During the holidays, it’s easy to work seasonal décor into your Charleston landscape design. Adding potted plants to your patio, as borders along a walkway or simply sitting them on the steps of a porch or gazebo can bring a festive flair to your wintertime garden.

One of the most beloved Christmas flowers is the poinsettia. They adorn many a front porch, mantle and business entryway this time of year. With about 70 million sold each year, the poinsettia is the most popular flowering plant sold in the United States.

The poinsettia is actually indigenous to Mexico and Central America. The plant was brought to the United States by Joe Roberts Poinsett, a Charleston-born physician and member of the South Carolina legislature. He was the first U.S. Minister to Mexico – where he found a new plant species and brought it back to the United States.

A couple of tips for keeping your poinsettias beautiful through the holidays and right on into the New Year: give it at least six hours of bright, indirect sunlight daily. Don’t let it get too cold; premature leaf drop can offer if the temperature dips below 50 degrees.

The Christmas cactus is another great flower for the holiday season and makes a lovely gift. It blooms right around Christmas and makes a lovely addition to your patio, sunroom or as a table centerpiece – especially when filled with bright red blooms.

It’s important to remember the Christmas cactus is a tropical, not a desert cactus so it needs a source of humidity (shouldn’t be an issue here in Charleston!) and the soil shouldn’t be allowed to completely dry out. Here’s a great article with step-by-step instructions on caring for your Christmas cactus.

A third favorite is the amaryllis, a bulb often purchased at the holiday season. They also make a great gift for someone who wants a beautiful splash of color long after the holidays end. Here in our Charleston climate, we can use the amaryllis as a landscape plant. If you’ve been growing a bulb indoors during the holidays, move it outdoors in the spring. It’s best to acclimate your plant from the indoors to the outdoors by first moving it to porch or patio before planting it in your Charleston garden.

You’ve gone to great lengths to decorate the inside of your home and string lights outside so don’t forget your landscape and garden with some colorful holiday plants.