Go for gold

Sunset, Dec, 1998 by Lauren Bonar Swezey

Yellow poinsettias make perfect pairs for house plants

When the holidays arrive, everything from dresses to decorations turns red. And that includes poinsettias. True, these beauties are festive when crowned with bright red bracts. But for a softer, more elegant color scheme, why not try a touch of gold this holiday season?

Poinsettias with bracts in light lemon yellow or cream pair beautifully with house plants with variegated foliage, especially when displayed in a large pot lightly brushed with gold paint.

For the arrangement shown at right, Sunset test garden coordinator Bud Stuckey combined a creamy lemon-colored poinsettia with cream-and-green-variegated dieffenbachia, 'Needle-point' ivy, and spider plant in a 24-inch-wide by 12-inch-deep terra-cotta pot that he'd spray-painted silvery gray and gold. The effect is soft and soothing.

To make your own arrangement, buy the dieffenbachia, ivy, and spider plant in 6-inch pets and a large poinsettia in an 8-inch pot. Also have on hand a 1-cubic-foot bag of potting soil.

Fill the pot with soil and add the house plants, setting the dieffenbachia toward the back of the arrangement and the ivy and spider plant toward the front. Plant the poinsettia in the center - plastic pot and all - so you can easily replace it with another 8-inch potted plant after the holidays.

Enjoy the arrangement indoors (or outdoors on a porch in mild climates) through the holidays; keep soil slightly moist to touch.