Flowers play an important role in our lives today. We use them to celebrate weddings, as a form of remembrance at a funeral or just to express our feelings of appreciation. Flowers grown from cuttings or seeds that have been passed along serve as reminders of the relatives or friends from whom we received them.

Flower language

According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac, the symbolic language of flowers has been used throughout Europe and Asia and has appeared in “mythologies, folklore, sonnets and plays of the ancient Greeks, Romans, Egyptians and Chinese.”

If you google “plant symbolism,” you will get lists from various sources that contain hundreds of flowers and their meaning. The list on Aggie Horticulture compiled by Dr. Jerry Parsons lists 134 flowers and their meaning. The list on Wikipedia contains 147 entries, many of which are broken down by the different meaning for each color of that particular flower.

But perhaps the flowers that bring forth the strongest emotions are those that symbolize a nation’s recognition of the sacrifices associated with wars.

Flowers symbolize love

With various sentiments through time expressed by flowers in remembering loved ones and those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, historical research indicates they often symbolize love.

• Forget-me-nots

The Veterans Affairs Canada site describes forget-me-nots as having a “special meaning” in Newfoundland and Labrador. The flower is worn on their Memorial Day in remembrance of the hundreds of casualties suffered at the Battle of the Somme. This battle was fought July 12, 1916, and ended on Nov. 18, 1916. It was one of the many important battles of WWI, and the forget-me-not was chosen as a symbol of remembrance.

Both the Wikipedia and Aggie Horticulture sites list the meaning of the forget-me-not as true love.

• Tulips

Although not an official symbol of the Netherlands, tulips are strongly associated with this country. Tulips served as a way for Crown Princess Juliana of the Netherlands to express her gratitude to the people of Canada for providing a safe haven during WWII and for the efforts of the Canadians who fought to liberate the Netherlands.

According to the Veterans Affairs Canada website, in 1945, Princess Juliana sent 100,000 tulip bulbs to Canada, and the Netherlands continues to send 20,000 bulbs annually. Tulips, depending on the color, have various meanings, but love is the most common.

Poppies commemorate military personnel

Red poppies are used in the United States and in Britain and countries that are currently or former parts of the British Empire.

In the United States, these artificial flowers are known as the “Buddy Poppy.” Wikipedia notes that in Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, the flowers are called a “Remembrance Poppy.”

• Influenced famous poem

The idea for using the poppy to commemorate military personnel who had died in the Great War was inspired by a poem written by Lt. Col. John McCrae on May 3, 1915.

The poem, “In Flanders Fields,” was written after the author experienced the loss of a fellow soldier and friend.

According to greatwar.co.uk website, the spring of 1915 was very warm, and red field or corn poppies (papaver rhoeas) began to bloom in April and May. These flowers grew and bloomed despite the fact that the earth in Flanders was torn up by war. The red poppies provided both the opening and closing imagery in the poem.

Remembrance poppy

According to Wikipedia, in 1918, Moina Michael, in response to McCrae’s poem, vowed to wear a red poppy as a symbol of remembrance for those who fought and died in the war. She campaigned to have the poppy adopted as a national symbol of remembrance and in 1920 it was. A Frenchwoman Anna E. Guerin created an artificial poppy, which was the basis for the crepe or silk red poppies we see today.

Buddy poppy

Although the idea to use a red poppy to commemorate those who fought in the First World War was started overseas, Moina Michaels, who was a professor in the U.S. from Georgia, came and spoke to the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). Before Memorial Day 1922, the VFW conducted its first national poppy distribution.

The website VFW.org notes that in 1923, the VFW “Buddy” Poppies would be assembled by disabled and needy veterans to help them financially. Ninety-six years later, the same is true.

The funds that are collected on Buddy Poppy Day are still used to help needy veterans.

Flowers speak to us

Flowers and all that they represent will always be important.

Whether we use them to symbolize our love and affection for someone or something with a broader meaning, flowers speak to us on the universal level.