Poinsettias were introduced to the United States by Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first appointed U.S. ambassador to Mexico. In 1825 while visiting Taxco he became enchanted with the red blooms and sent some plants to his home in Greenville, South Carolina. Poinsett, a skilled botanist, propagated the plants and began distributing the plants to friends and various botanical gardens. Within a few years, plants eventually reached Robert Buist, a nurseryman, who is believed to be the first person to sell the plant in the United States. In 1833, the plant was given the common name poinsettia, the name-sake of Joel Poinsett.
The poinsettia industry was pioneered and developed by the Ecke family. In the 1920’s, Albert and Paul Ecke began field growing poinsettias in the Hollywood and Beverly Hills area. Today the Paul Ecke Ranch located in Encinitas, California is the major producer of poinsettia mother plants used for cuttings by commercial growers.