Gardeners Checklist: Here Is What to Do on the Week of Dec. 16

By Ron Kujawski

I’ve always been big on traditions, especially those associated with holidays. And no holiday has more traditions than Christmas. One of the Christmas traditions that I am particularly drawn to is the music of the holidays, especially carols and tunes that emphasize plants. My favorites are "The Holly and the Ivy" and "O Christmas Tree." Then there is the old Frank Sinatra tune: "Mistletoe and Holly." I’m still waiting for a song or carol praising the poinsettia! 

Speaking of poinsettia, its place among American traditions of Christmas is more recent than that of holly, ivy, and mistletoe. Poinsettia is native to Mexico. It was introduced into the United States in 1828 when amateur botanist and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Joel R. Poinsett, sent some plant cuttings back to his plantation in South Carolina. However, it wasn’t until the 1920s and 30s that poinsettia became a mainstay of Christmas decorations, largely due to the energetic marketing efforts of a commercial grower in California, and of course the plant’s beautiful red, star-shaped blooms. 

Nevertheless, it is not just the beauty of holiday plants that fascinates me. It is also the legends that accompany them, including that of the poinsettia. Though there are several versions, a 16th-century Mexican legend has that there was a poor child who was deeply saddened that she had no gift to present to the baby Jesus at the Christmas Eve celebration, as was the custom in her village church. As the little girl made her way to church, an angel appeared and told her to pick some weeds along the roadside and take these as a gift. Though mocked by the other children, the girl placed the weeds at the nativity scene in the church. Suddenly, the tops of the weeds burst into bright red, star-shaped flowers – the poinsettia.

Whatever your favorite traditions, carols, and Christmas legends, may your Christmas holiday be one of peace and joy.

Ron Kujawski began gardening at an early age on his family's onion farm in upstate New York. Although now retired, he spent most of his career teaching at the UMass Extension Service. He serves on Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Horticulture Advisory Committee. His book, Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardener’s Handbook, is available here.