‘Diamonds are forever’ is a slogan that sold many stones, but it cannot apply to flowers. Ironically, the fact that they are not as durable as diamonds is what gives them a quality that diamonds lack. When W. B. Yeats wrote the lines, ‘All that’s beautiful fades away, ‘ he caught something significant about beauty, which is its quality of freshness. Blooms and blossoms have short lives but a large part of the beauty is in their very transience.
The special beauty of flowers lies in the fact that they will fade away. A plant gathers all the strength that it can and climaxes in a flower which is its moment of glory. The whole force of evolution lies behind the trembling petals of a flower that opens itself for fertilization. Much of its beauty is in its fragility.
Quickly enough beauty fades away. The flower is fertilized; its petals droop and drop off or turn into hard shells that protect the seed until it is dispersed. The practical business of regeneration gets underway after the brief flirtation with eternal beauty at the time of flowering.
Each bloom represents what beauty is. The petals with their delicate petals are arranged symmetrically to lead the eye (or the hungry insect) to a centre. The structure unfolds effortlessly into perfect symmetry, unlike a diamond which has to be cut and polished. The bloom has its own facets, honed into perfect shape by evolution.
Flowering plants have a myriad of charming stratagems for beguiling insects into their inner recesses where the ovary waits to be touched by the antennae of a bee or flying insect. The foxglove has its little pathway of spots like pebbles leading inwards. The tiger lily’s striped petals curl backwards voluptuously, opening her long stamen to the skies.
They love to use perfume to lure useful suitors. The fragrance from a bed of old fashioned roses wafting across a city park or street is somehow an eminently civilized thing although the scents are natural. Some species take the fragrance trick a bit far when they emulate the smell of rotting flesh in order to attract flies. Such stinks are beautiful in the eyes of flies. Fortunately most flowers stick with bees and sweetness and the promise of honey.
The symbolic significance of flowers lies in their transient beauty. In any hospital or home, where a special event has taken place, flowers mark the occasion, be it sad or happy. They signify a fresh emotion of nostalgia, joy or sympathy to mark a significant event in life, or possibly just a significant though passing emotion.
The internet comes once again into the frame as a way to facilitate the gifts of flowers. With websites now catering to the whims of most givers it is possible for tongue tied men to express their emotions to anyone, anywhere in the world, quickly and effectively. The flowers themselves may fade quickly but the though behind them could be remembered forever.