The LOVE of Roses

So, you made it through Mother's Day I am assuming. You did your due diligence and picked mom a special gift which made her smile. WHAT A WONDERFUL CHILD YOU ARE.

No one was smiling more than florists filling thousands of bouquet orders of flowers on Mother's Day. And the number one flower people wanted to give mom was the ROSE. Roses are not just the go-to flower to give to your mother, it is the go-to flower for most gift giving to a loved one or person of interest. The rose spans many occasions of celebration. Oh, by the way, Kenya is smiling too. Commercial rose growing in Kenya goes back decades. The country is famous for its vibrantly colored blooms. Rich soil and an abundance of sunlight give Kenya’s roses their natural, distinctive hues. 

The flower which represents love has been loved for centuries. Napoleon wife Josephine Bonaparte loved roses. Between 1804 and 1814 Empress Josephine built her rose collection. It was to become the greatest and largest rose collection in the world, unsurpassed until the creation of Sangerhausen in Germany and L’Hay outside Paris, one century later. The collection was made up of about 250 species and varieties. By 1830 some 2500 different rose varieties would be available to Parisian rose lovers, all influenced by Josephine’s zeal for rose collecting. It was also the first time that anyone had had thought to create a garden with only one type of plant.   

I am a Master Gardener, and my great love is the rose. At last count I have 165 roses (not species). That is actually a small number of roses for a rose enthusiast. I am slowly becoming comfortable calling myself a Rosarian. I am a member of several Rose Lovers Facebook groups. I love roses and I am not alone. 

People love roses for their beauty, symbolism, cultural significance, exclusivity, and association with special occasions. Roses have been around for over 35 million years and are a staple in the wedding world. Red roses are associated with love, passion, and longing, and have been used in romantic gestures and rituals since ancient times.

People have been giving roses to each other since the 17th century as a way to express love. Roses are the favorite flower of Venus, the Greek goddess of love, and are often used to represent strong emotions. The Victorians also used bouquets of flowers to communicate feelings through a messaging system called "floriography," and roses became a symbol of romantic affection.

Various religions have long used roses as symbols of religious belief. In ancient Greece, the rose was a symbol of Aphrodite. It was also part of the Egyptian myth of Isis. More modern religions still use the rose symbolically. The rose is a repeated leitmotif of Judaism that symbolizes both Israel and royalty. Jewish people are also compared with roses in the Bible. After the rise of Christianity, the rose became heavily linked with the image of the Virgin Mary. Some Catholic sects place crowns made of roses on statues of the Virgin Mary during different religious holidays. Islam also incorporates these flowers into its symbology.

Whether you realized it or not, the color of rose you chose to buy and give to your loved one has meaning. Roses are filled with meaning and superstition. Me personally, have made it a point when I was in the dating arena to tell men who showed interest in me that I preferred NOT to be gifted roses. For me, receiving roses was an intimate thing and I wanted to steer clear of possibly sending the wrong signal to a man whom I had not yet declared MY love to. Plus, I wanted him to be a little more thoughtful about the flowers he bought me as a gift. Roses were such an easy go to. Roses did all of the work for him. 

Let's look at what the color of roses means first.

For example, blue roses symbolize mystery. This is not a naturally occurring color for roses but rose growers remain on a quest to create a true blue rose. There are several roses named as a blue rose such as the rose named Blue Girl, Blue Moon rose, Blue Nile, Carding Mill rose, Rainy Blue, Rhapsody in Blue, Suntory Blue Rose Applause, and Shocking Blue. Yellow roses are ideal to give away to friends.  In the past, the yellow rose was associated with jealousy or infidelity. Yellow roses used to stand for unfaithfulness, so giving a bouquet of yellow roses to your romantic partner would lead to fights and eventual break up. Nowadays, we see this rose as meaning strength, friendship and cherishing. 

Orange roses are for joy. Green roses represent strength and fertility. Oddly, there are several true green roses: Green Tea, Mayra’s Green, Jade, Super Green, Lemonade. I don't like green roses. Leaves are green. Why would I want a flower bloom to be green?

The symbolism of the elegant white rose is trust, innocence, purity, loyalty, respect, and also a fitting gift for a fresh start or a farewell. The white rose is also a symbol of remembrance. The white rose is very popular in the bridal bouquet and also suits farewell and memories. In addition, a bouquet of white roses is perfect for new business customers, for a housewarming party or of course the beginning of a new love.

Red roses are known worldwide as the symbol of love and romance. With red roses, you really give a feeling or emotion to someone else. So red roses are ideal to give to your partner on, for example, a wedding day, Valentine's Day or other special occasion. The rose has many options for giving red roses to someone. So, you have bouquets of 100 red roses for a very impressive gift, but you can also order your number of roses in a bouquet of, say, 33 red roses, for a birthday or wedding anniversary.

