White lilies flowers are widely used as a symbol for death in the Western world. Poets, painters and musicians have often attributed their inspiration to these flowers upon the death of an intimate or loved one. It is said that the white lily represents a woman’s beauty and innocence, while red lilies represent a man’s virility and courage. The sight of the “snowy” white flower has also been interpreted as representing the coldness of death.
Until relatively recently, lily flowers have been perceived in China traditionally as symbolizing good luck, prosperity and happiness. They are considered quite auspicious for weddings because they signify love and longevity (“chang ren”). In the past, this flower was often the only one displayed.
As lilies are highly visible in the cemeteries of the West, they have been associated with death for a long time.
In the Middle Ages, people believed if a lily was found growing near one’s home, it meant that someone in that house will soon die. Lilies growing on graves were thought to be “re-flowering” because they were believed to bloom with new life shortly after burial. This explains the origin of the common phrase “to give up the ghost”.
What is White Lilies Flowers?
White Lilies Flowers is famous for its beautiful and sweet smell. It can bloom in the months of March to May in Southern China, December to February in Northern China. White Lilies can be seen at the East Coast of China, especially in Zhejiang province. The standards are white and the petals are rose-red with a velvet texture. White Lilies have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for over 2000 years. In China people said that white lily has good luck meaning which can bring prosperity, good health and a happy marriage as well as ward off evil spirits.l
When and where is it produced?
White Lilies Flowers grow together with other flowers as a bouquet in high mountains like Onyin Mountain (Anhui). They pick the fragrant flowers in March and April, then dry them with firewood in the sun.
Why is White Lilies Flowers famous?
White Lilies Flowers is a kind of Chinese traditional medicinal materials. Its fragrance attracted lots of southern ancient people to pick it up from mountains, make incense out of it and worship God. Later on, the incense began to be used for medical purpose. It has a good effect for curing many nervous diseases such as epilepsy and depression.
Originally the white lily has been used to treat nervous diseases, especially epilepsy and depression. Nowadays, it is also used as a traditional medicine to cure headaches. The flowers have a fragrant smell which attracts people very much. They can be eaten as part of the pink lily salad. Also it is used to make tea and as an ingredient of cooking and soup dishes. White Lilies Flowers can also be boiled in water to make a decoction with which you can wash and drink for cold symptoms and fevers.
How To Take Care Of White Lilies Flowers
- Pick white lily flowers with lotus roots and dry them in shade.
- For 200g of white lily (about 1kg), 100g of sticky rice, 50g of bamboo shoots, 50g of sea cucumber, and 20 pieces of gourd. Steep the ingredients in boiling water for 10 minutes. Drink it immediately and apply to the area affected with neuritis in the back, eyes or neck; the decoction can help relieve pain caused by aching muscles or neuralgia.
- For eye fatigue, put lily flowers and ginseng into a pot in the early morning, and leave to boil till night. Drink a cup before going to bed. It can promote blood circulation of eyes and relieve eye fatigue.
- For chronic rheumatism pain, eat some lilies after boiling for a long time, or boil lily flowers with fried ginger and ginseng for cooking food.
- For anxiety and nervous feelings, mix lily flowers and ginger together in a pot. Boil it for more than half an hour. Put the cooked tea into a cup and drink it before going to bed. It can help you improve sleep and relieve nervous feelings at night.
- For epilepsy and nervous diseases, put white lily flowers in a pot into boiling water, simmer for about 20 minutes. Drink the tea hot before going to bed. The flowers have a relaxing effect, so it can help you sleep more peacefully.
How To Use White Lilies Flowers?
- Pick the white lily flowers, cut the stems into approximately 2 cm lengths, then soak them in warm water for 3-4 hours to open the pores of its skin. After about 1 hour soak it in cold water once again, and dry it in shade as much as possible since it has a high absorption rate of water.
- If you are going to cook it directly, you can simply use the white lily flowers for the dish; even if you do not use the white lily flowers for cooking, you still have to take good care of them. The white lily flowers are usually used as a decoration in flower arrangement, but they also have many other uses such as making tea, soup and medicine. The white lily flowers are quite fragile and dry easily.
- At the beginning, water them well every day so that they can still be in good condition. After several days, when they get used to the environment, water them once a week. To ensure that they do not wilt easily and stay fresh for a long time, you should water the white lily flowers before watering the rest of your flower pot or the plants in your house.
- Because the white lily flowers are easily affected by water, you should not leave them in a bowl of water for an extended period of time. If they are not in use, try to place them in a place with good air circulation, but not direct sunlight. The white lily flowers look great when they are dried out of sunlight, but since the sunshine will affect their colors and make the colors fade away quickly, try to avoid this when drying out the white lily flowers for decoration.