Flowers have a language of their own. The Victorians made an art of it. You’ve probably heard about Victorian women carrying small bouquets, called tussie-mussies, with messages encoded in the language of the flowers. Strands of ivy signified fidelity and friendship, gardenias conveyed a secret love, forsythia... anticipation. Shakespeare used them to enhance the story, as in Hamlet, when poor Ophelia laments “There's rosemary, that's for remembrance; pray, love, remember: and there is pansies, that's for thoughts.” Even Leopold, in the movie Kate and Leopold, knew better than to send a woman orange lilies.
Trying to plan a garden based on the meaning of flowers might not be as wise as designing around growing requirements or color, but it can be a lot of fun when creating a floral display or a bouquet of flowers to give as a gift.
Let’s say you want to send a thank you gift. You could include iris, which tips off that the bouquet is a message, white bellflowers (Campanula carpatica) for gratitude, amaranth for affection and maybe some spearmint for warm feelings. How’s that for conveying meaning through the language of flowers?
Declaring your love through flowers has been made simple enough. It’s no coincidence that baby’s breath and ferns are included with your roses. While the roses say love, the baby’s breath means everlasting love and the ferns add sincerity. But you can always make your floral love note a bit more personal. Red tulips are an outright delectation of love. If you want to be more subtle, small sunflowers signal adoration, jonquils show desire and violets let the receiver know they occupy your thoughts.
The language of flowers isn’t limited to the showy blossoms either. Tuck some basil in for “Best Wishes”. A four leaf clover, if you can find one, is a much better way to say “Be Mine” than a hard candy heart.
Keep in mind that it’s not just which flowers and plants you include, but also the way they are displayed. Flowers that incline to the left represent you, whereas right leaners are messages about the receiver. Even where you hold your flowers sends a message. Too complicated? There’s always rosemary for remembrance.
Not the flower giving type? How about surprising your date with a pineapple for perfection. Or sending a bag of hazelnuts in hope of a reconciliation. OK, maybe you’d be better off with a nice dinner for that. But don’t give up so easily. Start with some popular garden and bouquet flowers and their meanings.
