Best Flowers for Anniversaries

Anniversaries are a special time to celebrate the relationship and mark your years together. Giving flowers through Lily's Florist is one of the most classic and romantic anniversary gifts that allows you to surprise your partner and convey heartfelt emotions. However, with so many flower types and arrangement options to choose from, picking the perfect anniversary flowers can be tricky. That's why having some guidance on the symbolism and traditions behind celebrating milestone years with flowers is so valuable.

This comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know to select the ideal flowers for an anniversary gift. You'll discover details on traditional anniversary flower colors, types of flowers like roses, lilies, tulips and what each communicates emotionally. You’ll also find plenty of inspiration for custom designed arrangements and florist-quality bouquets using elements like seasonal blooms, greenery, baby's breath and more.

Whether you want to stick to classic floral gifts by anniversary year, incorporate blooms with special symbolic meaning or design a truly original bouquet - this guide makes the process fun, meaningful and helps ensure your thoughtful flower gift wows your spouse or partner.

The highlights of what you can expect to learn:

• Symbolic flower meanings and traditions by anniversary year
• Best flower types that convey affection, devotion and commitment
• How to customize arrangements with personal touches
• Expert flower buying and caring tips

Let's get started celebrating your relationship’s big milestone with our guide to selecting the perfect anniversary flowers.

Symbolic Flower Meanings

When choosing anniversary flowers, considering what different blooms symbolize can help you select options that communicate the perfect sentiment. Here are some of the most popular anniversary flowers and what they represent:

• Roses - These classic flowers represent love, romance, beauty and more. Red conveys deep emotions, white signifies purity and innocence, while pink roses send a message of gratitude and appreciation.
• Lilies - Stunning lilies represent purity, devotion and carrying affection for your partner through life's ups and downs. White lilies strongly symbolize these deep bonds.
• Carnations - Available in a rainbow of hues, carnations embody admiration, pride and beauty. Light red blooms specifically communicate deep love and affection.

Anniversary Year Traditions

You can never go wrong with the unique flower traditions tied to major anniversary years:

1st Anniversary 

Representing new beginnings, the 1st anniversary calls for flowers that communicate youthfulness, innocence and optimism for the future. Two popular options are:

Daisies - With their bright white petals and sunny centers, daisies perfectly capture the joy and wonder of your first year together as a married couple. Arrangements overflowing with gerbera daisies, standard daisies or even colorful tinted blooms make an impactful gift.

Paper Flowers - Since the traditional 1st anniversary gift theme is paper, handcrafting an origami flower bouquet or paper flower artwork to frame commemorates this milestone creatively. Choose patterned papers in your spouse's favorite colors and fold an assortment of roses, lilies, tulips to give your gift a special handmade touch.

Whichever floral gift you choose, embrace the excitement of reaching your first year married by emphasizing purity and new beginnings. Surround fresh daisies or paper blooms with greenery like babys breath, ferns or ivy vines to design an anniversary arrangement with meaningful symbolism. Your spouse will adore receiving a bouquet replacing standard flowers with this unexpected, imaginative take on celebrating your first year together.

10th Anniversary

Marking a decade of marriage is hugely significant. For 10th anniversary floral gifts, choose blooms representing happiness, longevity and optimism. Two top choices are:

Daffodils - With their bright, golden yellow hues and trumpet shape petals, daffodils perfectly embody the joy and vitality of hitting the 10 year relationship milestone. These flowers also feature in Chinese New Year celebrations to bring luck, prosperity and new beginnings - fitting for celebrating 10 years strong.

Chrysanthemums - Often called mums or chrysanths, these bold blossoms come in fiery reds, vibrant purples, sunny yellows and more. They symbolize optimism and longevity due to their late autumn bloom time. Gift a fiery red mum bouquet or mix sunset-colored varieties to impress your spouse with an eye-catching arrangement.

You can keep the 10th anniversary flowers traditional with all yellow hues or create a fun, funky color scheme combo that reflects your partner's personality. Accent the bright blooms with filler greens like solidago, salal or seeded eucalyptus for texture. The meaningful symbols behind daffodils and chrysanthemums make them fitting floral gifts to toast 10 years of partnership and ignite excitement for the decades still to come. Marking a decade together, daffodils with their joyful yellow color or Chrysanthemums signify happiness, longevity and optimism.

25th Anniversary

Reaching such a special silver wedding milestone absolutely calls for gifting gorgeous flowers in elegant silvers, whites and greys. Two top 25th anniversary bouquet options are:

Irises - Named after the Greek goddess Iris and boasting intricate petals in hues spanning white, yellow, pink and lavender - the most popular are the grey-blue varieties. The sword-like silver-blue petals of German, Dutch or Siberian irises flawlessly match the traditional 25th anniversary silver gifts.

