Decking the Halls
At market each week I’m privy to many conversations among customers which often provide the inspiration for my weekly installment of Dishing the Dirt. So my ears perked up last week when someone was chastised for their decision to purchase an evergreen wreath and poinsettias even though they didn’t celebrate Christmas.
“But I love the scent of evergreen and the festive warmth of the big, red flowers!” came the reply. Judgement averted, issue resolved and they parted ways to continue their shopping.
I wanted to inject that humans have been decorating their homes with assorted greens for over four thousand years to celebrate the Winter Solstice. Decking the halls with holly, fir and spruce trees, ivy and mistletoe was practiced by Druids, Greeks, and Romans long before Christmas as we know it.
Evergreens were the symbol of life to ancient civilizations who attributed magic to such adornments more so than style. Considered a pagan tradition, in the 6th century the Christian church banned such practices until the tradition returned with a vengeance in the 17th century.
With waxy deep green spiked leaves and brilliant red berries, holly enjoys a festive prominence, but it’s original purpose was to entice woodland spirits into visit during the winter solstice. In regions where there is no holly, rosemary (also an evergreen) was revered as protection against evil spirits. Sprigs were hung over doors and used liberally as garnishes in winter feasts. Given the latest variant of COVID making the rounds, I think I’ll tuck a few extra pieces into my prime rib this year.
For that very same reason I’ll be forgoing the mistletoe on my tent again. It was always good for a few smooches, but alas, no more in the age of a global pandemic. Another symbol of life, despite being a parasitic plant, fertility was attributed to mistletoe in addition to it warding off evil spirits. Kissing under the mistletoe as tradition didn’t really become popular until Victorian England in the 18th century when elaborately decorated balls where displayed for couples to pass under and share a kiss.
But what about those poinsettias?
Like the roots of just about every tradition we have, this one comes from the season when the bracts on Euphorbia pulcherrima turn bright red due to the lack of daylight known as photoperiodism. Remember, we’re rapidly approaching the shortest day of the year.
Native to Mexico and down into South America, the poinsettias is shrub that can reach heights of 20 feet. They are the most popular potted plant in the country despite being a seasonal decoration that usually ends up in the compost heap. Americans purchase 100 million potted poinsettias in the six weeks leading up to Christmas. We can thank one of the founders of the Smithsonian and the first US Minister to Mexico, Joel Roberts Poinsett, for importing the first plants and imparting their common name. Today 70% of poinsettias worldwide are grown by the Ecke family who began in 1900 as dairy farmers in Los Angeles and later moved their operation to Encinitas, California and are now based in Guatemala. It was they who elevated the plant to its holiday status in the 1960s by sending free plants to television stations to display on air from Thanksgiving to Christmas and promoted the plant on popular TV shows.
But my favorite greens for this time of year aren’t green and I won’t find any locally grown at the market—oranges! A fairly newcomer to the year-end holiday traditions, the giving of citrus began as a representation of the golden coins given by Saint Nicholas (aka: Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle and Old Saint Nick). The Feast of Saint Nicholas has been observed since the Middle Ages throughout Europe and the Middle East on December 5th or 6th when children would set out their shoes in hopes of receiving a gold coin. Throughout the centuries the tradition shifted to hanging stockings into which sweets were hidden. And guess what delicious, sweet fruit is coming into the height of season right now? You got…oranges.