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The poinsettia is a native plant of Mexico and originate in a rather limited region near present day Taxco. Long before the.arrival of Europeans, the Aztecs of central Mexico cultivated the plant and called it Cuetlaxochitle.
Because of its brilliant color, the poinsettia was a symbol of purity to the Indians. It was highly prized by kings Montezuma and Netzahualcoyotl, but could not be grown in their capital, now known as Mexico City, because of the high altitude climate.
The Aztecs also had practical uses for the plant. They made a reddish-purple dye out of the bracts and a medicine for fever from the plant’s latex. „ The legend of the poinsettia dates back to a Christmas Eve long ago:
There was a little Mexican girl named Pepita who was very sad. Pepita wanted to give a fine present to the Christ Child at the church service that evening. She was poor and had no gift to present. As Pepita walked to the church with a cousin, he tried to console her. I “Pepita,” he said, “I am certain that even the most humble gift, given in love, will be acceptable to His eyes.”
Pepita gathered a bouquet of weeds from the roadside and entered the church. As she approached the altar, her spirits lifted.
As she placed her gift at the feet of the Christ Child, there was a miracle. Pepita’s ordinary weeds burst into brilliant red blooms. They were •called Flores de Noche Buena, Flowers of the Holy Night.
Joel Roberts Poinsett, a southern plantation owner and botanist, was appointed the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico in 1825. While visiting Taxco during his four-year term, he was impressed with the brilliant red flowers he found blooming during December.
He had some of the plants sent to his home in Greenville, S.C. They
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