Flowers of the Month: March Floriography

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene

Saturday, March 7, 2025

Lion and lamb with daffodils Teagan night cafe

Hello, all.  WordPress lost my entire post last night, but I’m giving it another shot today.  The month of March blew in and there is a good bit of symbolism associated with this third month, including the many things associated with St. Patrick’s Day, and two zodiac signs touching March — Pisces (fish) and Aries (ram).  However, my main focus here is on the flowers.

Flowers of the Month:  Daffodils and Jonquils

Ram holding fish and daffidols by Teagan via Night Cafe

Today my Night Cafe model is a young ram who shows us a collection of March symbols.  He’s out courting his sweetheart.  Dressed to impress, he wears a morning suit with an aquamarine birthstone pin.  He’s brought a gift of goldfish and a bouquet of daffodils. 

Daffodils are the flower for March, with the alternate being jonquils.  When I was a child, I was taught to call those wonderful yellow daffodils jonquils.  It turns out that wasn’t the whole story though.  The English language is full of nitpickable (there’s another Teaganese word for you) similarities and contradictions — like “jonquil.”  And then there’s the word narcissus… but adding a third part to these pesky particulars is pos-i-lutely a pain.  (They’re both a kind of narcussus.)

What’s the difference between daffodils and jonquils?  All jonquils are daffodils, but not all daffodils are jonquils.  Or so says the Internet, but no amount of coffee is enough for me to make sense of the head-scratchyness (yep, that called for more Teaganese) of the various explanations for that statement.  At any rate, jonquils are particularly fragrant, clustered yellow flowers (1–5 per stem), and have rounded, rush-like leaves.  Daffodils, on the other hand, have one large flower per stem, which may be yellow, white, or bicolored, and it has little fragrance.

Daffodil

Daffodils, as seen in the Wikimedia photo above, are synonymous with spring.  These blossoms represent rebirth, new beginnings, and future prosperity.  

Jonquil

Jonquils, like the cluster in the Wikipedia photo above, symbolize…  Oh, what an exciting difference (not…)  Jonquils also represent new beginnings, rebirth, and the arrival of spring. 

How can I make this more interesting if both flower options mean the same thing, and look so much alike?  Neither is represented in the Magic of Flowers oracle cards.  Maybe some quotes…

Daffodils, that come before the swallow dares, and take
The winds of March with beauty. — William Shakespeare

Then my heart with pleasure fills
And dances with the daffodils. — William Wordsworth

Is there anything as tranquil
As a brightly glowing jonquil
That stands in sweet serenity,
A part of nature’s tapestry? — Alora M. Knight
Here’s a bit of silliness.  I described a scene of a plump middle-aged woman wearing a gown made entirely of jonquil flowers, walking through the desert at sunset (and a few more details).  It couldn’t understand “jonquils” any more than it understands that not all women have to be young stick-thin super models.  Although, I liked the whimsy of this image.
Woman wearing dress made of flowers in the desert by Teagan via Night Cafe

Thanks for spending part of your day here.  Friendly comments are encouraged.  Hugs.

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Naturally, here is the obligatory shameless self-promotion.

Speak Flowers and Fans: a Dictionary of Floriography and Fanology

Review from Olga Núñez Miret

Universal Purchase Links

E-book:  relinks.me/B0FK3ZGNQT

Paperback:  relinks.me/B0FK3RH7LY

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Copyright © 2025 by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

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32 thoughts on “Flowers of the Month: March Floriography”

  1. The daffodil and jonquil may be similar, but still I welcome both, and spring! (2 more weeks)

    Still, there are neither here, yet. It’s quite bleak out my window. I’m adoring the flower posts a lot, Teagan. They are most welcome, as is the whimsical gown.

    Thank you! Hugs!

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    1. Resa, I thought of your Art Gowns when I made the image. I meant to add a link to your blog and a shout-out… but Daphne has kept me awake all night every night for the past week (meowing at an unseen something outside), and my brain is scrambled from lack of sleep… and I forgot to add that. Anyhow, I’m happy you enjoyed it. Happy March, and hugs winging back to you

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  2. Teagan, how frustrating that WordPress lost your post, but I’m glad you gave it another shot. March does seem to belong to the daffodils and jonquils. They arrive just when the world still feels uncertain about spring, quietly bringing colour and hope with them.

