Poinsettia Plants – Silk or Live

Silk Poinsettias are an Easy Choice

When you consider the benefits, it really becomes an easy decision. Quality silk poinsettia plants look fresh and remain beautiful through the entire season. They are always lush with showy blooms and vibrant color. They don’t need to be watered. They don’t have any requirements for sunlight, or for proper temperature and humidity levels. They aren’t messy. They aren’t perishable. They can be purchased early and enjoyed through the whole season, without a commitment of long term care. Silk poinsettias are a better value. They are a one-time purchase and will remain a beautiful part of your holiday display for many, many years. Silk keeps it simple!

Silk Poinsettias are the Greener Choice

Now consider the quantity of live poinsettias sold each year in the United States. According to the USDA Floriculture Crops 2011  (page 42), 35 million poinsettia plants were sold by domestic producers in 15 states. This is a sampling of the US producers and does not include imports from Canada, so the actual number of live poinsettia plants sold in the United States is much greater.

Keep in mind that a quality silk poinsettia can be used, and reused, at the very least, for 7 years. Decorating with Silkflowers.com poinsettias conserves resources. See our blog “The 3R’s of Artificial Silk Flowers”. Note: that if your choice is live poinsettias, the locally grown ones will increase the time of viable use with proper selection and care.

Silk poinsettias create minimal CO₂  in their production

Most of their very small carbon footprint is a result of transportation. See our White Paper Study. Live poinsettias must be grown every year in greenhouses which require massive amounts of energy for temperature control. Imagine the carbon footprint resulting from the propagation of millions and millions of poinsettias each year. Again, if your choice is live plants, buying locally grown poinsettias may reduce the carbon footprint resulting from transportation, but not from the energy used for greenhouse heat.

Silk poinsettias from Silkflowers.com reduce waste

See our blog “Fresh Flowers, Silk Flowers, and Biodegradability”. Consider the amount of space consumed in landfills from the disposal of millions of perishable poinsettia plants at the end of the season each and every year. Organic plants don’t biodegrade unless they are composted. Landfills do not perform the same as composts. So, if your choice is live plants, consider disposing of them by composting, and reusing or recycling the plastic grower pots.