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Twining plants with tendrils signify devotion and attachment.

wisteria (welcome), grapevine (abundance), honeysuckle (devotion), Indian jasmine (attachment) and ivy (fidelity)

Tree blossom for windows and tables; include hazel to ensure harmony in the marriage.

linden (conjugal love), hazel (reconciliation) and plum blossom (keep your promises)

DECORATING THE WEDDING BREAKFAST TABLE

baby’s breath (everlasting love), cosmos (joy in love and life) and myrtle (love)

phlox (our souls are united) and parsley (festivity)

gerber daisy (cheerfulness) and fern (sincerity)

strawberries (perfection)

Births and Christenings

FLOWERS FOR A NEW MOTHER

dittany (childbirth), primrose (childhood) and celandine (joys to come)

daffodil (new beginnings), baby’s breath (everlasting love) and fennel (strength)

FLOWERS FOR THE CHRISTENING

starwort (welcome), cinquefoil (beloved daughter), daisy (innocence), eucalyptus (protection)

phlox (our souls are united), moss (maternal love), heather (protection) and sorrel (parental affection)

Illness

Small bunches of scented and flowering herbs for when the person is still unwell; larger and brighter flowers when on the mend.

chamomile (energy in adversity), sage (good health and long life), heather (protection) and thrift (sympathy)

elder (compassion), fennel (strength), feverfew (warmth) and mullein (take courage)

snowdrop (consolation and hope)

purple coneflower (strength and health) and heather (protection)

coreopsis (always cheerful), peppermint (warmth of feeling) and hawthorn (hope)

Friendship

A NEW JOB

bells of Ireland (good luck) and allium (prosperity)

corn (riches), daffodil (new beginnings) and polyanthus (confidence)

hollyhock (ambition) and laurel (glory and success)

Michaelmas daisy (farewell)

AN APOLOGY

fig (argument), purple hyacinth (please forgive me) and hazel (reconciliation)

helenium (tears), olive (peace) and broom (humility)

TO SAY THANK YOU

agrimony (gratitude), feverfew (warmth) and flax (I feel your kindness)

freesia (lasting friendship) and oak-leaf geranium (true friendship)

lisianthus (appreciation), peppermint (warmth of feeling) and saxifrage (affection)

Funerals

FOR A WREATH

cypress (mourning), weeping willow (melancholy), periwinkle (tender recollections) and rosemary (remembrance)

The evergreens also symbolize immortality.

FUNERAL FLOWERS

marigold (grief), heliotrope (devoted affection) and aloe (grief)

forget-me-not (forget me not), helenium (tears) and marigold (grief)

Carolina jasmine (separation) and ivy (attachment)

FOR A CHILD

daisy (innocence), moss (maternal love) and primrose (childhood)

‘A flower is not a flower alone;

a thousand thoughts invest it.’

MANDY KIRKBY is an editor and flower enthusiast who lives in Cambridge, England.

VANESSA DIFFENBAUGH is a writer, whose debut novel The Language of Flowers has been published in over thirty countries. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.