The retro carnations popular among young people are so beautiful! This touch of fragrance once shined at the Nobel Prize dinner

At the Nobel Prize dinner a few years ago, the world's floral designer Pal Benjamin single-handedly selected carnations and used more than 20,000 of this fragrant flower as the main flower to build a beautiful and elegant flower plate. This design also made Parr famous.

In the long history of horticultural plant selection, carnations, which originated in the wilderness of southern Europe, have completed a magnificent transformation and become a popular flower all over the world, sitting on the throne of one of the four major cut flowers in the world. The colorful world of carnations shines with strong emotions and technological magic.

Tracing the origin of carnation starts with its other name. Carnation is the name given by the horticultural community, but in botanical terms, this plant is called carnation.

Carnation was described in Greek texts over 2,000 years ago. In Europe, plants of the genus Dianthus are cast in sacred colors. The genus name of carnation uses the Greek words dios and anthos as its roots. When combined, it is called "flower of the gods".

Zheng Wei, a science popularization volunteer at the Shanghai Botanical Garden and an intermediate garden engineer, said that the emergence of carnations can be traced back to the ancient Greek and Roman periods, when it was used in artworks and decorations. Christians believe that the first carnations bloomed on the ground when the Virgin Mary wept over Jesus carrying the cross. The inspiration for the work "Virgin with Carnations" completed by Leonardo da Vinci between 1478 and 1480, a famous Italian painter during the Renaissance, came from this.

Carnation. Picture: The origin of carnation is difficult to verify, but what is known is that it comes from the wilderness of southern Europe and is produced in the Mediterranean region of Europe. In the 13th century, the Moors had already cultivated double carnations. Since the 16th century, Britain and France have cross-bred them. Persian pottery and tiles from the 16th century depict carnation flowers with double petals and heterochromatic stripes or patches, the earliest source of modern variegated varieties. After the mid-18th century, carnations gradually became a potted flower in greenhouses.

Since its development, carnations have been called the "four major cut flowers" in the world along with roses, gladiolus, and gerberas. They are also the national flowers of Spain, Morocco, Honduras and other countries.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Shanghai introduced more than 30 varieties of flowers from abroad, among which carnations were the earliest introduced and produced in 1910.

At that time, Minhang Meilong, Zhabei Pengpu, and Pudong Lingqiao were the three major flower industry concentration areas. Among them, Meilong mainly produced carnations and other fresh cut flowers, Pengpu mainly produced potted chrysanthemums, and Lingqiao mainly produced foliage plants. .

There is another story about the introduction of carnations in Shanghai.

At the end of the 19th century, British colonists opened the "British Flower Shop" for the first time on the Bund of Shanghai, exclusively selling carnation flowers imported from Europe. But the price is so expensive that few Chinese people care about it. A few years later, the owner of a flower shop in Daying discovered that the same type of carnation flowers were being sold at a low price in a Chinese flower shop. He believed that the carnations had been stolen and went to court against the shop that sold them.

When the court was in session, the Chinese lawyers argued hard, pointing out that the flower products sold by the British side had branches and buds, and the varieties were naturally lost, so how could there be any accusation of theft. The judge could not argue the case and ruled that the British side lost the case. Since then, foreigners' monopoly on carnation varieties in Shanghai and even the domestic flower market has been broken.

In fact, this story illustrates from the side that carnations are a flower species that is easy to reproduce. The original species of carnation only bloomed in spring. In 1840, the Frenchman Dalmei improved it into a continuous flowering type. This flower is suitable for growing in fertile soil with good drainage and good air permeability, and can even grow normally in slightly alkaline soil. In the eyes of botanists, this is even more valuable in Shanghai, where the soil is generally alkaline.

Planting carnations requires sufficient light in winter and appropriate shade in summer to create a cool environment. If cared for properly, carnations can bloom in all seasons, which is why carnations are so popular among the public.

Carnation flowers are also an excellent Chinese medicinal material, which can clear away heat and detoxify. If you have headaches, toothaches and other symptoms, soaking the petals in water and drinking it can relieve pain and achieve the effect of clearing the eyes and rejuvenating the mind. It is also a health-preserving scented tea, rich in trace elements, which can promote blood circulation and improve the body's metabolism.

As we all know, among thousands of flowers, carnation was chosen to be the "flower of maternal love". And it is endowed with profound emotional color, starting from a stamp.

In May 1934, the United States issued a commemorative stamp for Mother's Day for the first time. The stamp pattern is a world-famous painting by an American painter called "Whistler's Mother". On the picture, a kind mother puts her hands on her knees and gazes with joy at the bright and beautiful carnations in the vase.

With the spread of stamps, Westerners have associated carnations with Mother's Day, and have established it as the flower for Mother's Day. On Mother's Day, people whose mothers are still alive will wear a red carnation flower or give their mother a bouquet of carnations.

Different flowers have their own flower language, and carnations of different colors represent different flower languages. For example, dark red expresses warm and deep emotions, light red expresses admiration, pink is often a symbol of gratitude, and striped multi-colored carnations express apology. For another example, the carnations given to the mother must be a bouquet composed of multiple flowers, because the flower language of a single carnation is "love at first sight."

Hemerocallis. Picture In fact, the Chinese have their own "flower of maternal love"-Hemerocallis fulva. In ancient China, before a wanderer left for a long journey, he planted daylily in Beitang, because it is also called forget-me-not. Children who traveled far hoped that their mother could alleviate their longing and forget their troubles. Therefore, in ancient times, the mother's nickname was "Xuanqin" and the mother's living room was called "Xuantang".

However, the flowering period of daylilies is very short, usually only blooming for one day, blooming in the morning and falling in the evening, so it is called "one-day lily" in English. This is probably the reason why Chinese mother flowers cannot be passed down as gifts.

Times and aesthetics are developing and changing. Some "niche flower" branches cultivated from varieties are becoming more and more popular, constantly breaking consumers' traditional understanding of flowers, and carnation is one of them.

In people's impression, carnations are red, pink, yellow, white and other colors, and the flower shape and color present a sense of exquisiteness, elegance, dignity and elegance as a whole. However, thanks to the cultivation and research of horticulturists, vintage carnations have quietly become popular, especially among young consumers.

The color of vintage carnations is fuller and the layers are more distinct. Regardless of the flower name or color, this perfect transformation of the carnation is exciting. Such as "Mustang". The name reveals freedom and courage. This kind of carnation is unrestrained but not ostentatious. The combination of high-end granny ash and mysterious purple gives the flower its own fairy spirit.

"Purple Elf" is a carnation with a new level of beauty. The flowers are white with purple inlay, with a light pink halo, and a transparent texture, which is elegant yet playful.

Another example is "Cuban Love." People who are used to seeing single-color or striped carnations will be surprised by the gradient carnations. The outer layer of the flower is old yellow, and the center is tender pink, just like a retro beauty. The "chameleon" gradually changes from milk tea color to orange pink, looking gentle and elegant, and is also the face of the Carnation family.

The butterfly lace of "Mrs. Pam", the colorful pearlescent colors of "Lava", the small pleated petals of "Yiren", the flower-shaped waves of "Pretty Bride"... The emergence of a small retro family has allowed everyone to see that carnations can be shaped side.

Carnation flowers come in a variety of colors, covering almost all colors, but they have not yet bloomed into natural blue flowers, which horticulturists believe is a new direction for future flower color research. The Athenians on the European coast once used the petals of carnations to add fragrance to wine. The "ancestor" of carnations has a strong floral fragrance, but now the fragrance has faded. It is expected that the floral fragrance of carnations can be recovered through hybridization or genetic means in the future.