Poinsettia Day Dec 12, 2024

Poinsettia Day

Here"s the red poinsettia, one of the plants synonymous with the holiday season in the United States. With its striking star-shaped leaves, the poinsettia has become a symbol of Christmas cheer, brightening homes and public spaces during winter. Today, National Poinsettia Day celebrates the legacy of Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first US ambassador to Mexico, who introduced these vibrant plants to America in the 1820s. He discovered them while exploring the Taxco region in Guerrero. So taken by their beauty, he sent clippings back to his home in Charleston, South Carolina.

© David Hosking/NPL/Minden Pictures

palette

Today in History

Dec 12, 2018The story of the poinsettia
Dec 12, 2019On the lookout for Sheep-Cote Clod
Dec 12, 2020What are we looking at?
Dec 12, 2021Wicker fields in Cañamares, Spain
Dec 12, 2022Poinsettia Day
Dec 12, 2023Poinsettia Day
Dec 12, 2025National Poinsettia Day

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Nov 15, 2024Yi Peng lantern festival, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Jun 24, 2024Kelimutu, Flores, Indonesia
Dec 31, 2018A new tradition in London
Oct 19, 2020A cliff-hanging complex of temples
Jun 6, 2023D-Day remembered
Jun 22, 2023World Rainforest Day
Nov 22, 2022Red fox in the Netherlands
May 13, 2021Hues of Hokkaido
Nov 2, 2023Death Valley National Park, California
Feb 20, 2023Presidents Day
Nov 2, 2018Celebrating Native American Heritage Month
Apr 2, 2024Beech trees and wild anemones, Jutland, Denmark
Jan 7, 2021Of balloons and lost pantaloons
Feb 8, 2024Mount Hood, Oregon
Mar 4, 2024Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica
Jul 17, 2021Pretty, pretty…butterfly?
Sep 26, 2023Venice Skatepark, Los Angeles, California
Aug 5, 2021A swim in the sky
Jul 16, 2019Hemingway’s Keys
Sep 8, 2021Enter the magical world of Livraria Lello
Jul 13, 2019Batten down the hatches
Sep 29, 2021The largest American bison around
Jun 15, 2025Happy Fathers Day!
Apr 28, 2020Happy 800th, Salisbury Cathedral
Jun 26, 2020Beautiful baobabs
Nov 19, 2020That bill s just not going to fit
Apr 26, 2025Redwood National and State Parks, California
Oct 6, 2023Taughannock Falls State Park
May 2, 2019Making it work—in Norway
Sep 9, 2025A Eurasian red squirrel in Switzerland