Poinsettia Facts
Poinsettia Facts
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| Interesting Poinsettia Facts: |
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| Wild Poinsettia grows in the form of large shrub or small tree that can reach 10 to 15 feet in height. Cultivated varieties are much smaller (up to 2 feet in height). |
| Poinsettia produces dark green leaves with toothed edges. Leaves can reach 3 to 6 inches in length. |
| Poinsettia develops yellow flowers (arranged in clusters), surrounded with large, colorful bracts (modified leaves) which look like petals. Bracts can be white, yellow, creamy, pink, light orange and red. Bracts can be uniformly colored or marbled and speckled. Poinsettia discards bracts after pollination. |
| Cultivated varieties of Poinsettia change the color of the bracts only after prolonged exposure to darkness (at least 12 hours) and bright light (less than 10 hours), for at least 5 days in a row. Plants in the wild require long, dark nights and short, bright days during a period of 2 months (during the autumn) for the synthesis of pigments required for the change of colors of the leaves. |
| Poinsettia blooms during December. Flowers attract birds and insects, responsible for the pollination of this plant. Flowers contain both types of reproductive organs and they are able to perform self-pollination. |
| Fruit of Poinsettia is capsule. Ripe fruit splits to release numerous seed. |
| Poinsettia produces milky sap that is not harmful for people, but it can induce nausea, vomiting and diarrhea in cats and other house pets. |
| People diagnosed with latex allergy can experience skin reactions after contact with sap of Poinsettia. |
| Poinsettia is one of the most popular house plants in the USA and Canada. Around 34 million plants are sold each year. |
| 12th December is National Poinsettia Day in the USA in honor to Dr. Joel Roberts Poinsett, botanist who introduced Poinsettia to the USA (he died on December 12, 1851). |
| Poinsettia is known as "Flower of the Holy Night" in Mexico and Guatemala, because it represents important part of Christmas celebration. |
| Poinsettia is used for the Christmas decoration in churches for centuries. |
| Aztecs used leaves of Poinsettia as a source of reddish-purple pigment that was used for dying of fabrics. |
| Sap extracted from Poinsettia was used in treatment of fever in the past. |
| Poinsettia grows as perennial plant (lifespan: more than 2 years) in the wild. |
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