In many places, the start of September is synonymous with the unofficial end of summer – mostly because of Labor Day, and the end of gardening. Fortunately, that’s not an issue for people in Texas, and Gordon Boswell wants to make sure that no matter what kind of unexpected weather Mother Nature unleashes on us, you can enjoy the beauty of cut flowers anywhere you choose to place them. Let’s not forget that cut flowers are also a wonderful gift for any occasion.
Asters are the birth flower for the month of September. These delightful large flowers put on a spectacular show of color in flower gardens throughout all of summer and well into the fall. The flower name is derived from the Greek word astér, a word that translates into English as “star.” The whole connection between the Greek word, what it means in English and the flower is a fun one when you think about a legend from Greek mythology that likely tells of the origin of asters on Earth.
How a Greek Goddess Caused Asters to Grow on Earth
The Greek myth suggests that the Greek Goddess of Innocence, Astraea went to the heavens where she was transformed into the constellation Virgo. Back on earth, Zeus decided to cleanse the earth of corruption. As the King of the Gods, he could do anything so he flooded the earth, killing everyone on it, except for two people who were stranded on the top of Mount Parnassus.
Astraea, who had become Virgo, was able to see what had happened. She felt horribly sorry for the two sole survivors, so she created starlight so they’d have some sort of light to guide them. Another version of the story suggests that she was despondent over the lack of stars in the sky. Either way, she was so overcome with sadness that she cried and cried. As she cried, tears would land in different places on earth, and in each place where her tears struck the earth, asters sprouted.
Asters are also referred to as the “herb of Venus” because they were commonly used in making love potions.
Asters and the Asteraceae Family
Asters belong to the Asteraceae family, which happens to be the second-largest flower family. The family consists of over 23,000 separate species, including sunflowers and daisies, and roughly 1600 different genera. Asters belong to the genus of the same name. There are roughly 650 known aster species in existence.
Asters come in a variety of colors, including many different shades and hues of purple. Out of the many hundreds of aster species, the Monte Casino species is the most popular species that exists.
Our Sunny Day arrangement incorporates lavender Monte Casino asters in an arrangement that also includes red roses, red miniature carnations, yellow sunflowers, bronze spray chrysanthemum daisies, Bupleurum, pitta negra, and salal.
