We lit late cuttings of Freedom and Prestige which were direct stuck in 6" pots - great roots - pinched them October 10th and lights out October 17th. Plants needed December 20th... but just starting to break. Should we stretch breaks with Fascination?? If so, at what rate, time, stage, ect???
Any suggestions would be helpful... we are located in Baltimore Maryland and longtime growers of Poinsettias looking for a helping hand.

Becki, on this schedule the crop will be relatively short. There was only 7 days from pinch to short days where you would normally have about 3 weeks for a 6” crop. In your climate you would get about 1.5 leaves formed per week so this crop will have about 3 fewer leaves per shoot than a normal natural day crop. If you get these plants to a height of 15 inches they will look stretched with long internodes. You might be better off with plants at 12-13 inches tall. If you want to produce the taller plant Fascination will do it. Use 3 ppm and spray at about 10-14 day intervals as needed to get the amount of elongation you want. You will probably use 2-4 applications. Make first spray about 10-14 days after pinch. Measure current height and determine how much elongation is needed per week over the next 7-8 weeks to reach the final height you want. Measure a few plants each week to see if you are getting the elongation needed. Remember to keep the temperatures up on this crop as they finish to get the bract size. Good luck with the crop. Jim