Floriography

Floriography, or the language of flowers, is a means of sending messages encoded in the flowers and floral arrangements. The messages are often widely understood by the members of the social caste within which they are used and are usually used for public declarations of affection or love. However, in societies where political tensions are often fraught, the written word may be easily intercepted or decoded, and numerous liaisons are a sign of a well-rounded and interesting person, they have acquired additional significance.

The "poetic" meanings of flowers have spread to most of the human lands in the Western Kingdom with a courtly tradition, but the more cryptic "pragmatic" meanings are not well known outside of Sanctuary and Alfheim, where they had a short lived spate of fashionable appeal some millennia ago. The modifier that indicates if a message should be interpreted romantically or in a broader strategic sense can vary from culture to culture, due to seasonal availability, or agreement between the correspondents but might be signified by a single flower in a more complicated bouquet, the colour, position, or knots in a fastener such as a ribbon, or if the bloom is fastened to one projectile or another. Consequently, it has a number of short-comings as a mode of communication and has probably destroyed as many alliances as it has created or strengthened.

One should also note that outside of human and elven cultures giving the generative organs of plants, or anything else for that matter, as gifts may be considered either eccentric, pointless, or incredibly offensive.

A list of common meanings is provided below, along with a sample "conversation" to demonstrate the possibilities inherent in the art. It should be noted that some varieties (marked with an asterisk) are native to the Western Continent, but appear to be cultivated locally. Further information might be obtained from a reputable florist, but they are more inclined to handle the interpretation of a neophyte's message themselves, rather than divulge trade secrets. In Sanctuary, they are frequently better informed about the current political situation than they like to let on.

