Poinsettias come in many colors and forms, and new selections appear every year. They have large green stem leaves and smaller but showy red, pink, or yellow bracts surrounding the flowers. Fruit is a 3 celled, 3 lobe capsule.

Choose a plant with dark green foliage, however the cultivars with lighter colored or mottled bracts typically have lighter green foliage. Plants with pale green, yellow or fallen leaves generally have a root disease problem, over watered, excessive dry period, or received limited amounts of fertilization. The bracts should be well developed with little pollen showing on the flowers.