(Photo by Rodrigo Cervantes)

Poinsettias, originally known as "flores de nochebuena" or "Christmas Eve flowers," are red, although farmers nowadays can grow yellow and pink varieties.

MEXICO CITY — Almost two centuries ago, the first U.S. ambassador in Mexico brought poinsettias to the United States, turning them into the Christmas Holidays icon that we know. And Mexico celebrated its traditional Christmas flower by breaking a Guinness world record. 

Poinsettias are known in Mexico as “Flor de Nochebuena” or “Christmas Eve Flowers.” And today they are the most important element for Mexico’s recent world record.

Just a few miles away from the Teotihuacán archaeological site lies the world’s biggest flower carpet, according to the Guinness Records.

It took seven months to grow 150,000 poinsettias used on the carpet. Nineteen different species depict Teotihuacán’s most iconic structure, the Pyramid of the Sun.

The carpet’s size is nearly 18,000 square-feet, and overthrew Saudi Arabia’s as the record holder.