History of Poinsettia Plants - Euphorbia pulcherrima

http://www.bestindoortropicalhawaiianhouseplants.com History of Poinsettia Plants
Euphorbia pulcherrima, the botanical name, or poinsettia as we call it is native to Mexico and Guatemala in Central America. Poinsettias are part of the Euphorbiaceae family. Many plants in this family ooze a milky sap. The botanical name, Euphorbia pulcherrima, was given to the poinsettia by German botanist, Karl Ludwig Wilenow. The plant grew through a crack in his greenhouse. Dazzled by its color, he gave it the botanical name Euphorbia pulcherrima, meaning "very beautiful".

The Aztecs in the fourteenth through sixteenth centuries called the poinsettia plant "Cuetlaxochitl" in their native Nahuatl language.

Seventeenth century Spanish botanist Don Juan Balme mentions poinsettia plants in his writings.

At the same time the Spanish Franciscan Friars, who settled in the Taxco region of southern Mexico, included the timely winter grown red blooms of the plants in their Fiesta de Pesebre, the Nativity procession.

The name "poinsettia" is derived from Joel Roberts Poinsett who was the first United States Minister to Mexico from 1825 to 1829. Mr. Poinsett first brought poinsettia plants to America.

During the 1920s Albert Ecke and his son Paul became interested in poinsettia plants which grew wild in southern California at this time.
In 1923 the family moved their business to Encinitas, about 2 hours south of the very fast developing area around Los Angeles.

From 1923 to the mid-1960s they grew fields of poinsettia mother plants, and shipped them to plant nurseries around the country that purchased them for cultivation and future commercial sales.

They became a part of the scenery in most every popular TV show and all the Christmas Specials during the holiday season. No holiday scene would be complete without at least one blooming poinsettia plant.

Today Dr. Ruth Kobayashi continues to produce new poinsettia hybrids for the Ecke family. These poinsettias are known as Ecke poinsettias. http://www.bestindoortropicalhawaiianhouseplants.com.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• poinsettia plants
• poinsettias
• poinsettia plant
• poinsettia
• euphorbia pulcherrima
• Christmas
• holiday season
• holidays
• plants
• Ecke poinsettias
• Ecke
• Poinsett