Between 10 and 15 May 2019 flowers which are considered to be unlucky were briefly discussed in The Times.  This was stimulated by the columnist Ann Treneman, who on 10 May mentioned her love of lilac (Syringa vulgaris), and being surprised when a visitor to her home remarked, ‘My mother wouldn’t have those in the house …bad luck.’  On investigating Treneman discovered that ‘some people do believe that lilacs brought inside bring bad luck.  Other floral indicators of doom are starwort (instant death apparently), mimosa [Acacia dealbata], wattle [Acacia spp.] and hawthorn [Crataegus monogyna]’.

It’s unclear what ‘starwort’ is, perhaps it is water starwort (Callitriche spp.), an aquatic plant  with ornamental green leaves.  Its  potentially dangerous habitat could mean that parents discourage youngsters gathering it, but it’s unlikely that flimsy Callitriche species are  gathered by flower arrangers.

On 11 May, a correspondent from Maidstone, Kent, reported that her mother would never allow lilacs in the house, despite having prolific bushes in her garden.  Neither would she allow red and white flowers in the same vase.

On 13 May, an Edinburgh correspondent  recorded that when working as a nursing auxiliary in the early 1970s she was told that under no circumstances were red and white flowers to be put together in the same vase; ‘this was considered a bad omen for patients as it signified blood loss and death’.

Finally, on 15 May, a High Halden, Kent, correspondent recalled  that many years ago when she first started she was advised to never put red and white flowers together, they were ‘a reminder of the horrors of war: blood and bandages’.

Image:  red and white carnations (Dianthus caryophyllus) on sale in Madrid, Spain, June 2018.