August 18

Birth Flower

Spider flower
Cleome Spider plant Bee plant

Scientific Name: Cleome hassleriana
Family: Cleomaceae

Flower Language

  • Pleasant surprise
  • Secret moment
  • Dancing in the wind
  • Small love

Characteristics

Colors:

Description

An annual herb of the cleomaceae family, genus Cleome, native to tropical America from Mexico to Peru. It grows 60-120cm tall and blooms 4-petaled flowers with characteristic long stamens from July to October. Flower colors include white, pink, and red-purple, arranged radially at stem tops. Though individual flowers are short-lived, blooming in evening and wilting by next day's noon, they continuously bloom from bottom up along extending stems, providing long flowering periods. Named Western spider flower in Japanese due to butterfly-like appearance.

Trivia

  • Alternative name drunk butterfly flower from color changes as blooming progresses
  • English name Spider flower from long stamens resembling spider legs
  • Day flower blooming in evening and wilting next day noon
  • Hardy plant that readily self-seeds

Uses

Ornamental
  • Flower beds
  • Cut flowers
  • Border plants
  • Summer decorations
Medicinal
  • Used in South American traditional medicine

Caution: Professional guidance required for medicinal use

Culinary

Other
  • Nectar source plant
  • Wildlife food

Toxicity

Symptoms:

Blue fan flower
Scaevola Fan flower

Scientific Name: Scaevola aemula
Family: Goodeniaceae

Flower Language

  • Overflowing possibilities
  • One who brings cool breeze
  • Raising a toast
  • Possibility

Characteristics

Colors:

Description

A perennial herb of the goodeniaceae family, genus Scaevola, native to southeastern Australia. Named for its distinctive fan-shaped flowers, characterized by very long flowering periods from April to October. Called Blue Fan Flower because blue flowers were common when first distributed, but now breeding has advanced to include white, pink, and purple varieties. Flowers are 2-3cm in diameter, blooming from branch tips and leaf bases. Heat-tolerant with bushy, spreading growth habit.

Trivia

  • Named for fan-shaped flower appearance
  • Also called Scaevola
  • Grows wild near Australian coasts
  • Popular as ideal hanging basket plant

Uses

Ornamental
  • Hanging baskets
  • Ground cover
  • Mixed plantings
  • Border edging
Medicinal
  • Used in Australian traditional medicine

Caution: Professional guidance required for medicinal use

Culinary

Other
  • Coastal revegetation
  • Soil stabilization

Toxicity

Symptoms:

Coleus
Painted nettle Flame nettle

Scientific Name: Coleus blumei
Family: Lamiaceae

Flower Language

  • Unrequited love
  • Good family tradition
  • Health
  • Hope for love

Characteristics

Colors:

Description

A perennial herb (treated as annual in Japan) of the lamiaceae family, genus Coleus, native to Indonesia and Sri Lanka. About 30cm tall, with leaves that can be smooth, deeply cut, or ruffled. Leaf colors include crimson, orange, bright yellow, salmon pink, and popular 'rainbow' types with green edging. Blooms small blue flowers similar to perilla from June to August, but as a foliage plant valued for leaves, flowers are often removed because blooming causes leaf colors to fade.

Trivia

  • Genus name Coleus means 'sheath' in Latin
  • Alternative name Flame Nettle from beautiful leaf colors
  • Flower language 'unrequited love' from leaves fading when flowering
  • Easily propagated by cuttings

Uses

Ornamental
  • Foliage plants
  • Mixed plantings
  • Hanging baskets
  • Garden color accents
Medicinal
  • Used in Southeast Asian traditional medicine

Caution: Professional guidance required for medicinal use

Culinary

Other
  • Interior decoration
  • Horticultural therapy

Toxicity

Toxicity Level: Mild

Toxic Parts: Entire plant

Symptoms: As lamiaceae plant, large consumption may cause mild gastrointestinal upset

Goji berry
Wolfberry Chinese wolfberry

Scientific Name: Lycium chinense
Family: Solanaceae

Flower Language

  • Let's forget each other
  • Sincerity

Characteristics

Colors:

Description

A deciduous shrub of the solanaceae family, genus Lycium, native to China and distributed in East Asia (China to Japan). Tree height is about 1-2m, with thin vine-like branches bearing thorns. Leaves are 1-4cm long oval-shaped, soft, and opposite. Blooms pale purple flowers from summer to autumn, bearing red fruits in autumn. Fruits (goji berries), root bark (ground bone bark), and leaves are used as herbal medicines and tonics. Believed to have anti-inflammatory, fever-reducing, tonic, and blood pressure-lowering effects.

Trivia

  • Called 'fruit of immortality' in China
  • Gaining attention as modern superfood
  • Known as goji berries in herbal medicine
  • Hardy plant that grows well even in poor soil once established

Uses

Ornamental
  • Garden shrubs
  • Hedges
  • Medicinal gardens
Medicinal
  • Tonic medicine
  • Fever reducer
  • Anti-inflammatory
  • Hypertension treatment
  • Eye strain relief

Caution: Large consumption may cause convulsions in people with hypertension

Culinary
  • Berries
  • Young leaves
Other
  • Health supplements
  • Herbal tea
  • Fruit wine

Toxicity

Toxicity Level: Mild

Toxic Parts: Large consumption

Symptoms: May cause convulsions in hypertensive people with large consumption

Hollyhock
Garden hollyhock Common hollyhock

Scientific Name: Alcea rosea
Family: Malvaceae

Flower Language

  • Abundant harvest
  • Noble and dignified beauty
  • Great ambition
  • Ambition
  • Rich harvest
  • Gracefulness

Characteristics

Colors: Yellow

Description

A perennial (treated as annual in Japan) of the malvaceae family, genus Alcea, native from Mediterranean coast to western Asia. Growing 1-3m tall with upright stems, blooming large 8-10cm diameter flowers from June to August. Flowers bloom progressively from bottom to top of vertical stems, with the rainy season said to end when top flowers bloom, earning the alternative name 'Rainy Season Hollyhock.' Flower colors include red, pink, yellow, white, and recently black, apricot, and multicolored varieties. Known as Tenjiku-botan in Japan's Edo period.

Trivia

  • Said that rainy season ends when top flowers bloom
  • Called Tenjiku-botan in Japan's Edo period
  • Named for flower shape resembling peonies
  • One of the tallest growing garden plants in the world

Uses

Ornamental
  • Flower beds
  • Cut flowers
  • Background plants
  • Summer decorations
Medicinal
  • Used in European traditional medicine
  • Also used as medicinal herb in China

Caution: Professional guidance required for medicinal use

Culinary
  • Petals
  • Young leaves
Other
  • Seasonal indicator
  • Horticultural education

Toxicity

Symptoms: