I say “tom-AY-to; you say “tom-AH-to,” especially if you are one of my New England cousins. But do you say “poyn-seh-tee-ah” or “poyn-seh-tah”? Unlike regional pronunciations of some words, chances are you will hear both pronunciations used here in the Midlands of the country’s favorite Christmas plant. We cannot be certain how South Carolina native Joel Poinsett pronounced the name of the plant he brought back from Mexico which was eventually named in his honor, but no doubt many have their own opinion of which is right or wrong. However, the indisputable authority of all things plant-related in South Carolina, the Clemson Cooperative Extension, states that both pronunciations are correct. Apparently in a sense of comradery and open-mindedness, we should no longer look down our noses at those using the other pronunciation as being ill-informed. Thank you, Clemson.
Who was this Joel Roberts Poinsett? You can see his life-sized statue on a bench in Courthouse Square in Greenville, his favorite summer retreat, near the famous Poinsett Hotel, also named in his honor. A beautiful Gothic arched bridge also named for Poinsett graces old Highway 25 in northern Greenville County. Poinsett was president of the Board of Public Works during the time a state highway was constructed to connect Saluda Mountain to Columbia, a masterful stroke for bringing in trade from North Carolina. A man of many interests, Poinsett was a diplomat, statesman, botanist, and scholar, even helping found the Smithsonian Institution. He was born in Charleston, educated in Europe, summered in Greenville, and died on his way from Charleston to Greenville in a little village named Stateburg, where he was buried in the cemetery of its historic and beautiful Church of the Holy Cross in 1851.
While serving as ambassador to Mexico in the 1820s, Poinsett was taken with a wild Mexican plant 12 to 15 feet tall called Euphorbia pucherrima, which he collected and introduced to a botanical garden in Philadelphia. Recognizing its potential, a florist there named the plant after Poinsett. Over time, breeding techniques have accentuated the plant’s bright red bracts while minimizing its small yellow blooms. Today, poinsettias are available in of a variety of colors as well as marbled and speckled to send to your favorite great-aunt as a gift. Or stick to red, which still accounts for more than three-quarters of sales, according to the Clemson Cooperative Extension Home and Garden Information Center.
You can learn more about poinsettias at hgic.clemson.edu, including tips to keep your red bracts — or pink, yellow, or speckled ones — healthy through the winter and even hints on the challenge of getting a plant to rebloom in the future.