Flower	Variety or colour	Poetic Meaning	Pragmatic Meaning
Acacia	Yellow	Secret, chaste love	Isolated Resiliance
	White	Elegance	Remain Calm
Aconite	Wolf's Bane	Misanthropy	Interspecies Tensions
Agapanthus		Love letters	Plans / Documents
Almond	Common	Stupidity / Indiscretion	"Your mistake will cost you."
Amaranth	Cockscomb	Foppery / Affectation	Courtiers / Artists
	Globe	Immortality / Unchanging love	Elf / Elven Custom
Apple	Blossom	Temptation	Sow Discord
Asphodel		"My regrets follow you to the grave."	"That's your grave, FYI."
Azalea		"Take care of yourself for me." / Temperance	Foot Troops
Balsam	Red	"Touch me not."	"Keep your distance."
	Yellow	Impatience	"Restrain yourself."
Belladonna		Silence	"Silence them."
Bird's Foot Trefoil		Revenge	"Avenge me!"
Bittersweet		Truth	Interrogation / Torture
Black Bryony / Lady's Seal		Be My Support	Send Troops
Borage		Courage / Bluntness	Celestial Magics
Bouquet of withered flowers		Rejected love	Change your Courier
Camellia	White	"You're adorable."	"You are presently useful."
Candytuft		Indifference	Watchfulness
Carnation	General	Bonds of affection / Health and energy / Fascination	"Command me."
	Pink	"I'll never forget you."	Vendetta Declared
	Purple	Capriciousness / Whimsical / Changeable	Dangerously Unreliable
	Red	My heart aches for you / Admiration	Earnt Respect
	Yellow	You have disappointed me / Rejection / Disdain	"Our alliance is ended."
Chrysanthemum	In General	Cheerfulness / You're a wonderful friend	Take the Initiative / Strike Now!
	Red	I love	Purge your Ranks
	White	Truth	Investigation
	Yellow	Slighted love	Betrayal
Convolvulus / Bindweed		Bonds	"Control has been taken."
Corn		Riches / Abundance	Merchant / Gold
Dahlia*		Good Taste / Instability	Greed / Madness
Datura* (Thorn-apples)		Deceitful charms	Drugs
Edelweiss / Alpine Cudweed		Daring / Courage / Noble Purity	Fallguy / Patsy
Eglantine Rose / Sweet-Briar		"I wound to heal."	"Your discomfort is hilarious."
Elder Flower		Zealousness	Powers of Light
Enchanter's Nightshade		Witchcraft / Sorcery	Mages / Magic
Eupatorium / Hardy Ageratum*		Delay	Delay your Actions
Fern	Maidenhair	Secret bond of love, Discretion	Spies / Espionage
Feverfew		Protection	Defensive Measures
Foxglove		Insincerity	"Your plans are transparent to me."
Garden Daisy		"I partake of your sentiments."	Acknowledged / "I obey."
Hazel		Reconciliation	Negotiations
Heather		Delicate beauty	Vulnerablility / You are vulnerable
Hemlock		"You will be my death."	Necromancy / Undead / "I will take you with me."
Helmet Flower		Chivalry	Mounted Troops
Hyacinth	General	Games and Sports / Rashness	Make Haste
	Purple	I'm Sorry / Please Forgive Me / Sorrow	Undeserved Mercy
	Red Or Pink	Play	Feint / Diversion
	White	"I'll pray for you."	"Expect heavy casualties."
Iris	General	Faith / Hope / Wisdom and Valor	"Prepare for war."
	Aladarian	Passion / Flame	Destruction
Ivy	Sprig Of White Tendrils	Anxious to please, Affection	Offered Service
		Dependence	"Do as I ask." / "I will expose you."
Jonquil		"Return my affection."	"Last message garbled, please resend."
Larkspur	Pink	Fickleness / Levity	"Disregard last message/ attack."
	Purple	Haughtiness	Nobility / Royalty
Licorice	Wild	"I declare against you."	Feigned Conflict
Lilac	General	Beauty, Pride	Consequences
	Purple	First emotion of love	Painful Realisation
	White	Youthful innocence	"They suspect nothing."
Lily	Day	Coquetry	Scouts / Reconissance
	General	Keeps unwanted visitors away	Fortifications
	Orange	Hatred / Dislike	Attack / "Mount the attack."
	Tiger	Wealth / Pride	Fire Magics / Folly
Linden Tree		Conjugal love	Defeat / Embarassment
Lobelia		Malevolence	Enemies / Enemies Forces
Love-Lies-Bleeding (Amaranthus)		Hopeless, Not Heartless / Desertion	Your Cause is Lost
Maple		Reserve	Reinforcements
Marigold	Common	Pain / Grief / Sacred Affection / Cruelty / Comfort	Mixed Emotions / Impulses
	Azurian	Vulgar minds	The peasantry / populace
Michaelmas Daisy		Afterthought / Farewell	"Your services are no longer required."
Mignonette* (Reseda)		Your qualities surpass your charms	Conceal your activities
Mistletoe		Kiss me / Affection / To surmount difficulties	Earth Magics / Support Magics
Monkshood		Beware, Danger is near	Poison / "I recommend poison."
Nasturtium		Patriotism	Political Expedience
Nettle, Burning		Slander	Employ Slander
Orange Blossoms		Your purity equals your loveliness	Corruption
Peach Blossom		"I am your captive"	Surrender / "My ransom is sufficient, yes?"
Pennyroyal		Flee away	You Are Compromised / Flee
Rose	Dark Crimson	Mourning	Murder / Assassination
	White-Dried	Death is Preferable to Loss of Virtue	"Your resignation is expected."
	General, Red	Love / "I love you."	Shed Blood
	Red And White, Together	Unity	"Only blood will seal this."
Snakeroot*		Horror	Powers of Dark / Pacted
Snapdragon		No! / Deception / Presumption	Compromised Plans / Abort
Viscaria* (Sticky Catchfly)		Will You Dance With Me?	Seduction / Ruin
Wallflower		Fidelity in adversity	"Our support will cost you."
Wheat		Wealth and prosperity	Supplies / Baggage Train / Trade
Winged seeds (any kind)		Messengers	Air Magics / Couriers
Winter Cherry		Deception	Cover / Concealing Terrain
Witch Hazel		A spell	Curses / Wichan Magics
Yew		Sorrow	Archers