Just when you thought at sending flowers would be the easy thing to do for a friend or loved one; you learn that it can actually be a lot more complicated than that. Flowers actually have many different meanings so choose wisely when deciding what type and color of flower to send as a gift, I’ve done some research on a few popular flowers and found the symbolic meaning and other interesting information about them.

Daffodil

The Daffodil is one of the first flowers of spring. Both the Greeks and the Egyptians related the flower with death. The flower is used as symbols for unreturned love or vanity. According to a Greek myth a young wood nymph named Echo fell in love with a man named Narcissus who was granted great beauty by the gods. The gods told Narcissus that in order to keep his beauty he could not look at his own reflection. However Narcissus became so infatuated with himself and his beauty that he ignored Echo who was consumed by love for him. Soon all that was left of her was her voice. Angered by his treatment of Echo the goddess Nemesis led the vain Narcissus to a lake so that he could see his reflection and he faded away. The other gods thought that Nemesis had been too harsh and so they changed his fate from nothingness to a flower, the Narcissus. A more modern, popular meaning of the Daffodil is “you’re the only one.”

Daisy

An ancient Celtic legend tells us that daisies are the spirits of children who dies at birth, they believe that god sprinkled the flowers all over the earth to cheer up the grieving parents. This is the reason that this flower has the meaning of innocence. Other meanings of this flower are loyal love, I'll never tell, purity and is associated with the fifth wedding anniversary.

Forget-Me-Not

According to Christian lore when God was walking through the Garden of Eden after the Creation, He noticed a small blue flower and asked its name. The flower, overcome by shyness, whispered, 'I am afraid I have forgotten, Lord.' God answered, 'Forget Me not. Yet I will not forget thee.’ Another legend is about a man who jumped in the river to swim across and pick the beautiful blue flowers for his lover who was with him. She pleaded for him not to because the currant in the river was strong; he made it to the other side and picked the flowers. However, on his way back he got a cramp and could no longer swim; with the last of his strength he flung the flowers at her feet and cried, “Forget me not!” After he drowned she never forgot him and wore the flowers in her hair until her death. It is no wonder that this flower symbolizes true love and constancy.

Roses

There is a legend that suggests that roses became red when white roses were covered with Abel’s blood when his brother Cain killed him in the bible. Roses have many different meanings depending on the color. Here are some color meanings of roses:

Red

• The spirit of love. True love stronger than thorns.
• True red is the lover's rose.
• Cardinal red: sublime desire
• Carmine: deceitful desire (not true to color)
• Fiery red: flames of passion.

Yellow

• In Victorian times the yellow rose meant jealousy.
• Today it is given as a sign of friendship, sometimes as a sign of sympathy. It is the rose of familiar love and domestic happiness.

Pink

• Pink roses are associated with friendship and marriage, and for either gender, they express warm feelings, happiness or pride. Grace, gentility, elegance and refinement. The rose of sweet thoughts.
• They are wonderful given as a birthday bouquet, anniversary arrangement, or to celebrate landing that coveted job!

White

• A white rose symbolizes innocence and purity as well as youthfulness.
• Loyalty, penetrating and platonic love. Able to captivate secret thought, love stronger than death.

Blue

• Fantasy and impossibility. Hoping for a miracle and new possibilities.

Orange

• Also associated with fantasy but dealing more with want and desire.
• Also could mean I am proud of you.

If you are uncertain what to say, you can’t go wrong with a mixed bouquet and combining a multitude of emotions with your gift. The list of flowers and meanings could go on for hundreds of pages but these are just a few fun facts to help get you started in finding the perfect way to express what you feel with flowers.

Contributed by Wendy Layne

Daffodil Gift Basket This Double Daffodil Basket of bulbs comes potted and ready to grow! Your basket contains 8 Assorted Double Daffodils.

Alstroemeria Bouquet, Peruvian Lily Deluxe bouquet consists of 20 Stems of Assorted Alstroemeria which is also known as a Peruvian Lily

Delicious Romantic Gifts
by Wendy Layne

Romantic gifts are probably the most difficult to give. Certain holidays like Valentine’s Day always elicit the same types of ideas for gift giving. Candy or flowers are standard choices. Other times, you may want to just say "I Love You", but not want to buy an expensive piece of jewelry to do so. Yes, you could just send flowers again, but why not open your mind to a more creative idea that will be thoroughly enjoyed by your loved one and yourself?

Next time you’re in a quandary over what to give, consider a romantic gift of food or wine. What about a decadent chocolate assortment like the "Say It With Chocolate" gift basket? This sumptuous basket was created with the chocolate lover in mind! Filled with a variety of Ghirardelli chocolates, chocolate-covered sandwich cookies, chocolate-covered espresso beans, chocolate chip cookies and chocolate-covered grahams, this gift will put your lover into orbit!

Maybe you’d like to plan a romantic weekend just for the two of you? Our "Wine Country Weekend" gift basket makes the perfect addition to an evening by the fireplace. Start with a perfect wine - Columbia Crest Merlot, a balanced fruity wine with deep color and flavor. A merlot-infused cheese spread, summer sausage and California Crisps crackers make the perfect accompaniment. We’ve added decorative cocktail napkins and wine glass markers as well. Finish it off with delicious chocolate-dipped almond biscotti, California pistachios and chocolate truffles – heavenly!

What could be more romantic than champagne? Adding chocolate truffles to the gift! Our "Champagne and Truffles" gift set is the perfect romantic gift selection. Enjoy a superb bottle of wine along with sinfully rich Joseph Schmidt chocolate truffles.

The next time you’re looking for a romantic gift for that special person in your life, don’t just send flowers. Think outside the vase and send a romantic gift basket!

We always see the label Chinese New Year on our wall calendars but did you ever stop to wonder why the Chinese have a different time to celebrate the new year and how they go about bringing in the new year? If you have then you have come to the right place! The Chinese New Year is the longest and most important celebration in the Chinese calendar. In America we have a linear perception of time, our years are dated from the birth of Christ, so if it is 2006 this means that it is 2,006 years after the birth of Christ. However the Chinese culture uses a cyclical method of dating. Meaning something is repeated time after time according to a certain pattern.

Read more!