Complete Gardening
Anniversaries are a time to celebrate love, commitment, and the journey shared together.
Choosing the right flowers for each year’s celebration adds a meaningful, personalized touch to the occasion, as each bloom carries its unique symbolism.
Here’s a guide to selecting the ideal flowers for every anniversary, ensuring each milestone is celebrated with thoughtfulness and love.
1st Anniversary: Carnation
The first anniversary, also known as the paper anniversary, is symbolized by the carnation.
These delicate, ruffled blooms are known for representing young, passionate love.
Carnations come in a variety of colors, each with its own meaning, making it easy to personalize the bouquet.
Red carnations signify admiration, while white represents pure love, both fitting choices for a couple’s first year.
2nd Anniversary: Lily of the Valley
For the second anniversary, lily of the valley is the traditional flower.
These small, bell-shaped blossoms symbolize devotion and humility, qualities that reflect the strengthening bond in a relationship’s early years.
Lily of the valley’s dainty nature and sweet fragrance capture the beauty and innocence of a growing relationship, making it the perfect representation of two years together.
3rd Anniversary: Sunflower
Sunflowers, with their bright, cheery faces, are ideal for celebrating three years together.
These flowers symbolize warmth, loyalty, and strength, embodying the positivity and resilience needed to sustain a marriage.
Sunflowers naturally turn toward the sun, which can be seen as a metaphor for a couple supporting each other in all circumstances.
Their vibrant appearance brings energy to any room and serves as a reminder of the couple’s ongoing journey.
4th Anniversary: Hydrangea
The fourth anniversary is symbolized by hydrangeas, known for their abundant clusters of petals.
These blooms represent gratitude and heartfelt emotion, reflecting the depth of love and appreciation a couple feels after four years.
Hydrangeas also signify understanding and perseverance, as their intricate structure requires care and patience – qualities essential in a lasting relationship.
5th Anniversary: Daisy
For the fifth anniversary, daisies are the go-to flower. Known for their purity and innocence, daisies represent true love and fidelity, which are essential qualities for any strong marriage.
The daisy’s simple beauty also reflects the joy found in a lasting relationship.
A bouquet of daisies, especially in a mix of colors, brings cheer and a sense of renewal to celebrate five years together.
10th Anniversary: Daffodil
Daffodils are the flower of choice for the tenth anniversary, marking a decade of commitment and shared memories.
These sunny, yellow flowers symbolize new beginnings, optimism, and happiness, perfectly capturing the renewed energy a couple may feel after ten years.
Daffodils bloom early in spring, embodying hope and the joy of new chapters, making them a fitting reminder of the years to come.
15th Anniversary: Rose
Roses are timeless and universally known as symbols of love and passion, making them the ideal flower for a fifteenth anniversary.
A bouquet of roses, especially in red, reflects the enduring passion that continues to bloom even after many years together.
While red roses symbolize deep love, pink roses convey admiration and appreciation, and white roses represent purity – allowing for a personalized expression of love.
20th Anniversary: Aster
Asters are the traditional flower for the twentieth anniversary. These star-like blooms represent wisdom, patience, and love, qualities a couple builds over two decades together.
Asters also signify good fortune, suggesting that a lasting marriage brings blessings to both partners.
With their unique shape and calming colors, asters serve as a beautiful and meaningful tribute to twenty years of shared experiences.
25th Anniversary: Iris
The twenty-fifth anniversary, or silver anniversary, is symbolized by the iris. Known for its elegant, regal appearance, the iris represents faith, hope, and wisdom.
Its association with royalty and the goddess Iris in Greek mythology conveys a sense of beauty and distinction, making it an ideal flower to celebrate this milestone.
A bouquet of irises is a graceful way to acknowledge the deep love that has endured for a quarter-century.
30th Anniversary: Lily
Lilies are the chosen flower for the thirtieth anniversary, symbolizing prosperity, commitment, and beauty.
These elegant flowers have long been associated with devotion and passion, and their graceful appearance represents the couple’s journey through thirty years of life together.
