"Flowers always make people better, happier and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul.”
– Luther Burbank
According to research conducted at Harvard, Rutgers and Texas A&M nature provides us with a simple way to improve emotional health – flowers. Flowers have the ability to make people happy, strengthen feelings of compassion, foster creativity and even provide a boost of energy. Research from the University of North Florida revealed that people who lived with flowers in their homes for just a few days reported a significant decrease in their levels of stress and improvements in their moods.
In cultures around the world as far back in history as we have any records, flowers provided emotional information among peoples. Pollen was found in the graves of Neanderthals suggesting that the flowers had a place in the burial (Solecki, 1971), although the significance of the pollen is still in dispute (Sommer, 1999). Flowers are expected to convey sympathy, contrition (guilt), romance (sexual intent) or celebration (pride and joy) (Heilmeyer, 2001). Flowers are also used to express religious feelings and in some religions are considered the direct route for spiritual communication. (Stenta, 1930). Of course, some flowers are used for personal adornment, both the blossoms themselves and their essences in the form of perfumes. The vast majority of personal commercial fragrances have a floral top- and/or mid-note. In spite of some basic survival uses, such as edible or medicinal flowers, most flowering plants grown in the flower industry in modern times are not used for any purpose other than emotional. Floriculture crops in the United States accounted for at least 4.9 billion dollars in sales in 2001 (USDA, 2003). This amount seriously underestimates the floral economy because it does not include imports.
The Society of American Florists provides these easy tips for experiencing flowers to reduce stress:
Color your world: Color therapists say colors really do affect our moods. The happiest color? Orange. It promotes optimism, enthusiasm, and a sense of uplift. Choose orange flowers — roses, gerberas, lilies, ranunculus, alstroemeria, tulips — to put on your kitchen counter or your desk, and see your mood soar.
Find peace: If you are having a bad day when it seems like nothing is going right, try flowers in soothing, tranquil colors, such as blues, lavenders and pale greens. Place a small arrangement on your nightstand or in your bathroom, so you can experience the stress relieving benefits of flowers right before you go to bed, and right when you get up to start your day.
Give yourself some joy: One great way to reconnect with joy and feel less stressed is to surround yourself with simple things that make you feel happy and loved, like a colorful bunch of flowers or a blooming plant. Flowers have the power to open hearts, and when your heart is open you are more likely to focus on the positive points in your day.
Pepper your house with small doses of calm: When bringing home flowers have a couple of small vases and containers available so you can place a few flowers in different parts of your living space. You’ll be amazed how many small arrangements you can get out of a single bunch of flowers, and you’ll have constant reminders to ‘stop and smell the flowers.’
Be a friend: Do you have a friend or loved one who could use a boost? Have flowers delivered unexpectedly to their door, and watch their ordinary day become extraordinary. It will make you smile, too.
Help others: Sometimes the best way to relieve stress and the pressures of the day, is to do something nice for someone else. Here’s an idea: Go to your florist and buy two bouquets. Keep one for yourself, then take the other bouquet and “petal it forward” to a stranger on the street. You’ll be amazed at the reaction to your random act of kindness.
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