Today marks National Poinsettia Day in honor of the death of Joel Poinsett. Joel was the ambassador to Mexico in the early 1800's and is the person who is responsible for sending these wonderful plants to the U.S. Believe it or not, poinsettias are the #1 selling potted plant in the U.S. Now for a quick botany lesson, the actual flower is in the very center of all the colored leaves. It is a very tiny insignificant cluster of a few flowers. All the colored leaves are called bracts, not flowers. So when Alex Trebek asks what are the colored leaves on a poinsettia called, you can proudly say "Bracts!"
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