Orchids - Exuding luxury and grace, arrangements of pristine white Cymbidium or Phalaenopsis orchids embody a classic way to commemorate 25 years together. Their incredible longevity also parallels the milestone. Accent white orchids with other silver details like dusty miller, privet berries or air plants for added whimsy.

Beyond silver palettes, golden yellow roses or lilies also signify unwavering commitment fitting to honor on a 25th celebration. However you craft your 25th anniversary bouquet, whether pure white or incorporating metallic elements, choose silver vases and decorative accents to tie together the color scheme. Irises or orchids stand out with special meaning for this major marriage milestone.

50th Anniversary

Symbols of unwavering love and commitment are the ideal floral gifts to mark 50 years wed. Two top choices capturing such rich sentiment are:

Yellow Roses - Radiant yellow rose varieties like Golden Celebration or Sunshine Freedom perfectly represent the golden 50th milestone by showcasing golden beauty and optimism. Give a dozen long-stemmed roses or opt for arrangements mixing yellow roses with orange lilies, spray roses and greenery for vibrant, eye-catching bouquets.

Lilies - Bright yellow Asiatic lilies boasting 6+ blooms per stem make stunning focal flowers for 50th arrangements. Tiger lilies with their black spots add whimsical contrast to softer yellow blooms like Oriental Stargazers. For bonus meaning, white stargazer lilies specifically symbolize everlasting love - ideal for half-century commitments.

Though not yellow, blush or coral peonies signify bashfulness, romance and prosperity - a sweet nod to keeping the spark alive after 50 years together. Compile an eclectic mix of all these golden blooms with bold textures like succulents, hypericum berries or eucalyptus and leatherleaf ferns for an incredible gift commemorating fifty amazing years being married.

60th Anniversary

Marking six beautiful decades together calls for a floral gift symbolizing gratitude, perseverance and enduring bonds. Two elegant choices are:

Peonies - While pink peonies denote bashfulness, white and coral varieties signify deep gratitude and good fortune - a perfect match for 60 years of partnership. Embrace vintage allure with huge, fluffy double bloom peonies, or modern simplicity with single stem blooms.

Hydrangeas - Available in a diverse color range, hydrangeas naturally represent perseverance with their need for patience to unfold lush blooms. Hydrangea meanings also include gratitude and deep understanding - an ode to weathering life's joys and challenges hand-in-hand for 60 years.

Beyond peonies and hydrangeas, rich colors also carry meaning. An eclectic bouquet with deep burgundies, vibrant jewel-tones and mixed exotic varieties conveys celebration, prosperity and charm - commemorating 60 years completely captivated with your beloved partner since the decade you said "I do!".

Accent these meaningful flowers with metallic vases, ribbons and touches hinting to the 60th diamond anniversary for a truly eye-catching gift to celebrate this incredible lifelong love.

Customizing Your Bouquet

Beyond traditions, half the fun is adding your own special touches:

• Incorporate favorite flowers with personal meaning in colors you both love.
• Add anniversary gemstones - like pearls or diamonds for extra sparkle.
• Mix various greenery and filler plants for lush, textured arrangements.
• Use blooms that are fresh, seasonal and locally-available if possible.

The key is allowing some creativity to craft a floral gift with deeper sentimental value.

Seeds of Wisdom

When selecting the perfect anniversary flowers, keep these key tips in mind:

• Choose blooms like roses, lilies, tulips that communicate admiration, affection and the emotional depth of your relationship.
• Stick to traditional flower options or colors for classic gifts celebrating major milestones like 25th, 40th or 50th anniversaries.
• Craft a more personalized bouquet with favorite flowers, greenery accents, berries or anniversary gemstones.
• Understand different flowers' symbolic meanings and select arrangements conveying the right sentiment.

Final Flower Buying & Care Tips

To ensure you order or design stunning, long-lasting floral gifts:

• Choose a reputable local or online florist able to source fresh, seasonal flowers and meet your customization requests.
• Opt for flowers that naturally last 1-2 weeks like roses, carnations, chrysanthemums.
• Request floral foam, nutrients or plant food to help extend vase life.
• Re-cut stems and change water regularly for optimal bloom freshness.

Surprise Your Partner

There's nothing quite like seeing your partner's face light up from receiving a bouquet with thoughtfulness and meaning behind it. Take ideas from tradition or customize something unique - either way, anniversary flowers are a foolproof path to melt their heart. With this guide's tips, find the perfect blooms to commemorate your special milestone and become their favorite gifter for years to come!

Further Reading

For readers interested in the captivating world of floral symbolism, we highly recommend checking out the recent blog post "The Symbolism of Flowers in Literature and Poetry" on Lily's Florist. This in-depth article explores the hidden meanings behind flowers in classic texts, unveiling how authors have used blooms for centuries to convey complex emotions and ideas.