The meanings of flowers during the Victorian Era continue to surprise me. Here are four flowers that start with B and how someone might have used them in a bouquet to convey a message.
basil
Who’d’ve thought something as delicious as basil would be associated with hate? Apparently, basil had too strong a flavor for the time. If someone noticed a sprig of basil in a bouquet, the meaning would’ve been obvious.
This is one meaning that I wouldn’t want see continued. What’s a better meaning for basil for our era? Delicious? 🙂
baby’s breath
The tiny white flowers of baby’s breath mean quite the opposite of basil: everlasting love. It’s the perfect addition to any bunch of flowers for a dear one.
bougainvillea
Add some of these beauties to say you feel passion for someone.
bells of Ireland
I bet if you had to guess what these lovelies meant, you’d probably guess right. These Irish bells mean good luck.
Source: A Victorian Flower Dictionary: The Language of Flowers Companion by Mandy Kirkby. Ballantine Books, 2011.
Since I’m working on too many things at once (what else is new?) and I was late figuring out my list, I’ll be late adding images. Sorry. I want to be sure I get the right ones with the right copyright licensing. I know too many author friends who’ve been sued for copyright infringement for using images they thought were OK.
Join me Monday for Flowers that start with C. 🙂