2–3–23
So as it turns out, I’m certainly not the first person who has thought of using plants and flowers as a meaningful way to convey a message or invoke a mood. Decorative collections of thoughtfully curated bits of nature have been (and still are) gifted, displayed, and admired by humans for thousands of years. When paired with symbolic meaning, plants and their blooms go beyond sharing just their beauty. They become the messenger on task to communicate deep feelings, represent thoughtful ideas, and stand for grand concepts in society.
Historically, botanical symbols made their debut in various religions to represent abstract ideas, elude moral concepts, or accompany gods & goddesses throughout different cultures and belief systems. Plantlife depicting sacred significance began appearing in iconography dating back to ancient Greek mythology, early Buddhism, and the Byzantine Empire. Floral inspiration piqued the interest of many authors and playwrights, and often starred in key roles in early theatrical works from Shakespearen plays to the classical stage art of Japanese Noh drama. Visual artists have undoubtedly been drawn to the romantic intrigue of plant parts for centuries as well. Botanical focal points and green themes can be spotted in famous works of art from many different time periods from Medieval, to Renaissance, to Neo Classical, to Contemporary.
The vast range of usage, across different time periods, in different societies resulted in many attempts to capture and explain a universal translation. Inevitably, many floral dictionaries have come to exist, and multiple varying meanings have been associated with each plant species. So while interpretation may fluctuate from one culture or time period to another, botanical symbolism can be found throughout folklore, religion, art, literature, theater, pop culture, fashion, and it’s especially relied upon to communicate feelings of love and romance. The use of plants and flowers as a means of communication is known as floriography, or the Language of Flowers.
The Victorian era in particular marks a notable floriography popularity boom in England that eventually made its way to the United States. The combination of society’s conservative hush-hush culture + a growing interest in botany was just the right combination to spark the mainstream takeoff. Since expressing feelings of love out loud was forbidden, people turned to gifting bouquets of carefully selected florals. Each bloom signified a specific meaning, and pairing different combinations of blooms to pass along could be compared to a modern day dating app conversation exchange or a flirtatious text message dialogue shared between smartphones. How the bouquet was delivered, received, displayed, worn… all details played a significant part in communicating romantic feelings without having to express emotions out loud. Due to its predominant influence in 19th century society, the Language of Flowers became a raging inspiration for many artists and writers of the time.
Bits and pieces of Victorian pop culture far surpassed fad status as it tumbled its way through the next couple centuries, somersaulting and intertwining with various influences along the way, and eventually a form of floriography landed on present time’s doorstep. Today, in Western culture floral dictionaries still do exist, and they reflect a common general consensus of bloom symbolism heavily influenced by the 19th century’s Language of Flowers, in addition to the influence of obvious visual personality characteristics of each plant species.
….so with all that in mind, paired with an obsession to brighten up winter’s dark cold moods, I compiled the following shortlist that includes a handful of common plants paired with symbolic meanings. This list comes in handy when I find myself struggling to find the right words to adequately share meaningful feelings, express deep gratitude, alter a vibe, spruce up an atmosphere, inspire creativity, manifest positivity, or whatever the case may be. Because sometimes when words don’t work, flowers actually do!
