Favorite flowers by Country.

I had begun to comment about national flowers and was surprised by my own good guesses as well as a few I didn’t know about. The United States shares the Rose with guess who? IRAN and IRAQ. Most civilized countries have a national flower yet Germany does NOT and Bavaria, Switzerland and Austria are all besotted with  Edelweiss. What happened to the Gentian for god’s sake?

Flowers are ancient, mystical and magical. There are so many facets to flowers. Romance was certainly included. In weddings White flowers stood for purity, commitment and devotion. The coming together of two souls. Openness and Honesty! Now red reflected passion and courtship, hence the Valentines push for red roses or red tulips. More on the courtship symbolisms are below.

“Australia – Golden Wattle – Surprisingly this Acacia was only recently adopted as the National flower in 1988. I question this choice as it is an environmental weed in many places. Read ‘RESTRICTED.” Give me Cats paw, Banksia or Boronia any day. Two of these make great bouquet fillers, the Acacia does not.

 Brazil Cattleya Orchid The flower symbolism associated with the orchid is love, beauty, refinement, many children, thoughtfulness and mature charm

 

 Canada – Maple leaf.

Since the late 1700’s French Canadians had described the maple as “the king of our forest … the symbol of the Canadian people.” It’s not an eagle or a bear or a lion. Not aggressive or imperial. It’s just Canada and they love it.

China – Plum blossom, Narcissus, Peony Symbolism: The Peony flower symbolism associated with the peony is happy marriage, compassion and bashfulness. The Cherry or Plum blossom also speaks to new beginnings and romance and wakened energies.

 

England Red Tudor Rose The Tudor Rose was a political creation by William V11 symbolizing the end of war between Lancaster and York. The symbol of the Tudor Rose came about as a result of a marriage between Henry Tudor of the Tudor dynasty, and Elizabeth of York. After this historical marriage, the War of Roses came to an end and the Tudor Rose symbol, which combined the white and red roses of the two houses was created.

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France – Day Lily The most prominent decorative symbol in France is a very function able and ‘edible’ flower. The striking ‘fleur de lis,’ is in fact a daylily. Others say it is the Iris. You decide.

 

GERMANY NONE – Says much about those flowerless heathens. Some suggest that Knapweed (Centaurea Cyanus) might be considered so. .

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India – Lotus flower As opposed to the war created Tudor Rose, the lotus flower has come to be associated with purity and beauty in the religions of Buddhism and Hinduism.

The lotus is associated with purity, spiritual awakening and faithfulness. The flower is considered pure as it is able to emerge from murky waters in the morning and be perfectly clean. It is also the national flower of Egypt!.

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Iran (Persia) and Iraq Rose  – Grace” In China, Confucius wrote that the emperor of China owned over 600 books on the cultivation of roses. Ovid wrote: “Sharp thorns produce delicate roses.” Before Christianity Sufi’s and Persians included the rose in many of their geometrical designs. It was a far different reverence for this flower than the Westwould later make of it..

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Japan Chrysanthemum or Cherry blossom or azalea “Chrysanthemum – Red – I love you Chrysanthemum – White – Truth” It also symbolizes the quality of being ‘everlasting.’ It is also magical, encompassing wonder and the majesty of the world.

Korea – Rose of Sharon – Or Cosmos  Why Korea would have the Althea as an National flower is beyond me. More ‘Song of Songs’ chapter 2. Christian background than Asian. Or was this common name attached to another flower during that time? This National flower IS native to China and has been cultivated there as in Japan and Korea for thousands of years. The Real Rose of Sharon is Hibiscus syriacus.

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Mexico Dahlia pinnata “Dahlia – My gratitude exceeds your care” Dahlia pinnata is the national flower of Mexico. Dahlias originated from the mountainous regions of Mexico and Central America and Colombia. This stylized illustration is of a wild Mexican dahlia. Single flowered with a flat, eight-petaled arrangement. Almost always, wild dahlias possess this single-flowered structure. Dahlia brings meaningful blessings and the message of enduring grace. It is also a symbol of creativity, finding inner strength and standing strong in your beliefs.

Lithuania – Rue “Rue – Disdain – You can also get quite a painful rash from the sucker” Common Rue,is not used as an herb today and the use of rue for culinary purposes is seen as ‘old fashioned.’ Indeed, rue is extremely bitter and thus does not particularly suit modern culinary tastes. It should be noted that some people experience a severe allergic reaction similar to that provoked by poison ivy on contacts, particularly if picked in summer and bright sun. As a result, take care when picking rue leaves.

 Netherlands Calendula (official,) orange tulip (popular) Tulips are symbolic of fame and perfect love. The symbolic meanings also change with the color of the tulips. Red tulips mean “believe me” and are a declaration of true love. Variegated tulips mean “you have beautiful eyes.” Yellow tulips mean “there’s sunshine in your smile” and cheerful thoughts. Cream colored tulips mean “I will love you forever.” White tulips symbolize heaven, newness and purity. Purple tulips symbolize royalty. Pink tulips mean affection and caring. Orange tulips mean energy, enthusiasm, desire and passion.

