck it in the closet and forgot about it. It seems they like the darkness. Mine was blooming in the closet. So I guess after the holidays put it in a dark place. Don't forget to water it every once in a while.


Hope this helps.

How do you keep poinsettia's?
This time of year to keep them nice for Christmas, keep them in a cooler spot, they don't like it too warm.....or too cold......


Soil should be moist, not wet......and don't let it dry out.


The rest of the year treat it like a regular plant, apparently they will go red again if you put it in a dark cool place about october, then bring it out again end of november. Good luck


I still have my poinsettia plant from last year & it lost all it's red leaves. They are all green now.?

Are the red leaves going to come back now that it's closer to Christmas?

I still have my poinsettia plant from last year %26amp; it lost all it's red leaves. They are all green now.?
It's a bit late to get them colored up , but you can do it . It'll just be for post-Christmas . They need 6-8 hrs of uninterrupted darkness to turn color. As little as a night-light with stop the coloring process , so it has to be total darkness.


Put it in a closet , or other such place , at night . Take it out in the morning . You could put it in a relatively dark place, with a box over it , if the closet routine is too bothersome. Also, if it's slightly cooler , the color will be deeper, and last longer . 62-65 F is ideal . Not too much colder though, because they are prone to various diseases , which cold can promote . Good luck . ;D
Reply:No, the red leaves will not come back unless forced. Put the plant in a dark place (a closet?) for a month before you desire red leaves.
Reply:Only if you live at the equator and have half the day sun and half the day dark. There are ways of putting the plant in a coset but I think it's too late for that now.


http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/Cont...
Reply:First, to clear up your confusion, those are not leaves, they are bracts, part of the flower structure, like the green leaf-looking things at the base of a rose bud. The real flowers are the yellow things at the center of the red bracts. If you had put your poinsettia in a dark place each evening, starting in September, so it did not get any artificial light until morning, it would probably have bloomed in time for Christmas. They need the natural cycles of light and dark to set blooms. I keep one in my greenhouse where no one turns on any lights after dark, and it blooms in January. You can still make it bloom, but not in time for Christmas. Keep it watered and fertilized all summer and try again next year.
Reply:Here is a good website to read for gobs of information:





Poinsettias


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Categories in this thread:


1. Poinsettia Facts


2. Poinsettia Care


3. Poinsettia Reflowering


4. Poinsettia Outside Growing


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http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/poinsettia/...
Reply:I have a poinsettia that I've had for 4 years. We don't do anything special to it. It stays in our screenroom all year. In late fall it starts to get new leaves and they turn red. Right now there are about 10 red ones and there will be more as time passes The change in daylight and temperture is what makes them"bloom". Our screenroom has windows that we keep closed in the winter and we turn on one of those oil heaters on real cold nights so nothing freezes. The plant is beautiful.