A Floral Bouquet

Present your sweetheart with a bunch of fascinating facts about our favourite Valentine’s Day flowers.

1. Tale as old as time…

The oldest fossilised remains of a rose were found in Florissant, Colorado and have been estimated to date from 35 million years ago.

2. Ancient associations

Roses have been associated with romance for thousands of years since being linked to Aphrodite and Venus, the goddesses of love in ancient Greece and Rome.

3. Growing old

The oldest living rose bush grows up the wall of the Cathedral of Hildesheim in Germany and is believed to be up to 1000 years old.

4. National symbol

The rose was adopted as the national flower of England by new Tudor king Henry VII in the 15th century. He combined the red rose of Lancaster with the white rose of York to symbolise the country’s unity after the Wars of the Roses.

5. A thorny issue

Technically, roses don’t have thorns, they have prickles. Thorns have deeper roots in a plant’s stem, but prickles attach at the surface and are more easily removed.

6. Rose gardens

One of the UK’s best rose gardens is less than twenty miles from Birmingham city centre. The award winning Rose Labyrinth at Coughton Court in Warwickshire contains over 200 varieties. (www.coughtoncourt.co.uk)

7. Perfume

It takes approximately 60,000 roses to produce one ounce of the rose oil used in perfumes. Bulgaria produces around 70% of all rose oil in the world.

8. Hips

Rose hips, the fruit of the rose, are one of the richest plant sources of Vitamin C. The fine hairs inside the hip are used to make itching powder.

9. One small step…

In 2002, a miniature rose called ‘Overnight Scentsation’ was sent into space so that scientists could study the effects of low gravity on its smell.

10. The price of love

The most expensive rose in the world is the Juliet Rose, which was launched at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2006. Breeder David Austin spent 15 years and over £3 million developing it, but you can pick up a bouquet for your loved one this Valentine’s Day for around £90.

Published in My Moseley and Kings Heath, February 2016.