Carnation
Dianthus caryophyllus
The hardest-working flower in the cooler — ruffled, long-lasting, and available in every shade imaginable.
Carnations have quietly earned their place as one of the most reliable flowers a florist stocks. Their fringed, clove-scented blooms last longer than almost anything else in the vase, and they come in an enormous color range, including dyed and bicolor novelties.
Once dismissed as filler, they are enjoying a real comeback in tightly massed, single-color designs where their texture becomes the whole point. A dome of one hue can look strikingly contemporary.
What Carnation means
Fascination and deep affection, with pink long tied to a mother's enduring love and white to pure good luck and remembrance.
Care tips
Cut between the swollen nodes on the stem rather than across them, and keep away from ripening fruit, whose gases shorten their long vase life.
Good for these occasions
Find a local florist who can arrange carnation for:
More flowers to explore
The flower florists reach for first — layered, fragrant, and available in nearly every color a message could ask for.
TulipA clean, cup-shaped bloom that keeps growing after it is cut — the unmistakable signal that spring has arrived.
LilyLarge, sculptural trumpets — often fragrant — that lend instant presence and grace to any arrangement.
SunflowerThe big, sunny face of summer — sturdy, long-lasting, and impossible to look at without smiling.