Last updated on May 20th, 2023 at 05:47 pm
Baby’s breath, or, less commonly, babe’s breath, is a well-known ornamental flowering plant of the Gypsophila genus. Gypsophila is derived from two Greek words, ‘gypsos’ meaning ‘gypsum’ and ‘philios’ meaning ‘loving.’ This refers to the baby’s breath and love of soil rich in gypsum, a mineral that makes the soil thick and heavy for other plants to thrive in.
The baby’s breath thrives in well-drained, mineral-rich soil under relatively dry and sunny conditions. The most common and popular ornamental baby’s breath species is the Gypsophila paniculata.
Native to Central and Eastern Europe, baby’s breath is now also found across North America and other parts of the world. It is a perennial flower that thrives in dry, alkaline soils rich in gypsum, calcium minerals, and bright sunlight. Annual varieties of baby’s breath are also grown commercially for their ornamental flowers.
Some varieties of baby’s breath can grow as tall as 1.2 meters, while others can grow anywhere between 30-50 centimeters in width. It is a viable commercial flowering plant and a popular garden plant in Europe.
What does the Baby’s breath flower symbolize?
Baby’s breath is a popular symbol of everlasting and eternal love. No matter what, the tenderness will never die. This flower’s meaning and symbolism refer to romance and platonic relationships.
These flowers are used in bridal bouquets and floral wedding arrangements. They symbolize the love and purity of emotion that people share. It is a beautiful reminder to cherish and show affection to the ones you love and hold them close.
Baby’s breath is also symbolic of a past love that is now lost, but a love that continues to be cherished and held in the heart.
As its name suggests, the baby’s breath flower closely connects newborn babies and infants. Traditionally, new mothers were given sprigs of baby’s breath in floral arrangements and bouquets.
As a symbol of innocence and purity reflected in the pure white of the delicate baby’s breath blooms, the flowers are associated with children’s spiritual innocence and purity. They are also a symbol of the honesty, kindness, and genuineness shared between people who love and trust each other. They don’t resemble any harm or negative vibes.
They also symbolize kindness, selfless act, honesty, and genuineness shared with loved ones.
In Christian tradition, baby’s breath flowers are used in flower arrangements in chapels and churches on the altars to represent the Holy Spirit. The flower symbolizes the grace and power of the blessed Holy Spirit, often represented as a pure white dove.
Baby’s breath is also symbolic of the ability of people to inculcate a sense of self-discipline and purity of consciousness and morality. It represents people’s abilities to commit themselves to ideas and actions that are bigger and more important than themselves. It reflects the power of prayer and commitment and the ability of people to resist falling prey to temptation and evil.
The flower is a reminder of the importance of a good conscience and morality to be free from the evils of corruption and wrongdoing.
The baby’s breath flower also represents the ideas of loyalty and devotion. Fidelity in person and spirit is an important aspect of love and faith. The gentle and delicate purity of the baby’s breath is symbolic of this fidelity and faithfulness among people.
All in all, the baby’s breath flowers symbolic meanings are:
- everlasting and eternal love
- purity and innocence
- holy spirit
- self-discipline
- fidelity
- devotion
Meaning of the Baby’s breath flower colors
White color
The white baby’s breath flower represents innocence, spirituality, and unity. This denotes the overall meaning of the baby’s breath in general. White baby’s breath flowers are a must in wedding ceremonies, bridal bouquets, and baby shower gifts for new mothers.
Yellow color
The yellow baby’s breath flower is commonly used in friendships. The bright yellow color shows affection with laughter combined, representing joy, cheerfulness, and light.
These flowers can be the best gift in a friendship or between family members to put a smile and brighten the day. Their bright yellow color complements a variety of blooms perfectly and will highlight your flower arrangements.
Orange color
Like the yellow, an orange baby’s breath symbolizes happiness, joy, energy, and optimism.
These flowers are ideal for presenting to near and dear ones on personal occasions such as birthdays, anniversaries, and celebrations of personal achievements.
Red color
Red is an iconic symbol of love, passion, and romance, while red baby’s breath flowers symbolize the heart, undying, eternal love, and affection. They represent the love and passion shared between married couples and partners. They are also symbolic of a past love that continues to be remembered and cherished in the heart.
They are used as gifts between couples and love interests. It is more like a romantic yet tender gift for your partner.
A bouquet of red baby’s breath flowers can be the perfect gift to your partner to express your genuine love and affection. You can pair these flowers with any other gifts which will complement the person you love.
Pink color
Pink baby’s breath flowers are gentle expressions of love and delicate affection. They are popularly gifted to new parents to celebrate the birth of a newborn baby. They are especially presented to parents of baby girls.
