December 12th is Poinsettia Day! Send something red...or white...or pink...or cinnamon colored!
Well it is less than a month away from Christmas day and you have probably already seen someone in your office or neighborhood receive a lush healthy looking red, white or pink poinsettia plant being delivered by their Local Real Florist. But do you know anything about this gorgeous plant?
The poinsettia is named after Joel Roberts Poinsett who was the first American Ambassador to Mexico in the 1820's and who during his travels there, discovered a red blooming plant along side of the road, brought cuttings back to his greenhouse in South Carolina and the story begins. Since then, over 100 varieties are available with red being the most frequently purchased. In 2004 ..alone...a total of over 61 million poinsettia plants were sold.Contrary to old wives tales, they are not poisonous.Poinsettias represent more than 80 percent of all potted plants sold during the holidays.
But even as a Professional Florist for almost twenty years, I really never gave them much thought...we got them in the store for Christmas, we sold them, we took home the few that were left over and planted them and now have a yard with some pretty plants that require a little bit of care but that bloom every year..even when we are not as careful of them as we should be. Recently my path crossed that of Joe Mioux of Mioux Florist and Greenhouse in Carlyle, Illinois who has an amazing greenhouse and stories to match. He graciously shared pictures of his seedlings and their growth with me and I want to share them with you. Listening to him talk about his little seedlings and watching them grow, and his stories of gas heaters failing and having to make emergency runs in the middle of the night to keep the plants from harm have increased my respect for the growers and for the pretty red ( and white, pink and cinnamon ) poinsettias. Here are a a few of Joe's pictures of his babies, toddlers and now teenagers ready for delivery to you from us at Flowers From The Rainflorist.
Cuttings Some starting to grow
Getting a little bigger
4 months old...wow a lot of green!
What color will they be??? A hint of color
Almost ready for your house
Snowy White
And lastly a new favorite that we will be carrying......the peachy/cinnamon...makes me think of cinnamon buns on a cold day.....and of course a cappuchino!
Call us if you'd like more information on the care of your plant and we will gladly offer it to you even if you did not receive a healthy Mioux poinsettia from Flowers From The Rainflorist.