Flower lovers who look forward to the festive sea of red provided by poinsettias each Christmas have a bumper crop to look forward to this year. Hull firm O’Brien’s Nurseries, which sells nationally to florists, says this year’s poinsettia crop is bigger and better than ever thanks to a prolonged period of good weather and a carefully controlled heating system.
“Poinsettias are becoming quite rare in this country as the cost of growing them has risen sharply,” said Tony Sharp of East Yorkshire-based O’Brien’s.
“We have had a really good crop this year as compared with last year there has been a lot more sun.”
Given the rise in fuel prices he pointed out that the cost of producing this beautiful plant has gone up.
It wasn’t until the late 19th century that the poinsettia arrived in Britain but its distinctive bright red, star-shaped leaves soon established themselves as a firm festive favourite alongside holly, turkey and all the trimmings.
O’Brien’s was one of the first nurseries in East Yorkshire to grow them when it started doing so around 40 years ago.
English poinsettias are highly prized because they are more robust than varieties from other countries.
