Ancient Greek and Roman Resource: The Folklore of Flowers: Legends and Connections

Have you ever been asked by your students why is the iris associated with rainbows? What do the different colors of the rose, Aphrodite’s flower, mean? This teaching unit on flowers is designed to introduce students to the special role that flowers and gardens have had in our culture and the powerful influence that flowers have exerted over our lives. In an essay entitled, "The Garden as Metaphor," C.C. Marcus observes that "gardens are mirrors of ourselves, reflections of sensual and personal experience. By making gardens, using or admiring them, and dreaming of them, we create our own idealized order of nature and culture. Gardens connect us to our collective and primeval pasts." Folklore, mythology, and botanical history combine in this beautifully illustrated and well-documented anthology of flowers to offer exciting materials for your students. After an introduction, the seasons are divided across four chapters, each chapter with detailed information on several flowers, with student activities for each. Materials in this resource are fully reproducible.