The baby pink blooms of the baby’s breath also stand for passion, young love, gentle affection, and feminine energy. Gifting a bouquet of these tiny pink clouds of tenderness best complements a person with a soft heart. They make a lovely gift to express your gentle emotions and affection for a new love or close family and friends you hold dear.
Purple color
Purple is the color of nobility, while purple baby’s breath flowers symbolize royalty, nobility, and beauty. These striking, delicate blooms will make any floral arrangement stand out admirably.
They can be gifted to persons you look up to, admire and draw inspiration from. As a color of beauty and nobility, they send a beautiful message of admiration and respect to the person who receives them.
Instead of offering a single-colored baby’s breath flower, you can combine these shades and make a heartwarming combination.
Blue color
Blue baby’s breath flowers symbolize trust, honesty, and respect. These tiny and delicate blue blooms are often presented to the parents of newborn baby boys. They can also be gifted to people who you trust and respect and to a person whose trust you want to win to tell them they can trust you.
They symbolize honest, open relationships built on trust, respect, and faith. Blue baby’s breath can also be presented to honor people in your life who show these traits.
The blue baby’s breath also conveys the feeling of freedom and peace. You can surprise someone who loves adventures with these blue and unique flowers.
Interesting facts about the Baby’s breath flower
- Asia, Australia, Europe, Africa, and the Pacific are the birthplace of baby’s breath flowers.
- Victorian gardeners introduced this flower in 1828- soon, it became everyone’s favorite filler flower in bouquets.
- Depending on the species, the baby’s breath flower develops to as long as 15 to 90 centimeters (6 to 35.5 inches) in height and is grown best in the hot sun.
- The roots of some certain species of baby’s breath flowers are edible. The extracts from these flowers boost the power of many medicines, antibodies, and anti-cancer drugs.
- Turkey is known for having the most noteworthy collection of baby’s breath flowers.
- People use these blossoms as hair accessories and flower crowns at weddings.
- Saponins, a chemical present in these flowers, have the property to tear down cancer cells.
- Baby’s breath flower is known as soapwort in Britain.
- The average lifespan of a blooming baby’s breath flower is 8-10 days.
- The baby’s breath flower is an ornamental flower that can be dried easily and preserved. Artisans create wall hangings, floral balls, and table runners by drying these flowers. Anyone can make bookmarks or greeting cards using dry baby’s breath flowers.
How to grow Baby’s breath flowers
Baby’s breath thrives in a dry and normal climate though some varieties can tolerate colder conditions.
- Plant the baby’s breath in sweet or basic soil and place it in full sun to grow fast and healthy.
- Drain the plant well to retain sufficient water and receive oxygen to live.
- If you aren’t sure of your soil’s pH balance or observe that your plants aren’t healthy, you can conduct a soil test.
How to take care of Baby’s breath flowers
- Keep the baby’s breath moderately moist by watering them, especially under humid conditions. Be careful not to overwater them to prevent roots from rotting, eventually killing the plant.
- Fertilize the flowers once a month during the growing season using a balanced all-purpose fertilizer containing equal parts nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to ensure their beautiful appearance and longevity.
- Every spring, add compost to their soil; this will give the leaves a nice color and maintain the stems sturdy.
- Install garden stakes to keep certain baby’s breath stems from falling over.
- Baby’s breath does not need to be deadheaded, but you can prune them after the flowering season to keep them looking lovely and encourage new flowers to sprout.
Best time to gift Baby’s breath flowers
As a symbol of pure everlasting love and innocence, the baby’s breath flower is an ideal gift to give during weddings and baby showers. They are an important addition to bridal bouquets and wedding décor to represent the eternal love and affection between the couple and their families.
They also represent the innocence of newborn infants and are gifted to new parents on the occasion of their baby showers.
These simple, beautiful, and delicate flowers are a perfect addition to floral gifts for people with the qualities and traits that the baby’s breath symbolizes. Weddings and baby showers are considered the best occasions to give someone a baby’s breath flowers. These simple and elegant flowers can also be presented to people throughout the year as an expression of love, emotion, and affection.
You can give baby’s breath flowers in a basket, wooden box, antique birdcage, and bouquet. The dainty and sweet-smelling flower is a gift for someone you love or adore. The freshness represents happiness and celebrations.
Conclusion
Baby’s breath flowers are a beautiful and gentle reminder to love and show affection to your close friends and family. They express love, trust, purity, and innocence and convey the important message of being cherished and held in high regard. There is no doubt that the small, delicate and simple baby’s breath holds a significant message about the importance of genuine love and pure affection.
This flower, which is small and fragile, is the best gift to pass on the message of respect and value.
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