Evening Primrose Meaning

In a time when expressions of feeling and thought were looked down on, people during the Victorian times had to think up a way of saying how they feel without tainting their reputation in society. 

The Victorian age is also known as the age where flowers were language itself.  Whatever people felt and thought about another person, they express it through flowers.  For the evening primrose, this flower is said to mean fickleness or faithlessness.

While it’s not really clear how this came to be, there can be a positive meaning attached to the evening primrose too.  On the more positive side of the symbolism, this blossom can mean sweet memories.

• Name:  Evening Primrose
• Color:  The evening primrose ranges from colors of white to pink but the most popular color for this blossom is yellow – and it can be anything from a pale hue to a brighter one.
• Shape:  Thin and crinkled, evening primrose is a cup shaped flower.
• Fact:  Partly because of its yellow color and its shape, this plant is also called buttercup or the sun cups.
• Poisonous: There can be some confusion about the evening primrose being toxic or nontoxic to humans.  Even with some sources saying that all the parts of this plant are poisonous, there are other sources that say it’s safe to eat.  So which is which? If you haven’t’ tried eating one before, it’s always safe not to eat it.
• Number of Petals:  The evening primrose has four petals.
• Victorian Interpretation:  In contrast to its sister, the primrose which means “I can’t live without you”, the evening primrose denotes inconstancy or infidelity.
• Blossom Time: The evening primrose doesn’t always bloom first in early spring but it usually bloom in the middle of the summer season.  Anywhere from March to June is the best time to see the evening primrose.
• Superstitions: There’s a superstition about how people should bring these flowers into their homes.  They would have to be in groups of 13. Otherwise, they can bring bad luck to the home and the people living in it.
• The Shape: Evening primrose blossoms that are in full bloom take on the appearance of a cup.  If these flowers are yellow, it’s how they got their other name - the buttercup.
• Petals: Regardless of the color of the evening primrose, its petals have a distinct characteristic to them – they can be quite delicate because they’re thin.  It doesn’t help a bit that they also look crinkled.  As fragile as the evening primrose seems to look at, it’s charm and beauty still stands out.
• Numerology: In contrast to the primrose, evening primrose is a number 9 in numerology.  This means a competed cycle basically with the shape that the number 9 has.  It’s a universal number that symbolizes a life of fulfillment.
• Color: Evening primrose blossoms are more popular in yellow.  This is what people refer to when they say buttercups when they’re talking about flowers.  Evening primrose is also called sun cup.  The other colors that evening primrose can have are white and pink.

Herbalism and Medicine:  

Evening primrose is more than an ingredient that can be added to food.  You can treat this like a vegetable adding its shoots to salad and the roots can also be eaten.

Mostly in the form of evening primrose oil, this plant provides quite a few health benefits.  For anyone suffering from Pre-Menstrual Syndrome (PMS) discomfort, evening primrose oil can lessen the cramps.  Pain and swelling from arthritis is also eased with a little evening primrose oil.  To get smoother skin, use lotions and creams with extracts of evening primrose oil.