A Mexican legend tells of a boy who couldn't go to church on Christmas Eve as he didn't have a present for the Madonna. As stranger told him to pick some weeds and take those which he did with reluctance. The persuasive stranger encouraged him into the church whereupon the weeds turned red.As he turned to thank the stranger he heard a voice saying "Call them Flowers of the Holy Night" which is another name for the poinsettia. On a more scientific note, the plant is actually named after Joel Roberts Poinsett who was the first United States Minister to Mexico and who introduced the plant to the USA in 1828. The may be the truth but it's the legend that explains the plant's connection to Christmas.
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