Decorating Plants during Winter Solstice

(Today’s article is by guest writer Shahreen Quazi. Brief bio is provided below)

Decorating Plants during Winter Solstice
Sacred plants, including trees and flowers, have played a significant part in our traditions since ancient times. 

Winter solstice in particular has been celebrated with decorating plants and incorporating them in homes throughout various cultures.  

In the United States, Christmas decorating is one of the most enjoyed activities of the winter season.  Christian and many non-Christian homes tend to be decorated with parts of sacred plants  such as pine, fir, juniper, cedar, holly, mistletoe, ivy, birch, oak and poinsettias.  

Along with lit-up Christmas trees, American homes have decorated wreaths, mistletoe and poinsettia flowers during the winter season. 

But do you know when the tradition of decorating trees for the winter solstice began? Do you know why mistletoe is hung at the door or who first introduced poinsettias to the United States?  

Let’s travel back thousands of years then come to the present.

The Root Cause
At the root of it all, stands ancient Persians, who were Great astronomers, and started a celebration called Shab-eh-Yalda, which translates to “night of re-birth”. 

Yalda is celebrated on the longest night of the year, to mark the birth of Mithra, the Sun God, who symbolized light, goodness and strength on earth.  It was celebrated first by the Cult of the Mithra but then adopted into Zoroastrianism over 7000 years ago.  

Yalda decorations included decorating an evergreen tree with colorful ribbons, pomegranate (fresh or dried) and gifts under the tree. Does that sound familiar?

 In fact, some religious scholars including Dr. Joel Wilbush, argue that early Christians loved this tradition and adopted it from what they knew as Shab-e-Chelleh, another name for the same celebration. 

All along, I had the idea that Christmas fell in December because it coincided with the Roman festival of Saturnalia and Viking celebration, Yule. That could be politically how it worked out but some of the practices incorporated into modern day Christmas, seem to have started in ancient Persia.

We learned part of the story, just not all of it, back in my school. 

Saturnalia
Saturnalia was a day to celebrate Saturn and fell on the winter solstice much like the celebration for Mithra. Both ancient gods symbolized much of the same attributes. For Saturnalia, people decorated their homes with evergreen wreaths, then participated in feasting, music, lighting candles and gift exchange. The Saturnalia wreaths were made of fir, holly and ivy to honor the Roman gods.

Yule
The Viking and Celtic celebration of Yule, added to how we celebrate winter now too.  In their cultures, evergreen trees and plants were seen more as a form of protection against evil spirits during the winter. 

According to ancient Celtic practices, Druids celebrated Yule as the festival of Alban Arthuan and ceremonially gathered mistletoe from oak trees on winter solstice. To the Druids, mistletoe was a powerful protector from evil spirits.

In Norse mythology, The Tale of Baldur is where mistletoe became a symbol of love and forgiveness so having mistletoe in the home during winter solstice, partially has its origin from that story.

Kissing under the Mistletoe
In addition to the Tale of Baldur, mistletoe is known to have been used during Roman and Greek weddings.  There are accounts of clumps of mistletoe being hung at doors during Saturnalia.

From the 16th Century Onwards
It is only from the 16th century onwards that we see a major change in how trees were decorated during the winter solstice.  The Germans are attributed with being the first to bring the trees indoors and decorating them with candles in addition to fruit as we had first seen done by  the ancient Persians.

From Germany to England, the idea of a lighted, indoor Christmas tree spread through the British royalty’s influence. It took about 200 years to travel but after it got to England, the idea spread to North America. 

Immigrated Plants
By now, you can see that the decorated Christmas tree itself is an immigrant of mixed origin that has now become a beloved part of American culture today. But with it, other immigrated plants such as the mistletoe and poinsettias have come too. 

We discussed the European mistletoe and how it entered into the narrative of winter solstice. Where do the Poinsettias come from? 

Do not judge a Flower by the Americanized Name
Poinsettias have their origin in a totally different place and set of cultures then the trees and plants already mentioned. Poinsettias first came to the United States from Mexico. 

The plant itself is ancient and was cultivated by the Aztecs and Mayans for decoration and medicinal properties. The original Aztec name of the flower translates to “brilliant flower” (cuetlaxochitl). The original Mayan name translates to “ember flower” (k’alul wits).

They were already used in Christmas decorating since the 17th century by Franciscan priests in Southern Mexico. 

The Farmer’s Almanac attributes their spread in the United States to the first ambassador to Mexico from the United States. His name was Joel Roberts Poinsett, and he was the first to transplant and cultivate them in his family-owned greenhouses in South Carolina. 

Interconnectedness
Did you expect that ending? We went from Persia to Mexico over thousands of years.

Having read my short tale about winter solstice tree decorations and plants, I hope that you realize that like the winter solstice itself, all of our origins and endings are connected to one another in some way or form. 

Who would have really thought that ancient Persian, Roman, Greek, Viking, Celtic winter solstice practices and Mexican flowers would one day be brought into the United States by German immigrants and an American ambassador to help decorate the most celebrated season of them all?

Instead of focusing on differences, I hope everyone has enjoyed reading about how these traditions came together to form new, enjoyable traditions.  

Peace, Good Health, Light and Love to All. 

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Bio: Shahreen Quazi is based in Natick, Massachusetts. She co-founded Tins, Trunks & Trousseau Inc. with her mother Sophia Huq in 2019. She tries to teach that giving back to humanity can be done in many forms and has many rewards.