Poinsettia Archives

Joel Roberts Poinsett: Botanist, Statesman, and the Namesake of the Poinsettia”,The Daily Gardener

Joel Roberts Poinsett, an American statesman, diplomat, and botanist, best known for introducing the poinsettia plant to the United States.

The Painted Leaf March 2, 1779 Today is the birthday of the physician, botanist, and American statesman, Joel Roberts Poinsett. In the 1820s, President John Quincy Adams appointed Joel to serve as a US ambassador in Mexico. Joel was introduced to a beautiful plant that the Aztecs called the cuetlaxochitl (“qwet-la-SHO-chee-til”) but today it’s better…

March 2, 2021 Gardens Matter to Pollinators, Joel Roberts Poinsett, John Jacob Mauerer, A Spring Flower Show, Fermented Vegetables by Kirsten and Christopher Shockey and the State Flower of Idaho

The Daily Gardener Podcast Album Cover with a pot of rosemary - the herb for remembrance - beckoning gardeners to remember to listen to the show. Updated September 2025.

Paul Ecke Sr.: The Father of the Poinsettia and Christmas Flower Marketing

Poinsettia plant (Euphorbia pulcherrima)

Mr. Poinsettia January 28, 1895 Today is the birthday of the nurseryman known as “Mr. Poinsettia,” Paul Ecke Sr. (“Eck-EE”), and he was born in Magdeburg, Germany. Paul and his family immigrated to the United States in 1906. And when Paul took over his father’s nursery business located on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood in the…

January 28, 2021 New Year Plant Hunt 2021, Peter Collinson, Paul Ecke, Thoughts on Spleenwort by Susan Wittig Albert, Botanical Style by Selina Lake, and the Best Job Ever: Creating Herb Gardens

November 23, 2020 Fibonacci in the Garden, Nathaniel Ward, Alexander Anderson, Roald Dahl, Gladys Taber, The Farm by Ian Knauer, and How to Care for Your Poinsettia

Celebrating the Nurseryman Who Popularized the Poinsettia: Paul Ecke

“Gardeners will be fascinated to learn that the Ecke family was able to distinguish themselves as a superior grower of poinsettias by using a secret technique to keep their plants compact and hardy. Their solution was simple. They grafted two varieties of poinsettias together, causing every seedling to branch and become bushy.” January 28, 1895…

John Drayton, South Carolina’s botanical governor and the discovery of yellow honeysuckle

The Two-Time South Carolina Governor Today is the anniversary of the death of a two-time Governor of South Carolina, the founder of the University of South Carolina, a writer, and a botanist John Drayton. Drayton grew up in Charleston, a hub of botanical activity. He knew the French royal gardener Andre Michaux and his son,…

December’s Birth Flower: The Poinsettia

“Poinsettia is botanically known as the Euphorbia pulcherrima. Pulcherrima means ‘very beautiful.'” December 2, 2019 As we begin December, you may wonder about the December birth flower. Well, it’s no surprise that the December birth flower is the Poinsettia. Poinsettia is botanically known as the Euphorbia pulcherrima. Pulcherrima means “very beautiful.” Like all…

Six Popular Plants Named for Famous People and Botanists

A vivid cluster of bright pink bougainvillea bracts, surrounding small white blossoms. The flowers fill the frame with their striking, papery texture and intense color, capturing the lively character of this ornamental plant.

“Leonard Fuchs, a German botanist, discovered the plant known as fuchsia, while William Forsyth, a Scotch botanist, is responsible for the name forsythia.” August 1, 1950 On this day, The Ithaca Journal, out of Ithaca, New York, published a question from a reader. The reader wanted an answer to this question: Please list a few…