The Christmas Flower

As November comes to a close, I couldn’t be more excited for the winter weather to ensue. There's nothing better than driving home after practice in the pitch-black darkness with a few streetlights every once in a while to guide my path. Or now that it’s tea season, I can bust out all my favorite brews and enjoy the delightful herbs and spices, and watch the rain against my window. Either way, fall is being ushered out with the leaves, and all that's left are the barren trees and the hope for snow on the horizon.

I thought it only right, now that December is upon us, to write about a very festive plant indeed, the Poinsettia! Poinsettias are often associated with winter and Christmas, sometimes even being called “Christmas Star” or “Christmas Flower” for their bright and colorful displays of red and green. Similar to the Christmas Cactus, another festive flower, both are native to warm tropical climates. Poinsettias originate from Mexico and Central America. The poinsettia is a member of the Euphorbiaceae family, which is more commonly known as the spurge family. Members of this family often produce an array of phytotoxins, which sounds scary, but in reality, the poinsettia is mildly toxic. When damaged, the poinsettia will release a latex-like substance similar to a rubber tree, which contains diterpenoid euphorbol ester that, at most, will at most cause some rashes and wicked digestive issues if ingested.

So the real question is, how did this tropical Mexican plant become a staple of American Christmas? The answer I have come across is a jumble of random Google searches from sources I did not care to fact-check, so I, of course, encourage you to do your own research if the topic piques your interest! In Mexican legend, a little girl named Pepita couldn’t afford a gift for baby Jesus, so in a last-ditch effort, she picked weeds on the side of the road. The angels, pitying the girl, turned the weeds into red flowers once placed on the nativity scene. Later, Spaniards called the flower Flor de la Noche Buena, or flower of the holy night. The flower was discovered by an American in the 1800s named Joel Roberts Poinsett, who brought it to America to be cultivated and sold. This was when the poinsettia took off as a staple of American Christmas.

Last year, I was gifted a delightful poinsettia by my neighbors. Sadly, I forgot about it in my greenhouse and it is no longer with us. While neglect can be a great plant parent, my poinsettia required some TLC I was not in the mood to give. They honestly aren’t difficult to care for, just give that bad boy some well-draining soil, humidity, six hours of indirect sunlight, and water when soil becomes damp, and you’ve got a thriving Christmas Flower! Alas, all I’ve got is the pot, so sometimes I give it water and hope that some fun fungi or weeds will grow. So far, I’ve been unsuccessful, which is surprising since weeds aren’t hard to come by.

As the days grow ever shorter, I do hope the early nightfall is not too discouraging, as while I enjoy the cold, I’ve discovered that most of my friends do not. I get that the grind is non-stop, especially as finals are fast approaching, but I encourage you to take a break when things are too overwhelming! As such, I hope you pointsetti-your hopes on break and enjoy the winter weather. I’ll be sleeping with my toes out, a spoon under my pillow, and my pants inside out, or whatever the snow ritual is.