The Secret Language of Flowers Every Plant Lover Should Know

How can we use flowers to further connect with nature and with the world? My mom once photocopied an entire flower dictionary for me from the thick pages of The Language of Flowers. I loved that she did it, but then I never really used it because it was too dense and there were a lot of meanings nobody says out loud anymore. But then I’ve thought deeply about it. I've grown dahlias my whole life. I have four hibiscus in my front lawn now. What if those choices were saying something? So I sat down with Mary Kelava, a former florist and author of A Bouquet of Words, to finally learn the language of flowers as a gardener. Come learn with me!

In this episode, we learn:

[01:27] Meet Mary Kelava!

[02:12] How she became a florist and a flower language expert

[03:41] Two types of flower books you’re bound to read!

[06:08] My mom’s photocopied dictionary part of ‘The Language of Flowers’

[07:41] Where does the language of flowers come from?

[10:21] How did the Victorian era understand the language of flowers?

[11:38] What the flowers you're drawn to might be telling you

[12:46] Why color, personal memory, and fragrance matter as much as the meaning

[15:03] Espoma Organic

[16:54] Leslie Halleck's new book, Home Greenhouse Revival