http://www.startribune.co...93106.html

[excerpt...]
If you haven't seen the new breeds of poinsettias, you haven't seen poinsettias. The most popular potted plant is also popular with plant breeders, so much so that in recent years they have produced not only deep red, but also pure white, lemon yellow and speckled pink poinsettias. There are poinsettias with multicolored bracts (the colored leaves that are often mistaken for its flowers) and poinsettias with curved, rose-like bracts; dwarf poinsettias and topiary poinsettias.

The latest release is 'Plum Pudding,' the first purple poinsettia. And although it was developed by the Paul Ecke Ranch in California, it has a local connection. The cultivar was going to be named 'Purple Rain,' but a couple of members of the St. Anthony Park Garden Club -- who saw the plant when it was still being tested -- nixed the Prince-ly name and suggested the more Christmassy names of 'Plum Pudding' or 'Sugar Plum' instead. 'Plum Pudding' won out and the purple poinsettia is now stealing the spotlight at holiday displays at the Como Conservatory in St. Paul and Cowles Conservatory in Minneapolis.