 

Portugal lavender “Lavender – Distrust” Sequim like Portugal is a lavender besotted, co-dependent sort-of love town. I however, hate the stinky little bush and for the moment my garden like drug free gardens remains posted as being Lavender-free.

 

 Russia – chamomile daisy. “Chamomile – Energy in adversity” So true for that country It also speaks to bubbling over with happiness. A tool to measure the feelings of another as one says while peeling of the petals, “He loves me, he loves me not,” until the petals are gone.

Scotland – Thistle “Retaliation (The tansy thistle bouquet is a nice color combination.) “The thistle (like the burr) is an ancient Celtic symbol of nobility of character as well as of birth, for the wounding or provocation of a thistle yields punishment. According to Scottish legend one Norse invasion was stymied when one barefoot Norseman had the misfortune to step upon a thistle, causing him to cry out in pain. So alerted, the Scots routed them..

 

South Africa – Protea  Greek legend tells us that protea were named after Proteus, the son of Poseidon. A sea god who had the power to know all things past, present and future. Sadly he came to a bad end. Protea symbolism is associated with bravery and courage.

 

 Switzerland and Austria – Edelweiss Probably Bavaria as well. Except for Hoch Bavaria the latter outstretches it there. It’s one of the rarest flowers in the alps and only grows in high altitude. Difficult to reach. So if someone gave you a Edelweiss as a gift he risked a lot to show you his affection for you. He probably risks jail time as well as it is sehr verboten to pick Edelweiss. None the less it signifies courage and a promise of fidelity from the courting male.

Ukraine – sunflower Sunflowers are symbolic of adoration. Sunflowers turn their heads to the sun, which is the origin of their common name. Sunflowers belong to the genus helianthus, a reference to Helios, the sun god.

USA – Rose  “Rose (red) – Love and Beauty” Already touched upon too much.

 

Wales – Narcissus  “Daffodil – Regard” Symbolism The flower symbolism associated with the narcissus is normality, stay sweet, self-esteem and vanity. The name narcissus is derived from that of the youth of Greek mythology called Narcissus, who became so obsessed with his own reflection as he kneeled and gazed into a pool of water that he fell into the water and drowned. 

I see it more as a joyous happy flower, an unabashed expression of living in the moment – a jubilation of being alive. It also represents the ability to leave the past behind.

Honorable mentions and neglected for want of space.

Courtship and the meaning of flowers.

This was an article on flowers and thier meaning in the art of courtship or use in bouquets. It is an OLD link and   is sorely outdated as it was written in 1993 and manyof the flowers mentioned above are not included in the ‘bouquet’ class.

Brides would carry flowers back to Babylonian times. Items such as garlic, and chives and other small smelling herbs would drive away evil spirits. They also helped in medieval times to ward of the plague. The Romans took this to the extreme with their floral garlands. It didn’t help Caesar though, and another poor philosopher was taken out by the swallowing of the Yew.

The English took it to the extreme. Living those wretched Victorian lives, one had to cheat and illicit lovers would exchange flowers much as we use Hallmark today. I like that idea and have done the same. Somehow an agreed upon lexicon of meanings were given with each flower having its own meaning. I sometimes wonder how that came about? Nonetheless, many of these flower associations are still used in the making of Bridal arrangements. If you expect your grocer florist to know them you are mistaken … and bad choosing may actually doom the marriage. So go to your florist with your list of pretties and ask them if they have any meanings, associations. It they look at you blankly, quickly move on.

This article was posted so you can build your own creative bouquet. The one for come hither and be conquered, or the cautious one, encouraging trust, safety and friendship. I have constructed both and I dare say that some of my constructions were as good as any florists.

We now have so many new plants to consider. The Mahonia, Salal, Gladiolius tristus and so many others including new Chilean and South African plants. Throw in the wonderful array of Australian plants and we need to begin adding a more modern lexicon for bouquet’s to die for.

My own Chilean Ugni might be a beginning. It would be used as would Salal as a filler. Please add your own plant commentary edits to these descriptions and post — Your own additions to what should be in modern flower bouquets and why. Commentaries on some of these old interpretations. Should they be updated? Finally post your comment for your own favorite flower in a bouquet and WHY?

Alstroemaria remains one of my own favorite. “Alstroemeria symbolize friendship. The leaves of this flower grows upside down, with each leaf grows twisting out from the stem making the bottom part of the leaf to face upward – similar to the twists, ups and downs and growth of a friendship. Aside from friendship, Alstroemeria means loyalty; a loyalty to your friends and to your love.”

(C) Herb Senft 2014