july book 2023

Flower Power
When it comes to the UK’s favourite flowers,
which rank highest?
In these golden months, we
find ourselves surrounded by
the moods, smells, flavours
and essences of British
summertime.
Our gardens respond by
reaching full bloom, and in
sunflowers, lilies and roses,
we have a wonderland of
variety to explore.
The less than humble Sunflower
The sunflower became
symbiotic with adoration and
loyalty thanks to the myth
perpetuated through the water
nymph Clytie’s passionate love
for the sun god Apollo.
Unfortunately, Clytie’s love was
unrequited. This saw Apollo
worship the sun instead of
his number one fan and the
sunflower follows suit. The
famous painting of Van Gogh’s
Sunflower was due to his
fondness for the colour yellow,
and in a letter to his brother he
wrote, “The Sunflower is mine.”
Helianthus is the flower’s Latin
name – with ‘Helios’ meaning
sun and ‘anthos’ flower, and the
sunflower contains as many
as 2,000 seeds. Indeed, it is
actually not just one flower,
but thousands of tiny little
ones, with the tallest on record
growing to over 30ft in height.
The luscious Lily
Symbolising passion and
love, lilies are bright and fiery
flowers, with the red variety
perhaps the most inspiring.
Similar to sunflowers, they
have long had association with
fertility, purity and devotion, and
that means they’re perennially
popular for links with new life
and rebirth.
White lilies are the flowers
most used at funerals and
memorials in Britain, with the
colour standing for serenity
and peace. On this note, its
relatively fleeting lifespan (10-
14 days, on average), is said to
have a lot in common with that
of human existence – we are
here, then we are gone.
There are a host of other
colours that imply different
meanings and emotions: light
pink stands for elegance,
femininity and generosity;
dark pink is said to mean
prosperity, abundance and
ambition; yellow is happiness,
gratitude and healing; while
orange lilies speak confidence,
encouragement and wealth.
The Lilium (Latin) has a genus
of between 80 and 100 species,
yet they can wildly range in size
from a fairly diminutive plant
barely 25cm off the ground, to
others than scale up to 7ft tall.
The resplendent Rose
There are an amazing number
of rose varieties in the United
Kingdom - over 150 in total,
and more than 300 globally.
The UK’s favourite is the Hybrid
Tea, which is large and has
well-formed blooms, which
are pointed, yet are highmaintenance
and probably the
least enduring rose.
Polyantha are known
specifically for their bloom and
are familiar because of their
clusters of smaller flowers
coming in different shades of
white, red and pink. Floribunda,
meanwhile, are a cross
between Polyantha and Hybrid.
The botanical name for the
rose is Rosa rubiginosa and
the etymology spans through
Greek and Persian culture and
heritage. Mostly given as a
romantic gift on Valentine’s Day
and birthdays, the red rose is
the ultimate icon of love and
romance, but there are other
colours and assortments
with meanings.
Orange roses illustrate passion,
excitement and energy; yellow
indicate joy, friendship and
gladness; while a soft shade
such as peach is used to
signify gratitude or a feeling
of sincerity. Choosing a colour
which symbolises an emotion is
an art that takes practice, but
no matter what you choose to
give or grow, the pleasure is
always yours!