    The image of the woman in a gown made entirely of jonquils walking through the desert was brilliant. It has that wonderfully surreal, dreamlike quality that fits perfectly with the whimsical spirit of your posts. Thank you for sharing a little bit of March sunshine with us.

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    1. I’m delighted that you enjoyed it, Rebecca. I’ve always thought of (either) them as happy flowers. Some of the jonquil photos showed the illusion of a face in the flower, which delighted me. Thanks about the image. Surreal is what I hoped to convey. 🙂 Hugs on the wing.

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  4. Thanks for persevering with WordPress and making this delightful second attempt, Teagan. I liked this post. I didn’t know that daffodils and jonquils were related. I planted both, but only daffodils came up. I’m not sure they’re going to come up this year (the bunnies ate the flowers and someone else dug up the bulbs).

    I love the flower dress. You have a wonderful imagination. Thanks for using it to create such a lovely image. I hope the rest of your weekend is nice and easy.

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    1. Thank you kindly, Dan. Other than making this post for a few hours, I’ve been an absolute slug today… and I don’t even care. LOL. That’s a shame about the flower bulbs. My lone daffodil didn’t come up last spring, so I guess it’s done. It used to amaze me, popping up all by itself every year. Hugs.

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    1. I agree both are beautiful, Barbara. Thanks about the flower dress. I put it in the desert so I could have an incongruous element, which (if you really stretch the prompt) would let me use it in the daily challenge. It didn’t exactly fit the prompt, but I submitted it anyway. (shrugs) Hugs.

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  9. Our daffodils are coming up now – out soon. We had both daffies and jonquils in the garden at our old house. The jonquils always came out first. Gorgeous pictures as usual – I loved the lion and the lamb, and who wouldn’t want that lovely daffodil dress!

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  10. Sorry to hear WordPress lost your post, dear Teagan. In Spanish, daffodils are called narcisos, and checking, I found jonquils are called junquillos, but I don’t think that is used often, and they still translate it as narcisos, all of them. In another place I found that junquillos is how they call the flowers, and daffodils is the whole plant, but I have no idea where that comes from.

    I remember you had mentioned the issue of AI creations always being skinny, no matter what instructions one gave them, but I also agree the dress is lovely.

    I recommend your Speak Flowers and Fans book to anybody who hasn’t been lucky enough to get hold of it, yet.

    Have a lovely weekend, dear Teagan. Big hugs and love to the Scoobies.

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    1. Heartfelt thanks for recommending (and reviewing) the book, Olga. That’s interesting about the Spanish names. Particularly about them sometimes being used for specific parts of the flower. Language is truly fascinating. Hugs winging back to you. ❤

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  11. A lovely discussion of one of my favorite flowers, daffodils. I liked learning about the jonquil, too. Other than stick women I wonder why AI has such trouble with hands. I’ve never gotten a reasonable hand from AI.

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    1. Thanks for joining me, John. Yes, hands continue to be the biggest “tell” for AI images of people. In my experience, it has trouble with any appendage. It doesn’t know animal body parts. It gives animals that have hooves toes instead. I knew better than to try and get the ram to have hooves holding the goldfish bowl. If a critter is holding something it has fingers — and often a random number of fingers. It is getting a lot better about adding extra arms or legs. But if I’m making a cat, the tail might come out of anywhere, including thin air. Sort of like Cheshire’s grin… except a tail. LOL. Hugs.

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  12. It is interesting to me that AI makes all its female creations stick thin when very few women actually look like that. I do like the gown, it is extraordinarily beautiful. I’ve never heard of a jonquil. Daffodils I do know 🌼

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    1. You certainly aren’t alone in that, Robbie. I’ve met many people who haven’t heard the name jonquil.
      I was discussing that about the images with Olga a while back, and I remarked my belief that “AI” is a 13 year old boy — because it almost always creates women who are stick-thin, have gigantic breasts, and wear tight, low cut clothes. LOL. Thanks about the gown. Other than the type of flower, half a dozen tries got me what I had in mind. Have a relaxing weekend. Hugs.

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