The Dictionary of flowers

Verbena:
This plant blooms with showy spikes of variously coloured flowers. It is a native of the USA and belongs to the tropical and subtropical genus Verbana. A spray of verbena, if available at your local florist, would make an elegant gift saying “may you get your wish”.

Violet:
Violets have long been part of our folklore. They appear also in Greek mythology where Jupiter, fearing Juno’s envy turned his beloved Io (also pronounced ‘Ione’) into a white heifer (a young cow). He also created these modest flowers for her to feed on. The flower gets its name from the Latin form of the Greek name Ione which is: Viola. These low growing herbs belong to the genus Viola and bloom with flowers that are full of honey attracting bees and butterflies. The plant produces flowers both in spring as well as autumn.

Although violets, as the name suggests, are predominantly purplish blue, variations such as white and yellow violets are also available. These are fragrant unlike the dog violets. Among the many qualities that this flower represents, ‘candour’ is most commonly known. The white violet represents an adventurous spirit. The sweet violet represents modesty.

Violet, Dog:
Although lacking the fragrance of its cousin the sweet violet, this violet is nevertheless just as pretty. Its name is almost a reproach for its lack of scent. It is also different from the other violets as the dog violet is a paler blue flower and stands on long straggling stems. To gifting a spray of blue violets is to make a pledge to be always true in love.

Zinnia:
This flower belongs to the genus Zinnia of the family Asteraceae. Popular as a cut flower it is sent as a gift expressing various emotions. Among its many colour varieties, a magenta zinnia suggest lasting affection, bright scarlet implies devotion, a yellow zinnia says “I miss you everyday” and the white zinnia says the recipient is a good-natured person. In general, they suggest reminiscences of absent friends and bygone days.

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