With Valentine's Day a week away, a bouquet can become more than a lovely gift. A bouquet can carry a message.

From the ancient time of King Solomon, the fragrant rose has been the flower of love. The elegant blossom was the signature flower of Aphrodite, the goddess of love.

“A rose is a rose is a rose,” wrote Gertrude Stein, as Egypt's Cleopatra (69–30 B.C.) covered her palace floor with rose petals in anticipation of her lover Mark Antony. Sigmund Freud said that those who dream of red roses have lust on the mind. Cleopatra’s petals were surely deep red.

Poet James Boyle O’Reilly wrote, “And the white rose breathes of love;/O, the red rose is a falcon,/And the white rose is a dove.”

Other bouquets carry other meanings. Carnations speak to fascination. Gardenias whisper, “I love you in secret.” Because of the shape of its leaves, gladiolus—Latin for sword—can mean, “You pierce my heart.” Violets say, “I return your love.” Lily-of-the-valley offers reconciliation: “Let’s make up.”

Whatever blooms you choose, fragrance becomes part of the message. A Chinese Proverb reminds us, “Flowers leave some of their fragrance in the hand that bestows them.”

For a gift with tenderness and meaning, choose flowers and buy flowers early, so love’s perfume lingers before and after Valentine’s Day.

More FLOWERS Quotations