Day 345: Red Pointsettia -National Pointsettia Day- December 12. Today is National Pointsettia Day, established in July 2002 by the House of Representatives to honor Paul Ecke Jr. who developed the technique to allow pointsettias to grow in the branching shape that we are familiar with. He and his father then promoted the plant as a holiday item. The pointsettia is the best selling potted plant in the US and Canada and brings in about $250,000,000 to the US economy each year. The plant was named after Joel Roberts Poinwet, an American, who came upon the plant in Southern Mexico in 1828 and had cuttings brought to the US. In Mexico, the plant is called Flower of the Holy Night and is displayed for the celebration of Dia de la Virgen on December 12. Now if I could just figure how how the capture that beautiful red color so that the photo is as beautiful as the plant I would be happy.