Lilies come in various colors, each adding a unique message – white for purity, pink for admiration, and orange for passion.
35th Anniversary: Orchid
Orchids, known for their exotic beauty and resilience, are perfect for celebrating thirty-five years of marriage. They represent strength, love, and luxury – qualities that mirror a long-lasting marriage.
Orchids require careful attention and thrive in diverse environments, symbolizing a relationship’s ability to grow and flourish through different seasons of life.
Their beauty and elegance make them a special choice for this milestone.
40th Anniversary: Gladiolus
For the fortieth anniversary, gladiolus is the flower of choice. These tall, striking flowers symbolize strength of character, faithfulness, and moral integrity – qualities that become the foundation of a lasting relationship.
The gladiolus flower also represents remembrance, serving as a reminder of all the memories created together. A bouquet of gladiolus, with its bold appearance, is a fitting tribute to forty years of marriage.
45th Anniversary: Blue Iris
The blue iris, associated with wisdom, faith, and hope, is the flower for the forty-fifth anniversary.
Its serene blue petals reflect the tranquility and deep understanding that couples gain after so many years together.
The blue iris is also a symbol of eloquence and strength, celebrating the enduring bond and the steadfast support shared in a marriage that has reached this remarkable milestone.
50th Anniversary: Yellow Rose and Violet
The golden anniversary, marking fifty years, is symbolized by the yellow rose and violet.
Yellow roses represent the enduring joy, friendship, and happiness that comes with such a long marriage, while violets signify faithfulness and loyalty.
Together, these flowers create a harmonious pairing that honors the journey of half a century.
The contrast of vibrant yellow roses with delicate violets makes a beautiful arrangement to mark this significant milestone.
55th Anniversary: Calla Lily
The elegant calla lily is the flower for the fifty-fifth anniversary. Known for its beauty and grace, the calla lily symbolizes both admiration and everlasting love.
Its sleek, modern appearance reflects the refined and mature love that couples experience after fifty-five years together.
Calla lilies are also associated with rebirth, a reminder of the new joys each stage of life brings.
60th Anniversary: White Lily
The sixtieth anniversary, also known as the diamond anniversary, is celebrated with white lilies. White lilies are symbols of purity, unity, and refined beauty.
They capture the essence of a marriage that has grown into a profound and enduring connection.
White lilies evoke a sense of peace and honor the couple’s journey, representing the elegance and timeless love that has spanned six decades.
65th Anniversary: Blue Hydrangea
For the sixty-fifth anniversary, blue hydrangeas make a thoughtful choice.
Known for symbolizing gratitude, grace, and deep understanding, hydrangeas reflect the profound connection that sixty-five years of marriage create.
The soft, calming hues of blue hydrangeas add a peaceful touch to this celebration, honoring the legacy of a lifetime shared together.
70th Anniversary: Peony
The seventieth anniversary is represented by the peony, a flower that symbolizes prosperity, honor, and good fortune.
Peonies are known for their lush, full blooms and sweet fragrance, making them a beautiful way to celebrate a marriage that has been prosperous and fulfilling.
Peonies are often associated with romance and a happy life, which makes them the perfect flower to mark seventy years of love.
75th Anniversary: Diamond Anniversary Flowers
For the seventy-fifth anniversary, often called the diamond anniversary, there is no specific traditional flower.
Many choose to honor this extraordinary milestone with an arrangement of white roses or orchids, symbolizing elegance, purity, and enduring love.
Alternatively, mixing flowers from past anniversaries like the lily, rose, and hydrangea creates a bouquet that reflects the journey of love and the beauty of a marriage that has stood the test of time.
Each anniversary flower serves as a reminder of the journey shared, from the passionate beginning to the deep, enduring love that strengthens with time.
By selecting the right flowers for each milestone, you’re not only celebrating the present but honoring the past and the future, too.
Whether it’s a single bloom or a carefully arranged bouquet, the right flowers add a meaningful touch to any anniversary, making the celebration even more memorable.