The poinsettia (scientific name: Euphorbia pulcherrima) is the most popular holiday gift plant — and potted plant, in general— in the United States. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in 2019 poinsettia sales exceeded $200 million and outnumbered live Christmas tree sales four to one.

This two-part series describes the poinsettia’s rise to an American Christmas tradition: its origin and introduction to the United States and its transformation to a plant that adorns many American homes during the holiday season.

The poinsettia is a frost-tender shrub native to Central America that blooms naturally in the winter. It grows to more than 10 feet tall and has scattered flowers with small brightly colored red bracts. (Note: Bracts are the colorful, petal-like leaves that surround the small cup-shaped true flowers of the poinsettia.)

Its recorded history starts in the 14th century among the Aztecs living in what is now modern-day Mexico. Known as Cuetlaxochitl (meaning “mortal flower that perishes and withers like all that is pure”), the poinsettia was prized by the Aztecs and their kings.

The blooms were used to decorate statues of their gods and extracts of the plant were used to dye cloth, treat skin infections and combat fever.

In the 16th century, the plant drew the attention of Franciscan missionaries during Spanish efforts to colonize Mexico. To facilitate the conversion of the Aztec people to Catholicism and ease expansion of the Spanish empire, the Franciscans adopted elements of indigenous religious practices and beliefs.

Because poinsettias bloomed during the Christmas season, Franciscans used the colorful flowers to decorate churches and nativity scenes and in Christmas celebrations and processions. The plant subsequently became known as la flor de Nochebuena, literally meaning “the Christmas Eve flower.”

Coming to America

The poinsettia was introduced to the United States in the early 1800s following the fall of the Spanish empire. In 1822-23, Joel Roberts Poinsett from South Carolina was sent to Mexico as a special U.S. envoy to the newly independent state; he became the first American ambassador to Mexico when the Mexican Republic was established in 1825.

Poinsett was a learned man, admired for his aptitude for medicine and science and his passion for botany. While ambassador to Mexico, Poinsett shared seeds and cuttings of many native plants with colleagues in the United States and hosted visits by members of the Academy of Natural Sciences. Some say Poinsett sent cuttings of the poinsettia back to the United States. Others think that the visitors from the Academy of Natural Sciences collected the cuttings.

Regardless of its means of arrival, the poinsettia was shared widely with horticultural enthusiasts in America. The first public viewing of the plant occurred at the 1829 Pennsylvania Horticultural Society Flower Show. At that time, the poinsettia was called the Mexican flame flower or painted leaf because of its brilliant color.

By 1833, the plant was available for sale to the public and was given the name poinsettia after Ambassador Poinsett.

Of note, the poinsettia arrived in Europe before its introduction to the United States. It was included among the illustrations of plants resulting from the Spanish Royal Botanical Expedition of Mexico from 1787-1803 and was among herbarium specimens collected by the German naturalist Alexander von Humboldt from 1803-1804.

In 1834, German botanist Karl Willdenow examined specimens from the Humboldt collections and gave the poinsettia its scientific name, Euphorbia pulcherrima, meaning “most beautiful.”

The poinsettia did not receive the same enthusiastic reception in Europe as it did in America and was not sold to the public until introduced into Scotland by an American nurseryman around 1834.

Although of interest to horticulturists and gardening enthusiasts, the poinsettia that arrived in the United States was a far cry from the poinsettias that now fill grocery stores, churches, offices and American homes around Christmas.

In Part 2 of this series, we will discuss the rags to riches transformation of the poinsettia and the significant efforts by growers and researchers to produce the beautiful poinsettias enjoyed each holiday season.

Jeanette Stehr-Green is a WSU-certified Clallam County Master Gardener.

Calendars available now

2024 Master Gardener Foundation of Clallam County calendars are available now! The calendar offers beautiful full-page photographs and monthly gardening tips as well as reminders of upcoming gardening events, workshops and talks. Calendars are $8 for one or $7.50 each for orders of two or more.

Photo by Robb Drake

To purchase a calendar, go to:

• 10 a.m.-noon on Thursdays at the Master Gardener Woodcock Demonstration Garden, 2711 Woodcock Road, Sequim

• Fiddleheads Home & Garden, 124 W. First Street, Suite B, Port Angeles; call 360-452-2114 for hours

A mail-order option is also available. Go to the Clallam County Master Gardener Foundation website at clallammgf.org and follow the prompts, or send a check made out to “Clallam Master Gardener Foundation” to: Master Gardener Program, Attn: Harmony Rutter, 1914 West 18th Street, Port Angeles, WA 98363.