Poinsettias are a decorating staple during the holiday season, and the University is in on the action. For the past two decades, the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens at Burden has hosted a poinsettia sale that both raises money for its programs and gives researchers a chance to survey customers about their preferences.
There are about 2,000 poinsettia plants in greenhouses at Burden. They are first used for horticulture research and are then marked for sale. This year’s sale is 8 a.m. to noon Friday at Burden, located at 4560 Essen Lane in Baton Rouge. Large, florist-quality poinsettias cost $8 and smaller ones are $6.
Jeff Kuehny, director of the Botanic Gardens at Burden, shared a few facts with The Daily Reveille about Christmastime’s favorite flower:
FACTS
1. Poinsettias were brought to the United States from Mexico in the 1800s by Joel Poinsett, a U.S. minister to Mexico. The first American poinsettias were grown in California.
2. Poinsettias can grow as large as a tree in their native tropics. Once introduced in the U.S., they were bred to be smaller so they could be sold in pots. Poinsettia breeders today generally focus on color and leaf shape.
3. The plant’s popularity took off in the 1940s and ’50s as it became available in convenient flowerpot sizes. They became associated with Christmas because they naturally flower in the winter and display the traditional red and green Christmas colors.
4. Although 90 percent of consumers buy red poinsettias, they are available in a range of colors. At Burden, customers can purchase burgundy, red, red-orange, pink and white plants as well as spotted and marbled types. The different varieties have names such as Monet — a pink variety with marbled coloring that resembles Claude Monet’s impressionist paintings — and holiday-themed names including Jingle Bells and Iced Punch.
5. Poinsettias are not poisonous unless consumed in an extremely large quantity. The plant contains latex, which will make people and pets salivate, but in the long term is usually harmless.
6. Poinsettias take three to four months to grow from cuttings to full size. As a tropical plant, they are “picky to grow,” Kuehny said — poinsettias must be grown in a greenhouse and require special lighting and fertilizer.
7. Well cared-for potted poinsettias will last through Christmas. They can be planted “if you have a really green thumb,” Kuehny said, but for most people, it is best to throw the plants away and buy new ones every year.
8. Poinsettias should be kept in a bright area away from cold air. Customers sometimes kill their poinsettias by overwatering them, so Kuehny recommends putting a few ice cubes in the pot and letting them melt to water the plant.
9. The colored parts of a poinsettia are not leaves — they are bracts. A bract is a modified leaf that helps collect pollinators. The green foliage leaves are underneath the bracts.
10. Poinsettias are the most popular plant grown in greenhouses.

Gallery • 6 Photos

Lauren Duhon

A red poinsettia sits in a greenhouse Monday, Dec. 2, 2013 at the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens at Burden.