The Gardens on Spring Creek

  What's Blooming:  Poinsettias by Jenna Poncelet, Gardener, Gardens on Spring Creek You may know poinsettias best as the potted houseplants that pop up for sale around Christmastime, but have you ever wondered how they became a holiday tradition? Poinsettias were first introduced to the U.S. as a holiday plant by a minister and botanist named Joel Roberts Poinsett, who found them on a visit to their native range in Central America. The tradition of displaying the beautiful bright green and red plants comes from a Mexican Christmas legend. The story goes that a young girl wanted to give a gift to her church on Christmas Eve, but had no money to spend. Instead, she picked green plants that she thought to be weeds and laid them in front of a nativity scene. Overnight the green “weeds” transformed into beautiful red flowers, which was treated as a Christmas miracle. We now display the colorful plants all holiday season long as a show of festivity.  Unfortunately, the classic re