Flower Facts
Flower Facts

23 Beautiful Flower Facts

Karin Lehnardt
By Karin Lehnardt, Senior Writer
Published April 15, 2022
  • The smallest flower in the world is the Wolffia globosa, or duckweed. It's the size of a grain of rice, and the flower is in a small hole on the surface of the plant.[20]
  • Moonflowers only bloom at night, and they close during the day.[2]
  • Bamboo is actually a perennial flowering plant, but it only blooms every few years.[21]
  • Soil type determines the color of hydrangeas. If the soil is acidic, the flowers are more blue. The less acidic the soil is, the more pink the flowers will be.[4]
    • Chocolate Flower Fact
    Culinary experts say you can add the petals or young leaves of a chocolate cosmos to salad
  • A type of dark-reddish flower called the chocolate cosmos actually smells like chocolate.[8]
  • The word "hydrangea" is from the Greek words "hydor," meaning "water," and "angeion," meaning "vessel," which refers to the plant's seed pods.[4]
  • White flowers have a stronger fragrance than colorful ones.[7]
  • Orchids don't need soil to grow. Their roots are covered in a membrane that absorbs water from the atmosphere.[14]
  • Snake's head flowers (Fritillaria meleagrios) look similar to a snake's head before blooming, hence the name. The flowers then open into a bell shape.[18]
    • What a lonely place it would be to have a world without a wildflower!

    - Roland R. Kemler

  • The official flower of Hiroshima is the oleander because it was the first flower to bloom after the atomic bomb was dropped in 1945.[3]
  • Scotland's national flower is the thistle. When Vikings invaded Scotland, patches of thistle slowed them down, which allowed the Scots to escape.[1]
  • The world's largest bloom is the Rafflesia arnoldii, the "corpse flower." It can grow over 3 feet across and weigh over 15 pounds. It also smells like rotting meat.[19]
    • Amorphophallus titanum Fact
    The corpse flower smells of rotting flesh and death when it blooms
  • The word "flower" is from the Middle English word flour, which refers to the grain and the flower. It ultimately comes from the Latin name of the Roman goddess of flowers, Flora.[6]
  • The green pitcher plant has hollow, pitcher-shaped leaves. When an insect falls into the leaves or "pitchers," the plant digests them and the insect is incorporated into the plant's tissues.[10]
  • The night-blooming cereus (Epiphyllum oxypetalum) only blooms one night per year, and its root can weigh up to 15 pounds. The flower is so unusual that people throw parties to celebrate it.[9]
    • naked man orchid Fact
    The petals resemble naked men
  • The naked man orchid (O. italica, Italian orchid) resembles a hatted, naked man.[5]
  • Lithops weberi, also known as flowering stones, look like they are blooming from a solid rock. In reality, the flower is blooming between two succulent leaves fused together.[13]
  • The largest tulip festival in the world is the Canadian Tulip Festival. Celebrating both the return of spring and the close relationship between Canada and the Netherlands, the festival boasts 300,000 blooming tulips every May.[12]
  • The most expensive bouquet is the $26,000 Cullinan diamond bouquet, which stands over 3 feet tall and is 2 feet wide. Inside the "towering forest of roses" are two heart-shaped roses encased in glass and two rare Callinan diamonds.[11]
  • The tallest sunflower ever recorded was 30 feet 1 inch (9.17 m) tall. Grown by Hans-Peter Schiffer of Germany, the flower was verified on August 28, 2014.[17]
  • International Flower Day is January 19.[15]
  • Skeleton flowers are so delicate that they become transparent when it rains.[15]
    • Dazzling Flower Facts INFOGRAPHIC
    Creative Flower Infographic
  • Snap dragon seed pods look like miniature human skulls.[16]
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