The flamingo flower offers a far easier prospect as a Christmas plant than the ubiquitous Poinsettia.

I hesitate to mention the C-word, but it's time to talk Christmas houseplants.

Someone asked me in an interview recently why I included the Poinsettia in my Houseplant Gardener in a Box when I've been completely open about hating this plant. Good question! The answer is that although I don't like Poinsettias, millions are sold every year, and if you end up with one, you may as well have a good go at taking care of it.

These Mexican shrubs fascinating plants in the wild - check out this blogpost for the evidence. The trouble is, they don't make great houseplants in sustainability terms. It's extremely hard to keep them going for more than a few weeks without a mass leaf drop incident, and then bringing them back into colour for the following winter is an utter faff, involving controlling light exposure in ways most of us wouldn't bother with. (If you have kept one going for the last five years, don't @ me - just realise you are in a tiny minority.) The main thing is not to stick them next to heat sources such as fires and radiators, keep them out of cold draughts and give them loads of light and humidity. Easy, eh?!

So what should you buy instead to bring in some festive cheer, that should last you for years and years?

Svhlumbergeras make brilliant long-term houseplants that burst into flower every winter.

🎄Christmas/thanksgiving cacti

These incredible forest cacti are tough as old boots and with a small amount of know-how they will last for decades. They do well in average home conditions and don't die easy. Just remember they are epiphytes so like a cycle of wet/dry around their roots. Loads more on these in On The Ledge episode 84

🎄Flamingo flower

Anthurium andraeanum and scherzerianum are just so darn jolly, I think these are pretty much the perfect gift to take when visiting friends and relatives in place of a Poinsettia this festive season. Like the Christmas cactus, they are an epiphyte, and extensive breeding has produced an array of colours for the waxy spathe-and-spadix combo they sport - but IMHO classic lipstick red is the best. They are waaaaay easier than the foliage Anthuriums too in my view. (I would LOVE one of these for Christmas, if any loved ones are reading this!)

🎄Norfolk Island pine

A Christmas tree you can keep from year to year, Araucaria heterophylla is eventually going to outgrow your house - but maybe not for 20 years. This conifer makes an easy houseplant that prefers somewhere cool and light - a conservatory is ideal for winter and you can place it outside in summer. I got mine last winter and it will come inside ready to get a couple of weeks draped in lights over the festive season.

All three plants feature in Houseplant Gardener in a Box - available now in all good bookshops.

This blogpost was taken from The Plant Ledger, my email newsletter about the houseplant scene. Subscribe here and get my free in-depth guide to fungus gnats.

What to buy instead of a Poinsettia this christmas