The significance of flowers for a funeral

When  people think of what type of flowers or arrangement to send for a funeral, words like beautiful and respectful come up. Others wonder, what color or what kind are appropriate?

Funeral flowers often help facilitate emotional release, as some mourners struggle to express their grief verbally. Sending flowers is an expression of respect, sympathy and love for the deceased.

There’s actually meaning or significance behind the type of funeral flower and color of funeral flower you choose to send to a funeral or memorial service:  

• Red flowers signify strength, respect, devotion and love.
• Blue flowers represent sadness, sympathy and peace.
• Orange flowers signify enthusiasm, joy and warmth.
• Purple flowers represent respect, sorrow, sympathy and admiration.
• Yellow flowers signify friendship, warmth and hope.
• Pink flowers represent grace, compassion and innocence.
• Green flowers signify nature, wellness and renewal.
• White flowers represent elegance, reverence, purity and eternal love.

What different types of funeral flowers represent

• Daisies signify peace and hope.
• Snapdragons represent graciousness and strength.
• Lavender signifies grace, purity and devotion.
• Tulips represent love, peace and hope.
• Orchids signify hope, peace, courage and love.
• Gladiolus represent strength and integrity.
• Calla lilies signify resurrection and rebirth.
• Yellow lilies represent thankfulness.
• Iris flowers signify faith, hope, courage, wisdom and admiration.

The meaning of carnations and roses differs based on the tint of the flower.

Roses

• Red represents love, respect and courage.
• Pink signifies grace, love and appreciation.
• White represents reverence, innocence, peace and hope.
• Dark crimson signifies grief and sorrow.
• Black represents the beginning of new things and major change.

Carnations (all carnations signify sympathy and grief)

• Red represents admiration and love.
• Pink signifies remembrance.
• White represents innocence and love.

Flowers have significance in every stage of the life cycle from birth to death. In death, flowers are a traditional way to honor the deceased, which is symbolic of the fragile, fleeting nature of life. It is thought that the natural beauty of flowers lessens some of the emotional burden that accompanies the visual imagery of funerals.

A brief history of funeral flowers

Some think the first funeral flowers were used to mask the odor of body decomposition at President Andrew Jackson’s funeral in 1874. However, the earliest record of funeral flowers was actually from the Shanidar caves in Iraq, where a 30- to45-year-old male neanderthal skeleton was found in the fetal position with pollen deposits from eight wildflowers.

Among them were cornflower, grape hyacinth, hollyhock, and thistle from 60-80,000 years ago.

In the 19th century, “flower ladies” participated in funerals by carrying flowers from the funeral home to the procession, and were responsible for arranging them at the cemetery plot for the families. This was considered to be as important as the role of the pallbearers.

Funeral flower uses

Funeral flowers are used in many different ways. They’re displayed during a wake at the funeral home and in a church or synagogue for religious services. They also decorate graves and drape over a casket.

Types of funeral flower arrangements

• Crosses and hearts
• Standing sprays
• Casket mounds
• Baskets
• Wreaths
• Live plants

Funeral flowers represent a visual tribute to the relationship you had with the deceased and help you express your feelings of loss.

This blog post answers the questions:

What color flowers for funeral

What kind of flowers for funeral