Have you ever wondered where our Christmas traditions originated? - Plants

16 December 2009

Planters of Bretby Garden Centre’s Nick Fairbrother does some more digging.

For thousands of years, people have hung holly and ivy in homes during the depths of winter. With their evergreen, glossy leaves they were symbols of hope for a new spring and a reminder of fresh, green times ahead. The holly’s red berries were also associated with fertility.

Holly is one of the few woods which will burn when green so could have been a valuable fuel source in wintertime although superstitions surrounded the burning of holly and for many people it was more likely to be used as a protection – especially in Scotland – against witches.

Long before Christmas trees gained popularity, a ball of holly was hung in the home; this was often decorated with garlands and a branch of mistletoe. It is said that Druids encouraged people to hang holly in their homes as it sheltered elves and fairies, Druids also used mistletoe in their ceremonies.

A tradition that is now lost is that when kiss is ‘stolen’ beneath the mistletoe, a berry should be plucked and discarded. When the mistletoe is devoid of berries, the magic of the branch was spent.

A more recent Christmas plant tradition is the giving of poinsettias. This plant was introduced into the United States from Mexico in 1828 by Joel Roberts Poinsett.

In the early 1900s it was grown on a huge scale by Albert Ecke on his ranch in California. Ecke was keen to promote the plant for sale during the Christmas holiday due to its commercial value as a Christmas flowering plant – the ‘bright red flowers’ are actually bracts – and over the years, the business grew as Ecke aggressively marketed the poinsettia, making sure it appeared on television shows at Christmas and pushing it on radio and in the press as the plant to have at Christmas.

Whether given as a beautiful gift or bought to create a stunning display in your own home, you’ll find a wonderful selection of Christmas flowering houseplants at Planters of Bretby. With so much choice why not start your own tradition?

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