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Kathy’s Garden Writing |
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FLORES DE NOCHE BUENA Flowers of the Holy Night. What a beautiful plant name! However, we in the English-speaking world are stuck with the moniker in honor of the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico, Mr. Poinsett. As an amateur botanist, he introduced the poinsettia to this country in 1825. The horticultural nomenclature, euphorbia pulcherrima, isn’t much better, named after a first century AD Greek physician, Euphorbus. A folk legend suggested the poetic Mexican name for this holiday plant. Pepita, a poor peasant girl, had only weeds to present at the nativity scene in her village. But because she offered them with love, they burst into brilliant red blooms. Thereafter this shrub, native to Mexico and Guatemala, has been associated with the Christmas season. Early Christians in the region are of course responsible for the legend, but pre-colonial Aztecs also used this winter-blooming plant in their festivities. The infamous Montezuma had poinsettias carted into Mexico City by caravans from their coastal habitats. In addition to their decorative use, his subjects processed the bracts for a reddish-purple dye and ingested them for fever control. Which raises the issue of toxicity. Perhaps we shouldn’t use Montezuma as a guide for food safety, but research at Ohio State University has debunked the myth that poinsettias are poisonous. As with all euphorbias, their milky sap may cause slight skin irritation for some; but accidental ingestion, or use for fever control, will reportedly not cause harm. And another clarification is in order. The colorful “flowers” are actually bracts, modified leaf clusters. The real flowers are yellow and embedded in the center of each bract. In cultivation, the most common shades of bracts are red, white, and pink. But some new varieties run to orange, lime green, cream, and even marbled specimens. Because they are tropical perennial shrubs, growing to 16 feet in their native habitat, they can be grown outdoors in USDA zones 9 to 11, where temperatures generally don’t dip below freezing. But those of us in northern climes can still carry our holiday poinsettias over from year to year with some TLC (see sidebar). Their reblooming may not be quite as dramatic as Pepita’s miracle, but with a little love you too can force a weedy-looking plant to burst into flaming glory for the season of the Holy Night. Felice Navidad! (Sidebar) Here’s a quick guide for poinsettia care: *Protect with a large bag when bringing your new plant home. *Provide indirect sunlight, with ideal room temperatures between 68 to 70 degrees. *Water when dry to the touch. Add humidity with a pebble tray or mister. *Fertilize every two to three weeks. *In April, cut stems back to 8”; pinch back as needed up until September 1. *After all danger of frost, place outside in light shade. *Water and fertilize as above; transplant to larger pot as needed. *Bring indoors as night temperatures drop below 55 degrees. *Starting October 1, provide complete darkness for 14 continuous hours each night. *Through the fall, daytime light should be direct, for 6 to 8 hours. *By mid-December, look for colorful bracts to emerge, and repeat care described above. Kathleen Arcuri Published December 16, 2007 – The Danville Daily Item |