Blooming Friday

our yellow-orange chrysanthemums

Since chrysanthemums are in full bloom by November, it has been associated with All Saint’s day (Toussaint, November 1) and All Soul’s Day (November 2) in France. Well, it may seem like a “sad” flower but if we’re going to consider that chrysanthemums are regarded as flowers of happiness and immortality in Asian countries like Japan, then, I guess commemorating our loved ones with this flower is quite appropriate. They may not be with us anymore, but they are in our hearts and memories for the rest of our lives. And who knows, maybe they are happier where they are now.


Well, I really like chrysanthemums for several reasons. I love their flowers especially the daisy-like type. They come in a wide variety of colors and last for a long time. They are generally hardy perennial plants. And they are one of the few flowers that make November cheerful (it’s usually wet and gloomy here during this month). So for this Blooming Friday's post, I’d like to share some photos taken on one of that rare occasions when we had some sun even for just an afternoon this gray month. I hope to grow cuttings from our chrysanthemum so that by next year, we will have many of them to have a cheerful November.

I love this color against the blue sky. The flowers appear like little suns. It's no wonder why Japan has a"Festival of Happiness" to celebrate chrysanthemums. And not only are the flowers decorative, the yellow or white chrysanthemums can also be boiled to make tea (although I haven't tried doing this yet). And when these plants are put inside homes, they are reputed to decrease air pollution (source: wikipedia)

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