The Poinsettia

A local CBS affiliate does a news segment they call "Good Question" in which viewers ask questions and the reporter finds the answer.  I was excited when I saw the question, "How did Poinsettias Become a Part of Christmas?" I rolled up my sleeves and told my family, "I got this".  I didn't need to view the story to answer the question.  One of the benefits of teaching Spanish is decorating my classroom with poinsettias.


The plant and the Christmas tradition originate in Mexico.  According the Biology department at UCC the poinsettia, or Euphorbia pulcherrima, blooms in Southern Mexico and Central America between November and March.  The Aztecs called it the cuetlaxochitl and used the milky substance produced by the plant for treating fevers.  They made red dye from the flowers.  The red flowers are not actually flowers, they are the plant's leaves.

The legend that inspired the use of poinsettias as Christmas plants involves a small boy that did not have enough money to give a gift to Jesus on Christmas Day.  Before reaching the church he stopped an picked some weedy branches and prayed that it was enough.  The people at the church laughed at his pathetic gift, but he carried the branches to the altar.  When he reached the altar, the branches began to bloom with beautiful red flowers.  This story is told in a book by Tomie de Paola.

The story also caught the attention of Joel Roberts Poinsett, an ambassador to Mexico in 1829.  He had the Mexican fire plant shipped back to his home in South Carolina and later the plant was named after him.


http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2013/12/17/good-question-how-did-poinsettias-become-a-part-of-christmas/

http://faculty.ucc.edu/biology-ombrello/pow/poinsettia.htm

http://www.mexconnect.com/articles/3554-how-the-mexican-fire-plant-became-the-poinsettia

http://www.amazon.com/The-Legend-Poinsettia-Tomie-dePaola/dp/0698115678/ref=sr_sp-btf_title_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1387384481&sr=8-6&keywords=tomie+depaola+christmas