Although floriography existed in the ancient world and throughout the Renaissance, it hit its height of popularity in the nineteenth century. Mary Wartley Montagu is credited with bringing it to England in the early eighteenth century from her travels to the Ottoman Empire, where the court was fascinated with tulips. Tulipomania had come and gone a hundred years before, but European interest in botany was just beginning, contributing in no small part to the success of guides to the language of flowers.

Several such guides were available throughout the nineteenth century, many of them embellished with illustrations or even poetry. Hundreds of editions were sold around the world, and the craze influenced popular culture, with floriography appearing in books by Austen and the Brontes. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood used it extensively in many of their paintings, using the symbolism of the flowers to communicate themes to their audience in a language they would understand.

In a society as relatively repressed as Victorian Britain, floriography must have presented tantalizing possibility. One could say anything without saying anything at all. Rather involved love affairs could take place almost entirely with flowers. Whole conversations could be had in a single bouquet. It had the added benefit that it would have been a hobby for the genteel; it required a certain degree of literacy, knowledge of botany, and means with which to obtain the plants necessary to communicate one’s message. While one might pass daisies (“I share your sentiment”) every day, African Marigolds (“vulgar minds”) or Helmet Flowers (“knight-errantry”) might present a greater challenge.

Interestingly enough, for every plant with a positive meaning, there is at least one more with a severely negative one. Reading Kate Greenaway’s The Language of Flowers (1884), it is reassuring that those courted by people they didn’t fancy could put them off without being outwardly rude, from Red Balsam (“touch me not”) to the rather frightening Wild Tansy (“I declare war against you”).

Whether you’re researching a book, decoding a painting, or just looking for a Valentine’s idea for your loved one (or worst enemy), floriography is good fun. Here are some lists of my favorites. Scroll to the bottom for links to some nineteenth century guides you can read in full online or download for your e-reader. Have fun!

A Beginner’s Guide to the Language of Flowers

“When nature laughs out in all the triumph of Spring, it may be said, without a metaphor, that, in her thousand varieties of flowers, we see the sweetest of her smiles; that, through them, we comprehend the exultation of her joys; and that, by them, she wafts her songs of thanksgiving to the heaven above her, which repays her tribute of gratitude with looks of love. Yes, flowers have their language. Theirs is an oratory that speaks in perfumed silence, and there is tenderness, and passion, and even light-heartedness of mirth, in the variegated beauty of their vocabularly.” – Frederic Schoberl, 1834.

Positive

Almond (flowering)	Hope
Ambrosia	Love returned
Arbor Vitae*	Unchanging Friendship. Live for me.
Cloves	Dignity
Clover, four-leaved	Be mine
Coreopsis Arkansa	Love at first sight
Coriander	Hidden worth
Corn	Riches
Daffodil	Regard
Daisy, Garden	I share your sentiments
Forget Me Not	Forget Me Not
Ivy	Fidelity. Marriage.
Lemon blossoms	Fidelity
Mallow, Syrian	Consumed by love
Oak Tree	Hospitality
Oak Leaves	Bravery
Pine-apple	You are perfect
Potato	Benevolence
Ranunculus	You are radiant with charms
Snowdrop	Hope
Strawberry Tree	Esteem and Love
Tulip, Red	Declaration of love
Tulip, Variegated	Beautiful eyes
Tulip, Yellow	Hopeless love
Venice Sumach	Intellectual excellence
Walnut	Intellect. Strategem.
Water Lily	Purity of heart

