As winter in California brings its mild chill, the landscape still bursts into life with vibrant flowers, leafy trees, and lush green plants of all kinds. Many of us have taken to our home gardens, nurturing peonies, daylilies, sunflowers, and roses. While we cherish our flowers for their beauty and delightful scents, few of us still use them as a form of secret communication.Today, we send private messages to our friends and lovers via text, but the Victorians sent nosegays to convey hidden thoughts and desires. Floriography, or the language of flowers, required floral dictionaries but allowed couples to express what society deemed inappropriate to say in words.Are you planning to add any new plants to your garden this year? Why not think about planting flowers to give away as boutiques with a message.In Shakespeare's time, fennel was a symbol of strength, columbine stood for folly, daisies meant innocence, and violets recognized faithfulness and modesty.In Japanese culture, Hanakotoba is the language of flowers with its own lexicon. For example, a gift of Havenaria radiata, an orchid native to the region, means “My thoughts will follow you into your dreams.”Today, we still say “I love you” with roses, “I'm sorry” with a colorful bouquet, or “my condolences” with gladiolas. If you'd like to try to say something more precisely with your blooms this summer, check out the floral glossary below. If I could, I would send each of you basil.
Under the Solano Sun