The message that the purple rose wants to send out is 'Love at first sight'. So, it's not that only red roses do well on Valentine's Day, also purple roses fit perfectly with the feeling of enchantment and desire.

Pink roses also have multiple meanings. For instance, you can use these roses if you are grateful to someone for something and they want to show their gratitude with these roses. Furthermore, pink roses also represent desire and are for thanksgiving. 

Now for a few superstitions regarding flowers in general and gifting them. Hopefully, you didn't break any superstitions on Mother's Day or at any other time when gifting flowers.

• Red and white: Some say that sending a combination of red and white flowers to someone who is sick can bring misfortune or even death.
• Odd numbers: Some say that giving someone an odd number of flowers is lucky, while even numbers are for the dead and may bring bad luck.
• White carnations: In Russia, white carnations are said to take away talent and good luck.
• Withered flowers: Some say that flowers that fade in the house bring good news, so you should keep them for a few days.
• Before a performance: Some say that it is bad luck to give flowers to someone before they go out to perform on stage, and instead you should wait until after.

It is said that roses are planted near someone’s grave to protect their soul from evil spirits. 

Seeing a white rose bloom in autumn signifies an early marriage. 

Throwing rose leaves into a fire is said to bring good luck.

Where roses are concerned, different cultures have different beliefs about giving roses. Most people view a rose as innocent and just a very pretty flower. In certain countries, you can run into awkward situations if you are not up on you understanding of roses.

In America, more often than any other flower, we hold the rose dear as the symbol of life and love and devotion, of beauty and eternity. For the love of man and woman, for the love of mankind and God, for the love of country, Americans who would speak the language of the heart do so with a rose. We see proofs of this everywhere.

In Hungary, roses are actually a popular funeral flower. While they still retain the classic rose symbolism of love and even romance in that context, they tend to represent one’s undying love for a lost friend, spouse, or relative – so they may not be the most appropriate gift for a first date in Budapest.

Roses are also funeral flowers in Mexico, but here it’s a matter of choosing the color carefully. Yellow roses symbolize death in traditional Mexican culture, so it’s not a good idea to show up for a date or a fiesta with a yellow bouquet. This is just one of many rules of thumb for giving roses in Mexico. If you’re giving red roses in Mexico, you’d better be serious! These beauties are loaded with meaning – two, in fact. In terms of romance, they profess grand, undying love. They also stir up superstitions of magic and spell casting. Purple roses symbolize witchcraft and casting spells too, so there are plenty of ways to infuse rose-giving with some high drama.

South Koreans take rose-giving in a different direction by making these lovely blooms a coming-of-age symbol. Every May, on Coming-of-Age Day, South Koreans have a giant party celebrating all the young people turning 20 that year, at which the birthday boys and girls (men and women?) exchange gifts, including bouquets of roses – typically red.

The Finnish have also adopted the rose as a symbol of appreciation between friends. In fact, every February 14, the Finnish swap the traditional Valentine’s Day for the more inclusive Friend’s Day, a custom that started in the 1980s and hasn’t gone anywhere since. In that spirit, the Finnish celebrate Friend’s Day by exchanging cards, candy, and pink roses.

In Catalonia, Saint George Day is celebrated with roses. Legend has it that St. George, your typical knight in shining armor, saved both a town and a princess by slaying a dragon who’d taken up residence nearby. When the dragon fell, roses sprang up from where its blood had spilled – and now every April 23, Catalonians give each other red roses to symbolize St. George’s valiance and sacrifice.

Cut flowers are traditionally for funerals in China. In this case, both yellow and white roses represent death. White, furthermore, symbolizes bad luck. Numbers are highly symbolic in Chinese culture, and influence flower-giving in many ways. The number 14, for example, means imminent death, so a bouquet of 14 roses would not be well received. But recently a modern-day fairy tale and a magical number gave red roses renewed significance in Chinese romantic culture.

Taiwan’s Valentine’s Day rose traditions take that symbolism to the next level. When V Day rolls around, rose bouquets are bought in specific numbers to send particular messages to crushes and loved ones. A single rose symbolizes one-and-only love. 11 roses are given to a “special someone.” 99 roses are given to someone you’ll love for eternity. 108 roses = “Will you marry me?”

 I know my love affair with roses will only deepen as time marches on. It would be difficult for me to say which color of rose is my favorite. I just love roses. Now that I am married, I enjoy receiving roses and my husband doesn't have to be concerned about the color he chooses. But for the rose gift giver, taking the time to understand the meaning behind the flower and color of the flower can score you big points or lead to big misunderstandings.