Floral Meanings

Flowers have whispered stories for centuries—tales of love, loss and celebration. Did you know that in Victorian times, gifting a bouquet wasn’t just about beauty but was also a way to send coded messages?

Receiving a bouquet of moss rose, sweet-scented violet, and white jasmine meant someone admired your modesty and amiability. If you wanted to tell someone you admired their imaginative wit and wish them luck with their ambitions, you sent an arrangement of hollyhocks, lupins, white heather, and ragged robin. Bluebells communicated kindness, rosemary symbolized remembrance, and peonies meant bashfulness. Representing chastity was the mimosa, whose leaves close at night or when touched.

Sending and receiving flowers was also a way to attract or reject suitors. If a man sent an apple blossom to show a woman she was his "preference" or declared his devotion by sending a rose, she could respond by sending back a straw to indicate she was interested in a union or a yellow carnation to express her rejection of such a notion.

What flower would you give to someone today and why?

TEXT BY HAFSA LEWIS

Bluebell