Negative

Achillea Millefolia	War
Aconite (Wolfsbane)	Misanthropy
Adonis, Flos	Painful recollections
Agnus Castus	Coldness. Indifference.
Almond (common)	Stupidity. Indiscretion.
Amaranth (cockscomb)	Foppery
Apple, Thorn	Deceitful charms
Asphodel	My regrets follow you to the grave.
Bachelor’s Buttons	Celibacy
Balsam, Red	Touch me not
Barberry	Sourness of temper
Basil	Hatred
Bay leaf	I change but in death.
Bay (Rose) Rhododendron	Danger. Beware.
Belladonna	Silence
Belvedere	I declare against you
Bilberry	Treachery
Birdsfoot Trefoil	Revenge
Blue-flowered Green Valerian	Rupture
Burdock	Touch me not.
Butterfly Weed	Let me go.
Carnation, Striped	Refusal
Carnation, Yellow	Disdain
Chequered Fritillary	Persecution
China or Indian Pink	Aversion
Citron	Ill-natured beauty
Clotbur	Rudeness. Pertinacity.
Coltsfood	Justice shall be done
Columbine	Folly
Convulvulus, Major	Extinguished hopes
Creeping Cereus	Horror
Crowfoot	Ingratitude
Cypress	Death. Mourning.
Dragonwort	Horror
Enchanter’s Nightshade	Witchcraft. Sorcery.
Flytrap	Deceit
Fool’s Parsley	Silliness
Frog Ophrys	Disgust
Fuller’s Teasel	Misanthropy
Fumitory	Spleen
Garden Anemone	Forsaken
Hand Flower Tree	Warning
Hellebore	Scandal
Hemlock	You will be my death
Hydrangea	Heartlessness
Japan Rose	Beauty is your only attraction
Leaves (dead)	Melancholy
Lavender	Distrust
Lily, Yellow	Falsehood
Licorice, Wild	I declare against you
Lobelia	Malevolence
Mandrake	Horror
Milfoil	War
Mosses	Ennui
Mourning Bride	Unfortunate attachment
Moving Plant	Agitation
Mushroom	Suspicion
Nettle, Burning	Slander
Pennyroyal	Flee away
Raspberry	Remorse
Rose, York and Lancaster	War
Rue	Disdain
Saint John’s Wort	Animosity
Spiked Willow Herb	Pretension
Tamarisk	Crime
Tansy (Wild)	I declare war against you
Thistle, Scotch	Retaliation
Trefoil	Revenge
White Rose (dried)	Death preferable to loss of innocence
Whortleberry	Treason
Wormwood	Absence

Sexy

African Marigold	Vulgar minds
Darnel (ray grass)	Vice
Dittany of Crete, White	Passion
Dragon Plant	Snare
Everlasting Pea	Lasting Pleasure
Fleur-de-Lis	Flame. I burn.
Geranium, Lemon	Unexpected meeting
Geranium, Nutmeg	Expected meeting
Grass	Submission
Jasmine, Spanish	Sensuality
Linden or Lime Trees	Conjugal Love
Orange Flowers	Bridal festivities
Peach Blossom	I am your captive
Quince	Temptation
Rose, Carolina	Love is dangerous
Rose, Dog	Pleasure and pain
Tuberose	Dangerous pleasures
Vine	Intoxication

 

Weird

Aloe	Grief. Religious superstition
Cereus (Creeping)	Modest genius
Christmas Rose	Relieve my anxiety.
Cistus, Gum	I shall die to-morrow
Colchicum, of Meadow Saffron	My best days are past.
Dandelion	Rustic Oracle
Helmet Flower (Monkshood)	Knight-errantry
Houseleek	Domestic industry
Indian Cress	Warlike trophy
Lady’s Slipper	Win me and wear me
Lint	I feel my obligations
Oats	The witching soul of music
Passion Flower	Religious superstition
Persimon	Bury me amid Nature’s beauties
Poppy, White.	Sleep. My bane. My antidote.
Prickly Pear	Satire
Violet, Yellow	Rural happiness

Jessica Cale

Further Reading

Greenaway, Kate. The Language of Flowers (1884)

Schoberl, Frederic. The Language of Flowers; With Illustrative Poetry (1834)

Tyas, Robert. The Sentiment of Flowers; or, Language of Flora (1836)

*Arbor Vitae was also slang for penis at this time.