Poinsettia seedling to branch, resulting in a bushier plant. In the late 1980s, university researcher John Dole discovered the method previously known only to the Eckes and published it, allowing competitors to flourish, particularly those using low-cost labor in Latin America. The Ecke family's business, now led by Paul Ecke III, decided to stop producing plants in the U.S., but as of 2008, they still serve about 70 percent of the domestic market and 50 percent of the worldwide market. The poinsettia has been cultivated in Egypt since the 1860s, when it was brought from Mexico during the Egyptian campaign. It
The Raksha Country and the Sea Market relative, Giles writes that the first episode of "The Raksha Country" is a "clever amplification" of Robert Burns' 1786 Scots language poem "To a Louse" which is written from the perspective of a louse; what is grotesque to Ma is regarded as beautiful by the Rakshas. Similarly, Glen Dudbridge points out Pu's reversal of "conventional expectations for ironic effect", in that "normal standards of beauty and ugliness are turned upside down, and a handsome man is viewed as an ogre." The Rakshas are not unique to Pu's work and in fact originate from ancient Hindu mythology, with multiple epics detailing