March's Birth Month Flower: What It Says About You

March's Birth Month Flower - What It Means & What It Says About You

This post is part of a 12-month series exploring birth flowers. Start here for an introduction and for a full list of all months.

They say March comes in like a lion, but if you celebrate a birthday this month, then you likely came into this world under the sign of the fish – Pisces, that is, a symbol of high creativity. For you late bloomers, you were born under Aries, represented by a ram and reflecting a passionate nature.

Either way, your gemstone is aquamarine, which can symbolize your great intellect. And your flower is that most iconic and cheerful representation of early spring: the daffodil.

March Birth Month Flower: The Daffodil

There’s more than one bloom that graces us with color and beauty during late winter and early spring months. We’ve covered a couple in this series, but few are as beloved and recognizable as the sunny daffodil.

Because it is one of the first flowers to bloom each spring, daffodils represent rebirth and renewal.

If your birthday month is represented by the daffodil, you’re known for your kindness and creativity. Like the unassuming daffodil, you bring cheer and good fortune wherever you go. Your very presence is inspiring, promising new beginnings and an optimistic joy.

Daffodils are also associated with faithfulness, because they appear reliably in the same spot each year. You appreciate the simple things in life – like a sunny day and the promise of spring. And like this pleasant flower, you, too, bring happiness wherever you go, and can be counted on to brighten someone’s day.

The Daffodil Through History

Daffodils are traditionally yellow or white, but modern varieties can be found in bright shades of pink and orange. Yellow flowers symbolize joy, while white flowers symbolize purity and innocence.

It shouldn’t surprise you that this early bloomer is recognized across cultures and throughout history as harbingers of good fortune.

Daffodils of all varieties have been seen as a sign of hope, a herald of wealth and luck, and even as an aphrodisiac. They are the national flower of Wales, where it is said that if you spot the first daffodil of the season you will be blessed with wealth in the coming year. Similarly, if a daffodil blooms on the first day of the year in China, it is said to bring wealth and good fortune.

They served medicinal purposes, too. In ancient Rome, the bulbs and roots were used to treat tumors. Daffodils have also shown up as a treatment for painful joints, wounds, burns, and bruises.

Daffodils have shown up in literature, too – notably in William Shakespeare’s play The Winter’s Tale as a sweet and lovely sign of spring. They’ve been emoted over by John Keats, and in perhaps the most fitting tribute to this flower’s sunny disposition, William Wordsworth penned a 24-line poem extolling the beauty and joy of daffodils.

Want To Plant Them?

Daffodils are so easy to grow that even if your birthday isn’t in March, you may want to plant a few and celebrate anyway! They’ll pop up everywhere from roadsides to gardens, woodlots to parking lots.

Plant these bulbs in fall and you’ll be rewarded with their sweetly nodding bell-shaped blooms for your birthday each year.

They grow best in full sun, but can grow as well in partial shade, too. They aren’t picky about soil and make an excellent addition to a rocky slope. Plant them in containers or raised beds, and even bring them indoors where they can grow just as well in a pot as in a vase of pebbles.

Bonus Flower: The Jonquil

You’d be forgiven for thinking that daffodils and jonquils are the same thing. They are related – both are part of the Narcissus family. And although they look similar enough that you might not be able to tell the difference at first glance, they do have some unique characteristics.

Jonquils boast more than one bloom per stem, while daffodils only grow one flower per stem. Jonquils have darker green leaves and tend to have more of them compared to daffodils. Daffodils have almost no scent, while jonquils are highly perfumed. Daffodils can tolerate colder temperatures than jonquils, and as far as we know, nobody has ever waxed poetic about a jonquil!

Jonquils are more closely associated with the Greek myth of Narcissus – the son of a god who fell in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. They’ve been found everywhere from ancient Egyptian graves to paintings on the walls at Pompeii.

If you choose this flower as your birth bloom, good fortune and creativity can be yours, too.

Do you celebrate a birthday in March or know someone who does? How does the mythology of the daffodil hold up for you? Are you a sunny optimist? Or would a few daffodils in your garden bring a little bit of needed joy into your life?

If you’d like to talk about bringing this fun flower to your springtime garden, let us know. We’d love to help you plan and build an outdoor space that reflects your unique personality.