Gods and Goddesses associated with Plants

Activities
1. Pick a flower and draw the god or goddess it is named for in an action pose.

2. Invent a new flower, draw it, and write the short story of how it got its name.

Peony-Peony
Plant of Healing Happy Life and Prosperity.
It is believed that Peony is named after Paeon (also known
as Paean), a healing deity, who had healed Hades’ and Ares’
wounds. The flower myth related says that Paeon was a
student of Asclepius, the god of medicine and healing. He
was once instructed by Leto (Apollo's mother and goddess of
fertility) to obtain a magical root growing on Mount Olympus that would soothe the pain of women in
childbirth. Asclepius became jealous and threatened to kill his pupil. Zeus saved Paeon from the wrath
of Asclepius by turning him into the peony flower. Peony seeds were used by pregnant women in
ancient times.

Hellebore-Christmas Rose
Madness and Delirium.
In Greek mythology, Melampus, the great seer, used this plant as
an herb to cure the madness of King Proetus' daughters and other
Greek women, who lost their minds and roamed wildly through the
mountains and the desert of Tiryns, thinking they were cows. As a
result, Melampus and his brother, Bias, gained a fortune (two- thirds
of King Proetus' kingdom), becoming the husbands of the princesses
they had cured.

Anemone-Wind flower
The name of the anemone plant is connected with the ancient myth,
telling the famous love story between Adonis and Aphrodite. This
specific myth inspired great poets like Ovidius or, much later,
Shakespeare, to compose hymns dedicated to love, but we will only
quote the part related to the flower. According to this myth, when
Adonis lived with Aphrodite, the two lovers would go hunting in the
woods. As Adonis chased game through the forest, the goddess would
follow closely behind, in her swan-driven chariot, dressed as a
huntress. Aphrodite's ex-lover, the god of war Ares, grew jealous of her affair with the mortal. While
his rival was hunting alone, Ares disguised himself as a boar and attacked Adonis, causing him lethal
injuries. Adonis used his spear to strike back to Ares, but was soon gored to death by the boar's great
tusks. Aphrodite hurried to Adonis in her chariot, but his soul had already descended into the
Underworld. In despair, she sprinkled nectar on Adonis’ wounds. As Aphrodite bore her lover's
body out of the woods, crimson anemones sprung up where each drop of blood and nectar fell
onto the earth. It is said that that the wind which blows the blossoms open will soon afterwards
blow the petals away; so it is called the Anemone, or Wind Flower, for that which brings forth its
life, ends it.

Iris-Iris
The flower got its name from the Greek goddess Iris, goddess
of the rainbow. Iris was also known to be the messenger of
Zeus and Hera. Iris would take messages from "the eye of
Heaven" to earth, travelling on the arc of the rainbow. The
word iris means "eye of heaven". It was the name given to the
goddess, this flower, and the center of your eye. This means
that each of us carries a piece of heaven with us.

Adonis- Pheasant's eye

It would be an omission not to mention that there is one more
flower by the name of Adonis, which possesses medicinal
properties. However, it is obvious that the flower the myth
refers to is another famous Greek flower. It is the field poppy,
certainly the prince of weeds with the beautiful red color
(Adonis blood).
 Hyacinthus-Hyacinth
A handsome Spartan youth, Hyacinthus, was loved by both Apollo,
god of the sun, and Zephyrus, god of the west wind. Both gods
competed to gain this handsome youth’s attention. One day, as Apollo
was teaching the young man how to throw the discus, the god
accidentally killed Hyacinthus.
According to another legend, Zephyrus was jealous of the youth's love
for Apollo and blew upon the discus, causing it to strike Hyacinthus
and kill him. The truth is that the hyacinth mentioned in this myth is
probably not what we call hyacinths today, as the “modern” hyacinth is not native to Greece. In fact,
the myth may not even be the true source of the word "hyacinth," as it has been traced back to
even more distant antiquity, a non-Greek language spoken some 4,000 years ago, called
‘Thracopelasgian.’

