Poetry & Posy Workshops 2025

I recently discovered floriography—essentially a code written in flowers. It bloomed in Victorian times, when strict social rules didn’t always allow people to say what they meant out loud. Even today—though the classic floriography dictionary may be misplaced—we all understand sending flowers for love, condolences, joy, or those moments when words feel awkward or a little lame. The recipient usually gets the message; after all, we all know what a dozen red roses imply.

Making Meaning Accessible

In researching floriography, I quickly learned there’s no universal list—and sometimes the meanings even contradict one another. Because our program is barrier-free and open to the public in summer, my challenge was to make it affordable, accessible, and appropriate for everyone (ahem, a dozen red roses wouldn’t cut it). So I compiled a “cheat sheet”: a list of phrases tied to the meanings of common cutting-garden flowers that grow easily in our climate. With it, any participant could compose a meaningful little poem.

Creativity Blooms

What delights me most is how diverse and personal the poems and posies (bouquets) turn out—each one shaped by the chosen blooms and the order of the phrases. And now we have an anthology tucked into the digital realm, long after the flowers themselves have faded.