Nothing heals like Mother Nature. Just about everybody feels immediately happier upon receiving a flower. Smiles that floral presents bring out are authentic, and they are closely followed by a drop in the level of anxiety. Simply put, flowers can cure sadness. It should come as no surprise that offices that are decorated with plants and flowers have more productive employees. Compared to an office without plants, the staff shows to be more energetic and successful in general, and has higher achievements at the end of the workday. Pleasing scents improve our mood, it is a fact, but we also react to colors. Blue entices our creativity and red helps with assignments that are focused on details – both of which are widely represented colors in flowers.
The gift of flowers is a rare tradition that survived millenniums. Every religion, culture and nation has a custom of gifting plants. In ancient Rome, women used to wear flowers not just because they believed that they will give them fertility, they believed that with these plants, they are protected from evil spirits. In South Africa, a flower is the only appropriate gift that one can get for Christmas. Chinese students believe that a flower is the perfect present for a teacher, but strangely, they also believe that if you are offering a potted plant as a present, you are expressing your will to keep the relationship on a certain level of distance. All societies used plants in medicinal purposes, long before we had knowledge of the more complex, manufactured chemicals. There is evidence that we’ve used medicinal herbs more than 50,000 years ago. Ancient Egyptians were masters of herbal medicine, and in 1000 AD, doctors in England used plants to heal patients from various infections. Not long after that, all across the globe, people wrote about and felt the need to emphasize the importance of floral treatment of diseases and illnesses. Even today some plants can’t be matched when it comes to their effect as remedies. For example:
Lavender water is the perfect wash for treating acnes, and its oil can help you if you have problems with dandruff. If you have an itch, or an insect bite, oil can calm the irritation. Also, lavender by itself has a calming effect on people, because its scent lowers blood pressure.
Chamomile helps with treating anxiety, stomach pain and digestive problems. It can also act soothingly on headaches, some infections, and it helps with colds and insomnia as well. Combined with some other plants, the chamomile’s medicinal benefits are enhanced.
Roses are rich with vitamin C, and great for dealing with a cough or a cold. From an antidepressant and an aphrodisiac, to a blood-tonic and expectorant, there are so many benefits of the rose. In fact, it used to be grown in medieval times as food and medicine, and not just because it looks beautiful.
On the other hand, even the look of the rose and blooming flower has a undisputable effect on us. It enhances our mood and provides us with the sense of serenity. In 2012, more than 224 millions of roses were grown for Valentine’s Day. We can’t even imagine the number of bouquets for Mother’s Day that were offered as a gift so far, because it is one of the oldest traditions that survived until this day in every culture, in virtually the same form. I guess the connection between our mothers and Mother Nature is a sacred one.
Remember that when you are offering someone a flower, you are offering them happiness. Whatever else you do, you started off strong.
