The poinsettia is a wildflower native to Mexico. It was almost unknown in the U.S. until the Ecke family began selling them in the early 1900s from their flower stand in California. A member of the Ecke family discovered a grafting process that resulted in a much thicker and more colorful poinsettia plant, which became hugely popular at Christmas. The Ecke family did not attempt to patent the grafting process, but instead managed to keep the process a secret for many decades, and so maintained a monopoly on the commercial production of poinsettias for all those years. Eventually, a university professor figured out the grafting technique, and published it in an academic journal. What do you think happened to the price of poinsettias after publication of that article? Why?