The fifteenth door - the ten black thumbs are back!

Christmas plants - I don't have them myself. The mix of my ten black thumbs and of a gang of crazy cats is doing nothing for plants in this house.
Still I thought this would be a good subject for today when I walked by a garden store.
Poinsettias all over the place, in all colors, but they don't beat this poinsettia Christmas tree!


What else do we decorate with for Christmas? Of course I already talked about the Christmas tree itself, but what other plants are there?

A very decorative plant that is often used in wreaths is holly or ilex. It's no wonder, the contrast between the beautifully shaped leaves and the bright red berries is not only gorgeous, but reflects the Christmas colors green and red.

Picture by Jürgen Howaldt

There are three kinds of holiday cacti (not that I ever heard of a different kind than the Christmas one).
This is a Christmas cactus, called that name because it blooms in winter. Wikipedia says that if taken care of properly, a single planting can last hundreds of years. I better won't comment on that one ... *hiding thumbs in pocket*


Last, but not least there is the mistletoe. Even I know that mistletoe is a parasitic plant. And we all know what we use mistletoe for. If you meet under a hanging mistletoe, you are obliged to kiss. It's not sure where this Christmas custom comes from, but I could imagine there are a lot of people who wouldn't even care!
Do you have one in your house?


Maybe you have more customs or maybe someone knows of a country where different plants are used to decorate for Christmas. I'm always eager to learn, but decided to stick to the ones I actually know myself ;-)