By Patti Spezaferro
“The red rose whispers of passion and the white rose breathes of love;
O, the red rose is a falcon, and the white rose is a dove;
but I send you a cream-white rosebud,
With a flush on its petal tips;
for the love that is purest and sweetest, has a kiss of desire on its lips.”The White Rose
John Boyle O’Reilly – 1844-1890
People across the United States and other parts of the world will be celebrating Valentine’s Day this month with roses. Historically, Americans started the tradition of giving flowers on Valentine’s Day in the late 17th century during the reign of King Charles II of Sweden when he traveled to Persia and was exposed to the language of flowers. This expressionist art form allowed people to communicate without saying a single word. This trend blossomed throughout Europe and later to the rest of the world. Today 250 million roses are produced each year for Valentine’s day. In the language of flowers, giving someone a yellow carnation symbolized they were disappointed in you, and giving someone else a purple hyacinth meant you were sorry and begging forgiveness.
Red roses have long been symbolized as deep love in the language of flowers. The rose took on this meaningful interpretation from Greek mythology from the goddess of love, Aphrodite. The legend has it that Aphrodite was running to meet her injured lover, Adonis, who was wounded by a wild boar who was actually Ares, Olympic god of war and the exlover of Aphrodite. Ares was jealous of the goddess’s new love for Adonis and wanted him dead. Hearing the terrible news, Aphrodite runs to his bedside and suddenly cuts herself on a white rose lying on the ground. Her blood turned a white rose into a red rose and forever linking a red rose with passion and devotion.
Roses are certainly tied to love, but did you know you can send a specific romantic message by the number of roses you send. One rose symbolizes love at first sight. Two roses signify a shared and deep love. Three roses say “I love you”. Six roses connote “I want to be yours”. Seven roses represent “I’m infatuated with you”. Nine roses express eternal love. Ten roses epitomize “You’re perfect”.
Color also has meaning. The color of red roses symbolizes love but what about the other colors what message do they convey? Pink roses convey gratitude, grace, admiration, and joy. Orange roses connote enthusiasm and passion, Yellow roses a symbol of friendship. White roses impart innocence and purity. So, this Valentine’s send the language of flowers with roses not only to your beloved but also your friends too and perhaps if you don’t have the courage to say “I’m infatuated with you”, send them seven roses and open the door to see what happens.
We have wonderful speakers lined up this year. Our next monthly Membership meeting is set for 7:30 pm on Tuesday, February 16th. Vice President of the San Mateo Bee Keepers Guild, Elizabeth Newell will speak on Bee-Friendly Rose Gardening. Honeybees are essential to healthy crops and flowers and their rapid decline in recent years threatens the security of our ecosystem. Come and learn more about how bees are important to roses.
I will send out the link as the date approaches in my regular monthly PRS Email Update. If you are free on Thursdays at 2 pm drop in on our social Zoom meetings. Visit a garden, learn how to care for your roses, catch up with old friends, and make new ones. Thursday, February 4th Pam McGraw will host Rose Trivia Show. Come and have fun while testing your knowledge on the topic of roses.
Happy Valentine’s everyone. May this Valentine be extra special for everyone.