New Hampshire historian Leon Anderson writes in To This Day that the purple lilac was first imported from England and planted at the Portsmouth home of Governor Benning Wentworth in 1750. It was adopted as our state’s flower in 1919. That year bills and amendments were introduced promoting the apple blossom, purple aster, wood lily, Mayflower, goldenrod, wild pasture rose, evening primrose and buttercup as the state flower. A long and lively debate followed regarding the relative merits of each flower. The purple lilac was ultimately chosen, according to Anderson in New Hampshire’s Flower -- Tree -- Bird because it "is symbolic of that hardy character of the men and women of the Granite State."
~ nh.gov
18 comments:
Oh, I can just smell them now! Mmmmmmmm.... nirvana.
And it looks so lovely with the dishware too!
Di
The Blue Ridge Gal
I could just inhale the screen when I see that lilac closeup. It is my all time FAVORITE spring flower because of its fragrance!
Sharon, these are glorious! I still have the photo of the giant bouquet of lilacs you had on your coffee table when I visited a few years ago. I didn't realize these were your state flower! wonderful
puggy hugs from Texas....
I absolutely adore Lilacs! If I had a home I would have many different kinds.
I love your still life photo..is that taken from inside your home! it reminds me of my decorating..kinda victorian..kinda shabby chic..
my kinda decor!
Hope you can make it to our June 13th get together..
Oh so pretty! I started to grow a lilac one time and I don't know what stopped me.
Hugs
I heart lilacs big time! I can smell them all the way to Kentucky!
The last photo is breathtaking...I can smell it way over here in the Midwest!
Gorgeous!
I could smell the lilac's through my computer screen, growing up in New Brunswick we had a lilac tree on our lawn and my mother always had a vase of them in the house, made me lonesome. Only wish they would bloom longer but oh they are so beautiful....:-) Bernie
Lilacs are my favorite spring flower. The lilacs here in Southwest lower Michigan have been gone for about a week.
We have enough in our neighborhood that I can smell them when I walk out the door. I have one light purple and one dark purple bush in my yard. I miss them all ready.
They are beautiful - I can smell them now.
Glenda
Those birdhouses looks so picturesque against those beautiful lilacs!!
Purple lilacs are my favorite!
Beautiful photographs.
Hope you had a wonderful weekend.
Glorious pictures of our state flower. Thanks for digging up the details about it. Those old Yankees sure took thing seriously.
If I were to have a favorit flower, it would be the purple lilac. For so many years, it has ment the beginning of the warm part of spring.
Lilacs are so beautiful, and they smell heavenly. I wish they lasted longer. We have lilacs that bloom around our patio and they're already gone. Lovely pictures, as always!
The colors are just stunning Sharon. I can just smell that sweet lilac bloom!
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