Poinsettia flowers (in bud stage) are actually tiny green spherical objects at the base of the faux-petals. The colorful petals are not petals at all, but instead are bracts – modified leaves.


At the center of the colorful ring of bracts is a cluster of green and yellow structures called cyathia. Each cyathium is a flower cluster, comprised of many individual male flowers, and a single female flower. A single, very distinctive mouth-shaped structure occurs on the side of each cyathium. This is a nectar producing gland that attracts insects to the flower-head.

The photo above provides a close up of the flowers from one of the 6 bracts on this plant https://pbase.com/britestar/image/173300508