BY SYDNEY EDDISON

Most of our Christmas traditions derive from Greek and Roman festivals,

British druidical rites, and Norse pagan ceremonies. Therefore, most of

the plants we associate with the holiday season are from Europe or the

Mediterranean -- holly, ivy, mistletoe, rosemary, bay, and, of course,

evergreens. The New World is represented in Christmas legend by only one

plant, the poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima).

Known by its beautiful Spanish name of flor de nochebuena, "flower of

Christmas Eve," the poinsettia is indigenous to Central America and

tropical Mexico. The story goes that a poor Mexican child on her way to

church on Christmas Eve wept because she had no gift to place before the

altar of the Virgin and Child. Through her tears, an angel suddenly

appeared and instructed her to gather weeds from the roadside. When the

child arrived at the altar with her wilted offering, starry crimson

"blossoms" burst forth from every stem.

The poinsettia's brilliant seasonal display is actually produced by

colored bracts surrounding the real flowers, which appear as an

insignificant cluster of yellow berries called cyathia. The petal-like

bracts are modified leaves located at the junction of the flower stalks

and main stem. In November and December, these turn vivid shades of red

in response to the longer nights.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back