Muguet: France's lucky May flower
In France these pretty little spring flowers have a political significance too.
Spring across Europe sees the blooming of the pretty white flowers of lily-of-the-Valley, known in French as muguet.
But ahead of certain date you will see these blooms on sale everywhere in France.
The muguet is sometimes also known as a muguet de mai, and it's traditional on May 1st to give these flowers to friends and family to bring them luck.
Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron with their lucky May lily-of-the-valley plants. Photo: AFP
May 1st is a holiday in France, it's the workers' holiday and usually features large-scale demonstrations in the cities and you will frequently see marching trade unionists sporting an attractive lily-of-the-valley sprig pinned to their jackets.
The flower's tradition goes right back to 1561. Apparently on May 1st that year France's King Charles IX was given a muguet flower as a lucky charm and liked it so much that he decided to offer them each year to the ladies of the court.
It's a sign of how important they are in French culture that ahead of May 1st 2020, when the country was still on lockdown as the Covid pandemic raged, the French agriculture minister took the time to reassure citizens that muguets would still be available at supermarkets.
100 % du muguet produit par les horticulteurs français doit être vendus pour fêter le 1 mai! Un brin de bonheur en solidarité avec nos travailleurs de la 1 ère ligne, nos aînés et avec tous les confinés, qui, restant chez eux, contribuent à la préservation de notre santé. pic.twitter.com/kOeBIZTws2
— Didier GUILLAUME (@dguillaume26) April 21, 2020
Although the flowers are widely sold at supermarkets and florists on and ahead of May 1st, you will also see trade unions and left-wing organisations setting up temporary stalls to sell the flowers, as a find-raising exercise.
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Spring across Europe sees the blooming of the pretty white flowers of lily-of-the-Valley, known in French as muguet.
But ahead of certain date you will see these blooms on sale everywhere in France.
The muguet is sometimes also known as a muguet de mai, and it's traditional on May 1st to give these flowers to friends and family to bring them luck.
Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron with their lucky May lily-of-the-valley plants. Photo: AFP
May 1st is a holiday in France, it's the workers' holiday and usually features large-scale demonstrations in the cities and you will frequently see marching trade unionists sporting an attractive lily-of-the-valley sprig pinned to their jackets.
The flower's tradition goes right back to 1561. Apparently on May 1st that year France's King Charles IX was given a muguet flower as a lucky charm and liked it so much that he decided to offer them each year to the ladies of the court.
It's a sign of how important they are in French culture that ahead of May 1st 2020, when the country was still on lockdown as the Covid pandemic raged, the French agriculture minister took the time to reassure citizens that muguets would still be available at supermarkets.
100 % du muguet produit par les horticulteurs français doit être vendus pour fêter le 1 mai! Un brin de bonheur en solidarité avec nos travailleurs de la 1 ère ligne, nos aînés et avec tous les confinés, qui, restant chez eux, contribuent à la préservation de notre santé. pic.twitter.com/kOeBIZTws2
— Didier GUILLAUME (@dguillaume26) April 21, 2020
Although the flowers are widely sold at supermarkets and florists on and ahead of May 1st, you will also see trade unions and left-wing organisations setting up temporary stalls to sell the flowers, as a find-raising exercise.
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