It’s nearly Halloween, the magical night of 31 October when the invisible veil between our world and the supernatural is believed to be at its thinnest, allowing spirits to walk among us.
Carved pumpkins, black cats and people dressed as ghosts might spring to mind at this time of year, but did you know that flowers have always been at the heart of this spookiest of celebrations?
Not only good for decoration, the scents and colours of some of your favourite blooms have long been used as talismans to repel evil or make magic. Many are symbolic of death and commonly feature in cultural mourning rituals, while others have been used since ancient times to try and commune with the afterlife.
So, from roses to chrysanthemums, lilies to lavender, let’s take a stroll through a witch’s garden to find some spooky stories to tell at the next full moon…
Chrysanthemum
Often found in autumn bouquets, including ours, chrysanthemums are also main characters in many global traditions. In their native Asia, they’re symbols of resilience and longevity, and in Europe, the beautiful white variety are go-to funeral flowers. Chinese legend has it that if you drink chrysanthemum wine on a moonless Halloween night, your eyes will be opened to the spirit world, and you’ll be able to see ghosts. Of course, this might just be the booze talking, but any excuse, right? Meanwhile, over in Greece, ‘mums adorn graves to ward off evil spirits.
Never, ever, remove one from a cemetery – if you do, you’ll be doomed to eternal bad luck, headaches and nightmares! To protect your home from any ill-meaning ghosts this Halloween, or as a gesture of remembrance, try weaving chrysanthemums into a seasonal wreath to hang on your front door. Our favourite colour is the zingy lime which symbolises healing and hope.
Black Rose
Beloved by gothic brides, the natural ‘black’ rose is actually a deep, purplish red. It symbolises death in the British language of flowers, popular in Victorian times, meaning it is often associated with grief and mourning. However, in Eastern cultures, this striking flower is linked to spiritual protection and believed to absorb negative energy. Can’t stand your constantly complaining colleague? Try decorating your desk with some of these to keep their bad vibes at bay! Better still, the ancient Greeks and Romans reckoned that just one black rose could turn misfortune into good luck. If used in black magic, though, this power could just as easily be reversed, so be wary of anyone who might hold a grudge against you! Oh and if you receive a single black rose, run – in the early 20th century, this was the Sicilian mafia’s omen for impending murder.
Mullein
This woolly medicinal herb with its tall spike of yellow flowers has been associated with witchery for centuries, giving it the alternative name ‘hag’s taper’. Traditionally, mullein stalks are dipped in fat and burnt as torches to disperse negative energy, in a practice known as ‘smudging’. If you’re familiar with Homer’s Greek epic The Odyssey, you might recall how the gods send hero Odysseus off on his famous journey with a stick of mullein to protect him against Circe, the sorceress. Conveniently, mullein naturally dries out ready for making into candles round about now, so you can get yours ready for Halloween! It also has anti-inflammatory properties when infused in tea, making it handy for flu season.
Lily
Symbolising purity, lilies have the power to break love spells and help people escape bad relationships. So, if you’ve been umming and ahhing over whether to initiate a split, filling your home with lilies this Halloween might just put you on the path to your soulmate. This sculptural flower is also held up in folklore as a protector of emotional boundaries, so we recommend always having some in your home, especially when your nosy neighbour comes a-calling! Just keep your fingers crossed that you don’t stumble upon a spider lily with its long, creepy stamens – folklore says these appear as deadly omens before a disaster. Eek! Thankfully, we’ve stuck to stunning orange calla lilies and red LA lilies in our autumn bouquets.
Parsley
Not just for sprinkling over your dinner, humble parsley harbours a dark secret – in ancient times, ‘the Devil’s herb’ was symbolic of death! Folklore tells that the reason its seeds take so long to grow is because they have to go to the Devil and back nine times first. So that’s what they’re doing while you’re sleeping! Legend also has it that if you sow parsley, someone in your family will die before the end of the year. One way to get around this is for women to plant the seeds, but only when the parish church bells are ringing. Maybe stick to basil?
Marigold
One of the most popular Halloween flowers with their fiery, pumpkin-orange petals, marigolds feature heavily in Mexico’s Day of the Dead celebrations, where they are known as the ‘flower of the dead’. Revered as bridges to the afterlife, it’s believed that their strong scent and bold colour can guide spirits back to earth during festivals. In Medieval Europe, meanwhile, it was tradition to lay a marigold under your pillow in a bid to induce prophetic dreams. This ritual is still practised by some on Halloween, so if you’re in the midst of uncertainty and looking for a sign, give it a go on 31 October!
Lavender
Like rosemary, lavender is hung as a sprig above doorways to keep homes safe from any nefarious roaming entities. Celebrated for thousands of years across cultures for its cleansing, soothing properties (its name comes from the Latin ‘lavare’ meaning ‘to wash’), the early pagans believed this heavenly scented flower to possess divine power. Lavender was used by witches to make potions and cast spells, while normal folk would sew sachets of it into their clothing and pillows, or burn it as incense for protection. It’s a staple in our range for good reason!
Foxglove
Superstition dictates that while growing beautiful foxgloves in your garden will keep any evil away, and dreaming of them promises future happiness, displaying them in your home will bring bad luck. This is because fairies frolic in their trumpet flowers – speckles on the petals indicate their footprints – and they don’t take kindly to having their playgrounds removed! Spot a foxglove suddenly bend over and it’s a sign that something supernatural is near by, while folklore blog Legendary Dartmoor claims that witches rub a balm made from foxgloves onto themselves and their broomsticks in order to fly – don’t be tempted to try this, Halloween or not, as this plant is poisonous!
Black Dahlia
Like the ‘black’ rose above, unless dyed, the ‘black’ dahlia is in fact a dark burgundy that can look black in certain lights. Rich in symbolism, it is often linked to mystery, transformation, strength and betrayal. Today, it has strong connotations with the tragic 1947 murder of a young woman, Elizabeth Short, in Los Angeles, which remains unsolved. She was nicknamed ‘The Black Dahlia’ by the media on account of her raven hair and rumoured love for gothic clothing, and is now forever associated with the striking flower.
Ghost Orchid
Found in the swamps of Florida, these ethereal flowers are seen as the spirits of lost explorers in Native American folklore. Legend has it that they spring up in abundance on Halloween, with ghost hunters claiming that the more ghost orchids populating an area, the more likely you are to find evidence of paranormal activity. So, if you’re serious about scouting out some supernatural beings this October, you’d better book yourself a flight across the pond. Or, you could pick up one of our fabulous orchids for an alternative, more understated nod to the festivities. One option is decidedly kinder to your bank balance!
Deadly Nightshade
No list of spooky flowers, or witch’s garden for that matter, would be complete without deadly nightshade and its poisonous black berries. Long synonymous with evil, Renaissance-era folklore tells of this infamous plant, also known as belladonna, being used by witches to bring on hallucinations that would help them fly to secret midnight meetings known as sabbaths. Its power is believed to reach its peak on Halloween, offering anyone who dares to consume it a glimpse behind the curtain at the supernatural world – or, more likely, death. Seriously, though, it’s extremely toxic, so don’t do anything silly!
Hosting a Halloween party or scary movie night? Don’t forget to stock up on autumn flowers to create the perfect ambience, starting at a far-from-spooky £26.99.
