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The Victorian Language of Flowers: Plant a Garden Filled with Meaning

February 21, 2011 By rathemea Leave a Comment

Article by Kate McIntyre

The Victorians used bouquets of flowers to communicate sentiments that they would never otherwise be able to express. Lovers could declare their fidelity, ask if their affection was returned, or even show an inconstant mate their sadness by choosing appropriate flowers. Whole books were published devoted to this coded “language of flowers.”

Picking Meaningful Flowers for Your Garden

If you have a Victorian house and you are looking for gardening ideas, you might consider including some plants with meanings. The Victorians assigned meanings to hundreds of plants. Sometimes, the meanings were troublingly contradictory. For example, lavender might mean either distrust or loyalty. The recipient of a bouquet of lavender was left to puzzle out whether his lover was expressing her loyalty or questioning his own loyalty.

Here are some meanings of common plants, taken from an 1882 article:

* Aloe: Grief
* Bachelor’s Buttons: Celibacy
* Basil: Hatred
* Butterfly Weed: Let me go
* Flowering Almond: Hope
* Lily of the Valley: Return of happiness
* Mint: Virtue
* Pine: Pity
* Purple Lilac: First emotions of love
* Rose: Love
* Sweet Pea: Delicate pleasures
* Tulip: Fame
* Zinnia: Thoughts of absent friends

Using the Language

The Victorians often combined several different flowers in bouquets to convey more complicated sentiments. By sending a bouquet of sweet peas and lilacs, they could tell someone that they were feeling the delicate pleasure of new love.

Today, you can use flowers from your garden in the same way the Victorians did, by sharing a bouquet that reveals your feelings. Because we are no longer familiar with the Victorians’ code, you might need to include an explanatory note with the bouquet. Another option is to create plantings of two or three types of flowers that create a message right in your garden. If you are feeling especially contrary, send a mixed message by combining roses with basil.

Source:

The Victorian Language of Flowers

About the Author

Kate McIntyre is a writer in Portland, Oregon. She holds a B.A. from Harvard University and an M.F.A. in fiction writing from Oregon State University. She has written many informative pieces on landscaping and garden care.

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The Language of Flowers

February 21, 2011 By rathemea Leave a Comment

Article by Ingmar Boddington

Ever wondered why we give flowers as gifts? Or why different flowers symbolise different things? Well, the act of giving flowers dates back to prehistoric times and evidence of flowers having symbolic meanings can be found in Egyptian inscriptions and Chinese writings, as well a Greek and Roman Mythology. The fascinating history behind the language of flowers has developed over hundreds of years.

During the Middle Ages harsh restraints were placed on courtships and this led to the exchange of flowers to grow amongst couples, as the flowers they gave symbolised different messages, allowing couples to express themselves secretly without others seeing or hearing.
Flower meanings progressed through the 1600′s and became so refined that even military messages could be sent in a harmless gift of flowers. As time went on, the context in which flowers were given also began to have meaning. For example flowers handed over in the right hand would mean “yes” to a question, just as flowers handed over in the left hand would mean “no”.

By the Victorian era, great emphasis was placed on flowers and what they represented. Flowers were used to decorate almost everything from hair and clothing to jewellery and people’s homes. However, the same flower found in a different position could have a completely different meaning. For example wearing a Marigold in the hair expressed mental anguish, while the same flower pinned to the bosom conveyed indifference.Flowers had taken on so many different meanings and definitions that 1818 saw the very first flower dictionary published by Charlotte de la Tour call Le Language des Fleurs. The handbook was extremely popular and included over 1000 different meanings of flowers, plants and herbs.

By the 19th Century posies and bouquets carried so much meaning as each flower, colour and number held such symbolism. Giving a bouquet then was the equivalent of sending a text message on your mobile phone today!

Flowers and plants still carry different meanings and are used to represent and symbolise many things from cultures and nationalities to emotions and the marking of occasions. For example the red Rose has multiple meanings. It is one of England’s national emblems, found on England rugby shirts and sometimes on the England flag.

The story of the red Rose representing England dates back to the 15th Century when the War of the Roses took place from 1455-1487. The House of York adopted a white Rose, the House of Lancaster decided to take a red Rose. The winner of this war, Tudor Henry VII, merged his Lancastrian Rose with the red Rose of his York bride and therefore created the Tudor Rose, the Rose of England. The red Rose is also known worldwide as the symbol of love and romance and is traditionally sent on St. Valentine’s Day. The Language of Flowers is largely forgotten today and not as widely in bouquet choices as it once was. The tradition of communicating through flowers can add an element of fun to the flowers you buy as gifts – that is why we are bringing it back!

About the Author

Bunches Florapost Ltd is a gifts by post company based in Nottinghamshire UK. Bunches.co.uk for Flowers By Post and Flowering House Plants.

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The Endearing Language of Flowers

February 21, 2011 By rathemea Leave a Comment

Article by Jay Stockman

The fascination with flowers have captivated, and charmed people world wide. They represent a form of life that has endured evolution, and continues to flourish. With a diversity of colors, forms, scents, and uses, flowers have been revered by generations of admirers, and enthusiasts alike. Throughout history flowers have been the perfect form of expression, when words were hard to find. The language of flowers is a language of love, endearment, and respect. The truly popularity of flowers lies in their ability to bring joy, and good cheer.

The first flowering plants found were tiny herb-like flower fossils dating back 120 million years. An innumerable number of images of preserved flowers and flower parts have been found in fossils located all over the world. According to scientists, there are over 270,000 species of flowers that have been documented and are living in the twenty-first century. Scientists continue to marvel over the amazing diversity of species, and the species that have not changed much during evolution. Many flowers have coevolved with their pollination animals.

The flower is the reproductive organ of a plant. It is the job of the flower to produce seeds through fertilization, and pollination. Pollination requires animals (bees, hummingbirds, etc.), wind, or water to transfer male pollen to the female ovule. After a flower is fertilized, it develops into a fruit containing seeds. These seeds are the next generation, and serve as the means by which species of plants are dispersed across a field. Cross breeding can occur, and this leads to the enormous diversities seen.

The alluring nature of flowers has made them subjects of folklore, and poetry. Their medicinal use has been embraced by the east for centuries. A flower’s fragrance is its personality, a beautiful bouquet of scents that permeate even the worst form of pollution. Flowers have been associated with religious symbolism, the lily signifying purity for example. The diversity of shapes and colors makes them the perfect decoration, and the perfect gift. The likelihood of two people having the same color, shape arrangement is very remote. Edible flowers have been used in the culinary field for flavor and garnish for many years.

It is clear that flowers do have a very endearing language. A language that is universal, without borders. A language that contains no negativity, nor prejudice. An unconditional way of expressing a feeling so deep, that words could never convey the true meaning. Regardless of the situation, the sight of a flower will always solicit a smile, and a sense of warmth.

About the Author

Jay B Stockman is a contributing editor for Send Flowers Online Resource Visit http://sendflowersite.com/ for more information.

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