Valentines is coming, Rose Colour Meanings + Bizarre Black Tar Rose

Today is February 1st which means Valentines is coming soon.

Which means your lover may try to get you some roses. (I like chocolate roses myself, when you are tired of looking at them you can just eat them. What girl or guy wouldn`t want chocolate roses???)

But lets pretend you are more of a traditionalist who wants something more meaningful?

Or maybe you're single and have decided to spend Valentines with a single friend (just friends) and you want to get them something that signifies friendship. Hint hint, yellow roses = friendship.

The Meaning of Rose Colours

Colours have profound meanings to us in society.  Throughout history colours have been used to signify royalty or high standing (purple in Ancient Rome) or purity (white is the first choice for religious groups in many different societies).  Colours have significant psychological effects on us and can change our mood, our energy and our emotions.  This same principle has been applied to roses over the years.  When one gives a rose to another person they are not just giving a flower, they are also conveying a coded meaning that can be deciphered by looking at the colour of the rose.  Most people know that red roses mean 'I Love You', but does it mean anything else and what do the other colours mean?

Red Roses

When we think of roses we always think of a red rose and it is the most common rose given on Valentine's day.  Red roses are meant to convey the following meanings: passion, beauty, courage and respect.  With so many connotations it is no wonder the red rose is used so much.  It can be used to tell a person that you have fallen in love with them or to tell another person that you are proud that they graduated from college.

Orange Roses

Being a mix of yellow and red, orange roses are more rare and signify love. This doesn't mean they are the "friends with benefits roses", orange roses are a mix of both friendship and love and therefore to be cherished.

Yellow Roses

Friendship! Huzzah! Really only useful on Valentines if you want to give them to a friend who is just a friend in every sense of the word. None of this "friends with benefits" nonsense.


Pink Roses

Pink roses are used to tell another that you appreciate them, to convey grace and to describe a feeling of happiness. Pink roses are used to indicate platonic feelings of caring and joy.  You might give pink roses to your grandmother on her birthday to show that you care and enjoy her company.


Blue Roses


Blue roses are actually just white roses which have been dyed blue. They signify intelligence, creativity and uniqueness.

Lavender Roses

Lavender roses are a rare type and are not usually thought of at all when one thinks of roses.    When one gives a lavender rose to another the giver is telling the recipient that they have fallen in love at first sight or that they are enchanted with the recipient.  You may want to give it on a first date to express your infatuation to your hopefully future girlfriend or boyfriend.

White Roses

Signify purity, marriage, children, a bond of family.

Turkish Black Rose during the summer months.

Turkish Black Rose when not in season.
Black Roses

A black rose is extremely rare.  In fact, there is only one variety and it can be found only in Turkey.  It is called the Halfati rose, named after the village that is grown in, and is truly black only in the summer months.  In the other seasons that rose appears to be deep crimson.  The rose only grows in that region because of the particular pH balance found near the Euphrates river.  It will only last for 1 week when cut.  To the Turks, the Halfati rose represents deep passion and death, so the rose could be given to a lover or as a warning to your enemies (try not to mix them up).

Given the extreme rarity of the Halfati rose, it may be a good idea to try to find other sources of black roses if you are so inclined to give them. eg. You could dye them black somehow. A local flat roofing company may be your best bet.  They can make a black rose for you by dipping a rose in roof tar in mere seconds.  The result is a black rose that will last forever.  Though it may not smell as good as the  Halfati rose, it will be much easier on your wallet.

I found out about the black tar roses on the Arob 12 website, but if you want to try making your own then I recommend reading How to make Black Roses using Roofing Tar.



I also found another source that tried using some kind of waterproofing material from a basement waterproofing company, but the results from their experiment ended up looking horrible so I don't recommend trying to make a black rose that way.

Honestly, given the choices, I would personally probably go for the chocolate roses made from chocolate icing.


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