How Does a Rose Get its Name?
Every month has a specific flower assigned to it – it’s ‘birth month flower’. The flower for the month of June is the rose.
The world has a love affair with roses. Their beauty mesmerizes us. Their shapes - classic, spray, garden, ruffled, sweetheart; their colours - reds, oranges, yellows, greens, purples, pinks, white; their meanings - love, friendship, joy, admiration, enthusiasm, adoration (all those beautiful positive feelings); and their fragrances - sweet, spicy, musky, fruity, fresh and intoxicating. Roses are truly the Queen of all flowers!
Let’s get to know roses a little better. In fact, I’m going to make this a two-part blog post! This first part will look at how roses are named, along with their meanings in the language of flowers. The second part will compare ‘garden’ roses to ‘standard’ roses, and I’ll share tips and tricks on how to buy and care for them.
How roses get their names:
Bella Rosa, Coral Seas, Golden Angel, Lovely Lady, Tranquility –the names for roses are diverse, descriptive, imaginative, and just plain fun to learn. I was thrilled to find out there is a ‘Mary Rose’, and not only is it a lovely shade of pink (my favourite colour), but it’s a garden rose full of loose petals with a delicious fragrance. What could be better than that!
So where do roses get their names? The simple answer - the breeder gets to name the rose. Historically the breeder chose a name that described the flower’s heritage, or named them after family members. That evolved to using the names of royalty and then famous people. In today’s world, the name of the rose is quite important, as marketers want a name that is memorable and will sell.
Are you wondering if you can name a rose? Well, you can, but that’s actually a very expensive process. However, for a more reasonable price, what you can do is name a single rose bush. What a great gift for a loved one! There are places in Canada and the UK where you can inquire about this.
Rose meanings in the language of flowers:
Now let’s move onto the meanings of the different colours of roses in the language of flowers. While it’s universally known that the red rose symbolizes love, the meanings of the other colours are not as well known . Here’s a list:
Pink (dark): Gratitude
Pink (light): Admiration and joy
Orange: Enthusiasm
Yellow: Friendship
Green: Rejuvenation
Purple: Enchantment
White: Innocence
Using the colour and meaning of the roses together is a great way to customize a gift for a friend or loved one.
Coming up next, all about garden roses, standard roses and tips and tricks on how to care for them.
If there’s anything in particular you would like to know, put it in the comments below and I’ll get back to you.
