California Business Minute™

Hi, I am Tim Johnson and welcome to the California Business Minute.

The plant, poinsettia seems to be inextricably intertwined with the holidays. And it is no more
evident than in San Diego County where the majority of the plants are grown for sale across
the nation and world.

While the plant is grown in all 50 states, California is the nation’s leader in production. It is
estimated that $220 million worth of poinsettias are sold during the holiday season. The state
accounts for over 8 million plants produced a year. The Paul Ecke Ranch in San Diego County
grows more than 80 percent of poinsettias in the United States for the wholesale market. Ninety
percent of all the flowering poinsettias in the world got their start at the Paul Ecke Ranch.

There are more than 100 varieties of poinsettias available. Seventy-four percent of Americans
still prefer red poinsettias; 8 percent prefer white and 6 percent pink.  Eighty percent of poinsettias
are purchased by women and eighty percent of people who purchase poinsettias are 40 or older.

December 12th is National Poinsettia Day and the college football season concludes with a bowl
game in San Diego named after the plant.

I am Tim Johnson and this has been the California Business Minute.