On December 12, 2002, the US first celebrated National Poinsettia Day, honoring two of the men who helped make these festive plants popular in the US – Joel Roberts Poinsett and Paul Ecke, Jr. Native to Mexico, the Aztecs called poinsettias Cuetlaxochitl, which means “flower that withers, mortal flower that perishes like all that is pure.” According to Aztec tradition, these plants were a gift from the gods and their blood red coloring was to be a reminder of the sacrifices the gods made to create the universe.