Orange Blossoms…. wedding bells are ringing!
Spring is around the corner and, like every year, this is the time when wedding bells start to ring; and how can you argue with these newlyweds-to-be?
Nature which restarts its life-cycle, the colours and sweet scents in the air all revitalize our being and fill us with a natural sensation of joy.
Ever since I was little I was drawn to the language of flowers, their meaning. It’s incredible and fascinating to think that any type of emotion or state of being can be expressed simply, with a bouquet. This method of communication was in vogue during the 19th Century, when flowers and floral arrangements were used to express sensations which could not always be verbalized... especially when talking about love!
Now the question I asked myself was: Why are orange blossoms associated to weddings?
We know that orange blossoms represent purity and virginity, are a good omen and and are used to wish fertility for those who receive them.
As is always the case when explaining these things, everything started with a legend that spoke of love and gratitude...
The story goes that a king of Spain received a gift of an orange blossom plant from a princess which he planted in his garden, forbidding anyone to come near it.
One day, an ambassador arrived at the court and was particularly struck by the plant. He therefore asked the king if he could be granted one of its branches, but the monarch refused.
The ambassador thus tried to bypass this impediment by going directly to the the king's gardener who stole a branch for him. The man thanked the gardener with 50 gold coins which the he then used as dowry for his daughter who, unfortunately, nobody wanted to marry because she was too poor. When the girl got married she wore an orange blossom branch in her hair as a sign of her happiness and gratitude.
An even older legend tells that in an amazing and secret island there was a garden where Atlas and Nyx’s three daughters guarded an orange tree of mysterious fruits and sweet smelling flowers. The plant was a gift from the goddess Earth to Zeus for his marriage to Hera. From that day onward, the orange blossom became the symbol of marriage and of brides.
We wish all brides and grooms the best from our enchanted garden!
