For a long period of time people utilized natural blooms, twigs, foliage and other stuff in clothes, festivals and homes decoration. You may see a lot of evidences of it in applied and decorative arts, architecture, poetry and painting.
People utilized flowers already in the Iron Age that is evidenced by archeological discoveries. One of the oldest vessels for flowers belongs to the middle of Bronze Age. Long time before, when for decoration were extensively utilized diverse natural stuff, there were often used some twigs, flowers, foliage. And even nowadays you can find that people are still eager to adorn their sentiments with flowers, so you may send flowers to Russia using different internet stores.
In ancient Egypt flowers were extensively used for decoration of temples, castles and the procedures of worship. Especially for adorning gods' statues people utilized various kinds of branches and other plants. A flower of lotus was usually laid before the image of god. Buddhist churches still preserve this custom.
Archeologists who discovered the sepulcher of Tutankhamen in 1929 have seen together with great treasures and other luxuries an unpretentious wreath of blooms on the breast of the pharaoh, that was laid there by his wife. That garland was in a very good condition, so everybody could see what flowers were used in it. There were: fruits of poppy, cornflower and “apples of love” that are fruits of mandrake.
The heart of flower production is Holland. People of the Netherlands very loves blooms. People of the Netherlands have peculiar fields for raising flowers as well as they may grow them in small pots. Sometimes, we may even say that this love has grown in some type of fanaticism. Blooms are one of the main parts of Dutch industry. The Netherlands became an Eden on earth and a second sweet home for tulips. But tulips weren't raised in the Netherlands from the very beginning of their existing. The savage flowers of tulip still grow in the Caucasus, China and Mongolia. They came to Europe directly from the Caucasus. (more…)