A mole in a purple cardigan and round glasses kneels to tend a clay pot of purple violets with a small trowel

February Birth Flowers

  • Violet
  • Primrose
  • IrisAlso listed

February's birth flowers are the violet and the primrose, with the iris added by American florists; the violet stands for modesty and faithfulness.

The violet is the one flower every February list shares. Penn State Extension names only the violet, the two almanacs pair it with the primrose, and the Society of American Florists sets the iris beside it instead. That leaves three possible names for the month, but the violet is never missing. Its name trips up translators: the English violet is the genus Viola, and it has nothing to do with stock, Matthiola incana, which some translated charts wrongly put in its place.

Most February meanings center on quiet devotion. The Old Farmer's Almanac gives the violet modesty, faithfulness, innocence and everlasting love, and the Society of American Florists boils it down to faithfulness. Greenaway's 1884 book split the meaning by type, with the blue violet for faithfulness and the sweet violet for modesty. The primrose carries young love in both almanacs, a reading the Old Farmer's Almanac traces to the Victorian era, while Greenaway herself wrote early youth.

The flowers

VioletViola

Modern American:
Modesty, faithfulness, everlasting love, innocence
Modern American:
Modesty, faithfulness, spiritual wisdom
Victorian:
Faithfulness, modesty

Violet is the genus Viola, usually shown in purple. Farmers' Almanac lists modesty, faithfulness and spiritual wisdom. One translation trap matters for anyone working from a non-English chart: stock, Matthiola incana, is often mislabeled as February's violet in Chinese-language sources. The two are different plants, and only Viola belongs on the February list.

PrimrosePrimula

Modern American:
Young love
Victorian:
Early youth

Primrose is a Primula, and in English the word usually means Primula vulgaris, the yellow European primrose. Both almanacs give it young love. Greenaway's 1884 entry reads early youth, which fits the same idea of something fresh and new. Japanese sources complicate the name, since one garden site equates Primrose with the cowslip, P. veris, so the broader name Primula is the more accurate match.

IrisIrisAlso listed

Modern American:
Inspiration
Victorian:
Message

Iris is February's alternate, and only the Society of American Florists lists it. The purple iris stands for inspiration in that florists' guide. Greenaway's 1884 dictionary gave it a single word, message, a reading that suits a birthday card. Neither almanac includes the iris, so it appears mainly on charts that follow the florists' version of the list.

FAQ

Is the February birth flower the violet or the primrose?

Both, depending on the list. The violet appears on every major chart, including Penn State Extension's, which names nothing else. The primrose comes from the two almanacs, and the iris from the Society of American Florists.

Is February's violet the same flower as stock?

No. The birth flower is Viola. Stock, Matthiola incana, is a separate plant that some translated charts mislabel as violet. Checking the Latin name is the quickest way to tell which flower a chart means.

Birth flowers and flower meanings are cultural traditions. Month lists follow The Old Farmer’s Almanac, the Farmers’ Almanac and the Society of American Florists; the daily calendar is from William Hone’s The Every-Day Book (1825).