Flower Writing: How to Send a Message with Flowers

We all want a little adventure and intrigue in our day-to-day lives, but we think we're too busy for The Age of Romance. Romance isn't dead, and we can easily and quickly resuscitate it by using florigraphy.

Florigraphy, or "flower writing", has been used almost from the beginning of human history. It gives a meaning to nearly any flower or plant and allows us to use that language to send messages for any occasion. Keep in mind that it's easier than you think because we already use florigraphy in our everyday lives without realizing it.

We send congratulatory flowers to the parents of a new baby (Dittany of Crete - "Congratulations on your new family member"), brides carry elaborate bouquets down the aisle and wear orange blossoms ("I greet you as a bride"), a young man might buy his date a single red rose ("You are beautiful") to announce his amorous intentions, and, at Christmas time, we decorate our homes with garlands of holly ("Happiness in this home") and balls of mistletoe ("As many kisses as there are stars"). A sick friend might receive a basket of fruit (pears mean "comfort"), we take relatives and friends a gift of green plants or a fruit tree to celebrate their housewarming (a fig tree says, "May your family be prolific"), and we honor moms with cheerful springtime floral arrangements on Mother's Day (cinquefoil means, "For my mother, with love").

Our cooking sends messages of love with the herbs we use (the sweet basil in the spaghetti sauce says, "I love you") and there are messages in the perfumes we wear (gardenia means, "I'm in ecstasy!"), and the potpourris we use to scent our rooms (orange is "Everlasting love" and clove means, "You're so sweet).