Walking through the San Francisco flower mart this morning immediately put me in the spirit of Christmas. The floor was covered in a sea of poinsettias wrapped in shiny red, gold and green potting paper.
The association of poinsettias with Christmas started in Mexico when the flower was laid in a manger of the nativity scene. In 1828, Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first United States Minister to Mexico, imported the flower to the United States. The flower itself is the small cluster of yellow in the center, surrounded by colored leaf-like bracts, which may be red, pink, white or dappled. Although believed to be poisonous, the plants merely create an irritation to some peoples skin.
I love to use small poinsettias on the dining table or window sill in beautiful silver mint julep cups or small planters for instant decor.
