Perhaps the most famous of French flowers is the Lily, the Fleur de Lys. One of the emblems of France for hundreds of years, it appears on flags and shields; the national flower, it is inextricably linked with the history of this most European of nations.
France’s geography, reaching from the cooler northern areas down to the warm Mediterranean coast, from mountains to lowlands means that a huge variety of flowers thrive here. And flowers play an important part in French life. As anyone who’s ever watched the Tour de France roll across the countryside will confirm, few are the houses without carefully tended flower gardens and colourful hanging baskets. And as every village celebrates its ‘Fête’, lamps and balconies are decorated with irises, lilies and geraniums, bringing an explosion of colour to even the smallest village.
But France is not just about colour. As anyone who’s ever travelled in the south knows, the whole area seems to lie under a permanent mist of wonderful scents. Lavender fields stretch across Provence and the area around Gourdon is famous for its rosemary bush. Blossoming throughout spring and summer, its delicate scent makes it perfect for use in perfumeries. And what would France (to say nothing of world art) be without its huge expanses of sunflowers, nodding in warm breezes?
The French are also great rose growers. Native varieties have existed since at least the 13th Century, while many new varieties were imported from the Low Countries in the 18th. Many of these roses, such as the cabbage rose, are also used to make perfume. The country’s many delightful palaces also offer a huge range of flowers, from native varieties to imports carefully looked after in huge greenhouses.
Moving upwards, France’s many mountainous regions are home to different flowers. In springtime they carpet whole mountainsides in yellow and blue.
Perhaps one of France’s most symbolic flowers is the red poppy. The battlegrounds of the First World War were covered with these flowers and ever since they have come to symbolize the fallen in the wars that France and her Allies suffered in the 20th century.
FloraQueen are the experts in international flower delivery. We have carefully selected a network of local florists who can guarantee on time delivery should you wish to send flowers to France. So, from the smallest villages to the largest cities, the whole country is within reach. It has never been easier to send flowers to Paris than through FloraQueen.