Do you speak Flowers?

Article by "U" IB12 (05.03.2026)

"When life ends, the earth answers with flowers." 

There are numerous ways to speak without speaking. Say, for example, writing letters, smiling, or letting your eyes do their job. Another form of communicating can be through flowers. Flowers are not just flowers; they are a statement of things you wanted to say but could not—at least, not out loud. Thus, if the silence stretches, let the flowers speak. The Victorians knew this silence well enough; an era full of restrictions. They found other ways to express—through floriography. A tulip in a buttonhole. A must-have bouquet holder or tussie-mussie. A red rose passed between fingers at a crowded party. They spoke in petals because they were not allowed to speak at all. And this method of speaking—floriography—bloomed. Floriography is the art of communicating through flowers. It did not begin with the Victorians. Flowers are found in every culture—east or west, south or north—from ancient civilisations up to the present day. Lilies and roses are symbols of love in the Old Testament. Tulips were linked to divine beauty in the Ottoman Empire. The Aztecs cultivated cempasúchil in preparation for their ceremonies, believing the flower's colour and scent carried spiritual significance. Across time and geography, flowers have always held meaning beyond their beauty. In the 1700s, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, a British aristocrat, travelled to the Ottoman Empire with her husband, who served as ambassador. There, she observed a popular pastime called "selam." It was a game in which women sent messages through objects whose names rhymed with certain words, creating coded communications. In a letter she wrote home, Lady Montagu described this practice and famously said, "You can send letters of passion, friendship or civility, or even of news, without ever inking your fingers." Whether she fully understood the custom or reshaped it remains debated. What is certain is that her account transformed the cultural practice into something tantalizing: the possibility of speaking in secret. Floriography then began to grow in popularity, and the Victorians turned it into a system. By the mid-nineteenth century, dozens of floral dictionaries crowded bookstores. Le Langage des Fleurs by Charlotte de La Tour was one of the most well-known, giving each flower an entry, a meaning, and often a short poem. A lady could consult her dictionary before sending a bouquet, ensuring no accidental love confessions slipped through. This precision mattered because in Victorian society, women were expected to be modest, restrained, and obedient. Open declarations of desire, anger, or even strong affection were discouraged. Their speech was monitored by social etiquette; their independence was limited by expectation. In this context, flowers became more than decoration—they became a voice. A woman who felt silenced by convention could express love, rejection, longing, or grief through a bouquet. 

This article will focus on five flowers in particular: roses, tulips, marigolds, lilies, and one the Victorians never recorded—kalachuchi.

Rose: Romance.

1884 illustration from "The New Guide to Rose Culture"

An emblem of love since ancient times.

✧ White: a heart unacquainted with love.

✧ Pink: grace.

✧ Peach: modesty.

✧ Burgundy: unconscious beauty.

✧ Moss: confession.

✧ Purple: enchantment.

The stronger the affection, the deeper the color.

Tulips: A Declaration of Love.

Painting by Valentine Bartholomew, 1882.

During the time of the Ottoman Empire, the Turks cultivated tulips to mathematical perfection. When the flower reached England, the Victorians gave it a simple meaning: I declare my love for you.

Marigold: Grief.

Marigold illustration from the studio of Anselmus Boëtius de Boodt, 1596–1610

"The marigold that goes to bed with the sun," as Shakespeare wrote in The Winter's Tale, might seem cheerful at first—but it closes as soon as the sun sets.

Lilies: Majesty.

Painting by Sir Joseph Paxton

For the Victorians, the lily was the emblem of many good virtues—rare and pure. But in a romantic comedy movie called Imagine Me and You, the meaning of the lily evolved playfully. In it, Rachel asks what the white lilies mean, and Luce, the florist, replies: "I dare you to love me." The Victorians were not wrong, but neither was the movie. This is simply the natural evolution of language. 

After all, the light of the public obscures everything. Language is definitely not an exception. The Victorians did not invent their meanings; they inherited them and  wrote them down.

Floriography is alive. It just changes every time someone picks up a flower and says: this is what I mean by it. 

An Extra Flower: Kalachuchi

There is one flower I would like to talk about that the Victorians never knew. It grows in my country, in cemeteries. It has no nectar. It needs no bees. But it blooms and is fragrant.

What does a kalachuchi mean?

It could mean: The dead are not gone. We remember.

My lola placed a kalachuchi on my lolo's grave. I never asked what it meant. I did not need to. I simply understood.

Floriography was never about memorizing the entire floral dictionary. It was about being brave enough to say something, and trusting the other person to understand.

So. Do you speak flowers?

Not: can you recite the Victorian meanings.

But: do you have a flower that means what you cannot say?

When life ends, the earth answers with flowers. And while we're still here, maybe we should too. For we have always spoken flowers. We always will.

Sources:

Books

Kirkby, Mandy. A Victorian Flower Dictionary: The Language of Flowers Companion. 2011.

de La Tour, Charlotte. Le Langage des Fleurs. Paris, 1818. Available online: archive.org/details/langagedesfleur00lato

Shakespeare, William. The Winter's Tale. Act 4, Scene 4.

Websites

"The Secret Victorian Language That's Back in Fashion." BBC Culture, 2022.www.bbc.com/culture/article/20221012-the-flowers-that-send-a-hidden-message 

"Floriography: The Secret Language of Flowers." Erica Weiner. www.ericaweiner.com/history-lessons/floriography-the-secret-language-of-flowers 

"Ultimate Guide of Floriography: The Victorian Language of Flowers." Petal Republic. www.petalrepublic.com/floriography-guide/ 

"Exploring the Significance of Tulips in Turkish Traditions." Mexico Historico. www.mexicohistorico.com/paginas/exploring-the-significance-of-tulips-in-turkish-traditions-30eb9a56.html 

"Victorian Era." Encyclopædia Britannica. www.britannica.com/event/Victorian-era 

"What Are Tussie-Mussies?" Author Sara. authorsara.substack.com/p/what-are-tussie-mussies-or-how-regency 

Image Sources

"1884 Rose Illustration." The New Guide to Rose Culture. Via Picture Box Blue. www.pictureboxblue.com/vintage-rose-illustrations/ 

Bartholomew, Valentine. "Tulip Painting." 1882. Via Picture Box Blue. www.pictureboxblue.com/vintage-tulip-paintings/ 

de Boodt, Anselmus Boëtius. "Marigold, Calendula." 1596–1610. Via Rawpixel. www.rawpixel.com/image/561516/marigold-vintage-style 

Paxton, Sir Joseph. "Lily Painting." Paxton's Flower Garden. Via Picture Box Blue. www.pictureboxblue.com/paxtons-flower-garden-prints/