It is Euphorbia pulcherrima which originated in Mexico and has its common name from the first US ambassador to Mexico Joel Roberts Poinsett who introduced the plant to the US in 1828. Although we mostly think of it as red, it also comes in white, pink, yellow, and marbled.
Most of us think Poinsettias look like this. The potted plants forced in greenhouses to bloom just at Christmas time.
The actual flower is the yellow/gold wad of little balls in the center of the red "petals" which are called bracts, more akin to leaves than flowers.
Some people in my area of Southern California plant the withering potted plants in their yard and if the soil, light, and water are controlled, those plants grow into shrubs that can grow ten feet tall.
They bloom in February and last about a month, depending on the weather.
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2 comments:
My mother loved plants. The city of North Ridgeville was mostly farming families during the 1950s.We were known as the greenhouse capitol of the world at one point. My mother had gone to high school with most of the major growers and being friends with them she volunteered to grow their winter stock of geraniums on our land. She would purchase and plant over 20 flats of flowers over the summer. We were known for the beautiful yard my mother maintained. BUT she hated poinsettias, called them Mexican weeds. My older brother always bought her a Christmas poinsettia which she threw in the trash.
I didn't realize they grow so tall. Learned something new.
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