Hydrangea

What the hydrangea means

In Japan a popular legend tells of an emperor who gave hydrangeas to the family of a woman he had neglected, and the flower is often read there as heartfelt apology or gratitude. Victorian flower dictionaries were less warm, sometimes linking it to boastfulness or heartlessness, perhaps because the shrub makes showy flowers but little seed. In modern Western use it is more often given for gratitude and understanding, and it is the traditional flower for a fourth wedding anniversary. As with all flower meanings, the reading depends on where and when you ask.

Flower meanings come mostly from Victorian floriography, and they vary between books, eras, and cultures.

Often sent for

• Thank you
• Mother's Day
• Anniversary
• Sympathy

By colour

• Blue Often read as understanding, and in some traditions, apology.
• Pink Often given for heartfelt emotion.
• White Associated with grace and abundance.
• Purple Sometimes linked to a wish to understand someone more deeply.
• Antique green Associated with renewal in modern florist use.