NATCHEZ &8212; There are many colors associated with the holiday season.

The green of Christmas trees and wreaths, the silver and gold of tinsel and ornaments and of course the brilliant red of those holiday plants poinsettias.

Tom and Rhonda Smith, owners of Fred&8217;s Greenhouse and Garden Center, 78 Auburn Ave., are ready for the holidays with an entire greenhouse filled with poinsettias.

&8220;We order 2,500 poinsettias every year and every year we sell almost every one,&8221; Tom said. &8220;We may have a hundred or so left over.&8221;

Tom said he and Rhonda supply most of the colorful plants to churches in the Miss-Lou to adorn the alters for Christmas, and owners of the antebellum homes in Natchez.

With the recent influx of people from south Louisiana and Mississippi moving because of Hurricane Katrina, Tom said he expects to sell a lot more this year.

The two said they appreciate and enjoy the work they put into raising the plants, especially Rhonda.

Tom said Rhonda grew up an Isbell on her dad Kenneth&8217;s cotton farm in Anna&8217;s Bottom.

&8220;I guess she&8217;s just got that dirt in her blood,&8221; Tom said.

Five years ago, Rhonda used to work part time for former owner Fred Maier.

&8220;I guess they offered me the job because I was always in here buying flowers and plants,&8221; Rhonda said with a smile.

Two years later the Maier family asked the Smith&8217;s if they would like to buy the store. They didn&8217;t hesitate at the chance.

&8220;She&8217;s fond of flowers and plants and I enjoy getting outside and doing yard work, so it&8217;s a perfect job for us really,&8221; Tom said.

But like farming, Rhonda said raising poinsettias has its risks.

&8220;We raise Peter Star poinsettias, which are the most difficult to raise,&8221; Rhonda said. &8220;They need a lot of attention because they are very prone to disease.&8221;

The money earned by this year&8217;s poinsettia crop will go to pay for next year&8217;s seedlings, Tom said.

&8220;We don&8217;t make a lot of money in return for the plants but it&8217;s worth it when we hear someone say that we&8217;ve got the prettiest poinsettias,&8221; Rhonda said.

If the poinsettia crop continues to do well, Tom said he would like to make more room for another poinsettia greenhouse eventually.

For more information, call Fred&8217;s Greenhouse and Garden Center, call (601) 445-5181.