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Merry and Bright: 8 Jolly Christmas Plants

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Written by
Melissa Petruzzello
Melissa Petruzzello is Assistant Managing Editor and covers a range of content including plants, algae, and fungi; insects and spiders; and renewable energy and environmental engineering. She also handles...
Melissa Petruzzello
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Deck the halls, trim the tree, and sneak a kiss under the mistletoe! A surprising number of plants are involved with making Christmas merry. Here are eight festive plants that are commonly used as decorations throughout Europe and North America.

  • Holly

    Red fruit and leaves of the European holly (Ilex aquifolium). Also called English holly. plant shrub
    European hollyEuropean holly (Ilex aquifolium).
    © pixarno/stock.adobe.com

    A number of hollies (Ilex species), mainly hailing from Europe or North America, are used as Christmas decorations for their waxy evergreen foliage and winter-ripening fruits.

  • Poinsettia

    Poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima).
    poinsettiaPoinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima).
    Scott Bauer/U. S. Department of Agriculture

    Native to Mexico and parts of Central America, the vibrant poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima) features showy petal-like bracts that resemble enormous flowers. Red is the most common color, but varieties with pink, yellow, mottled, or striped bracts have also been developed.

  • Douglas fir

    Coast Douglas fir evergreen tree, (Pseudotsuga menziesii), with pine cones near the Ross Lake National Recreation Area in North Cascades National Park, Washington state.
    Douglas fir with conesDouglas fir tree (Pseudotsuga menziesii) with cones in North Cascades National Park, Washington.
    © Walter Siegmund

    In North America the Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) is one of several species of conifers used as Christmas trees. Many species of true fir, including the balsam fir (Abies balsamea) and Fraser fir (A. fraseri), are also used.

  • Christmas cactus

    Easter cactus (Hatiora gaertneri). (plants)
    Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera bridgesii).
    © Harold Taylor/Oxford Scientific Films

    Native to Brazil, the winter-flowering Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera ×buckleyi) bears red or pink flowers around late December in the Northern Hemisphere.

  • Mistletoe

    Mistletoe. Mistletoe (Viscum album) a green semiparasitic plant grows on a tree. parasite, parasitic, hemi parasite, hemiparasitic shrub, mythology, legends, customs, Christmas decoration
    European mistletoeSemiparasitic European mistletoe (Viscum album) growing on an apple tree.
    © Liane M./Fotolia

    European mistletoe (Viscum album) and its North American counterpart, Eastern mistletoe (Phoradendron serotinum), are parasitic plants that became associated with Christmastime romance.

  • Norway spruce

    Norway spruce cones (Picea abies)
    Norway spruce: conesNorway spruce cones (Picea abies).
    Copyright Michael P. Gadomski/Photo Researchers

    The Norway spruce (Picea abies) is a common Christmas tree in many places. Blue spruce (P. pungens) and white spruce (P. glauca) are also used.

  • Christmas rose

    Christmas rose (Helleborus niger).
    Christmas roseChristmas rose (Helleborus niger).
    Archenzo

    Depending on the climate, the cheery Christmas rose (Helleborus niger) can produce attractive white or pink flowers in December. In some places, blossoms even emerge from the snow.

  • Cedar

    Giant arborvitae (Thuja plicata)
    Western red cedarWestern red cedar (Thuja plicata).
    Verna R. Johnston

    Various evergreen trees known as cedars, including the western red cedar (Thuja plicata) and the incense cedar (Calocedrus decurrens), are commonly used in Christmas wreaths and garlands for their long-lasting and fragrant foliage.