Narcissus-Narcotic
This famous flower- inspired myth is perhaps more suited to the
beauty of the narcissus. Narcissus was an exceptionally handsome
young man. His mother had told him that he would live a long life if
he did not look upon his own beauty. Narcissus decided, however, to
see his reflection on the surface of the water coming from a spring.
He was so enchanted by his own beauty that he remained there, still,
admiring his image until he died by the side of the spring. According
to another version, he mistakenly thought that his own reflection was
the face of the nymph that inhabited the sand he drowned when we
jumped into the water trying to catch her. The narcissus flower
supposedly grew at that spot.

Crocus-Snow crocus
Crocus was a friend of the Greek god Hermes. One day as the two
friends were playing, Hermes accidentally hit and killed his friend. A
small flower grew at the place of the accident. Three drops of Crocus’
blood fell on the center of the flower and formed the spots on this
plant. The plant took the name ‘Crocus’ because of this event.
According to another myth, Crocus was a young man who was transformed into a flower because of
his unfulfilled love for a nymph called Smilax. At the same time, Smilax transformed into a vine-plant
(Smilax aspera-Sarsparilla).

Daphne -Laurel tree

She was a young, beautiful nymph, daughter of the river god
Peneus. She was a huntress who dedicated herself to Artemis,
goddess of the hunt, and, like the goddess, refused to marry.
She was pursued by many admirers, but she rejected every
lover, including the powerful son of Zeus, Apollo. Apollo
fell in love with Daphne, and when she rejected his advances,
he pursued her through the woods. Daphne got frightened
and prayed to her father for help. Whereupon his father told her that he would protect her by turning
her into a Laurel tree on the bank of his river. When Apollo came looking for Daphne, her father told
him that she was transformed into a Laurel tree. Apollo then cut off some branches and made himself a
wreath in memory of her beauty and his love for her. Apollo made laurel his sacred tree. He
appropriated the laurel wreath, since then called Daphne in Greek, for champions and those who
strived for excellence in their chosen fields e.g. in the ancient Olympic Games all the champions were
crowned with a Daphne.

Rose-Rose
Many legends exist about the rose. In a Greek myth, the rose was created
by the goddess of flowers, Chloris. One day, she found the lifeless body
of a nymph in the woods and she turned her into a flower. She called upon
Aphrodite, goddess of love, and Dionysus, the god of wine. Aphrodite
gave the flower beauty as her gift and Dionysus added nectar to give ia
sweet fragrance. Zephyrus, god of the west wind, blew theclouds away so
Apollo, the sun god, could shine and makethe flower bloom. That is how
the rose was created and rightfully crowned "Queen of Flowers".

Aster-Aster
Elegance and Daintiness; Talisman of Love
It is said that this kind of flower began to grow from the tears
of Asterea, the Greek goddess of the starry sky (also known
as Virgo in Roman mythology), who cried because she saw
no stars when she looked down upon the earth.
 Agave-Mexican Agave;
Century
The Greek word "agave" means admirable or highborn (in
origin). This plant came to Greece from Mexico. However, its
name is Greek and it was probably used because the Greek
Agave was one of the "lesser" gods of the Moon; that
means that she was one of the faces of the ancient Mother
Earth of the Mediterranean. The ground in Jalisco, Mexico,
reminds people a lot of the ground in Mediterranean countries. Agave was the daughter of Kadmus,
King of Thebes, and sister of Semele, who was Dionysus’ mother. When Semele was thunder-stricken
by Zeus, Agave spread the rumor that Zeus killed her sister because she spoke badly of him. Later on,
Dionysus avenged his mother’s death and punished Agave very severely. When Dionysus returned to
Thebes, where Pentheus, son of Agave, was the king, he ordered all the women of the town to go to
Mount Cithaeron and perform rituals in his honor. Pentheus, who did not approve the introduction of
such worship, tried to spy on the women. His mother noticed his shadow, but thinking he was a wild
animal, she dismembered and devoured him.

Althaea-Marsh Mallow
The following legend has no connection to this plant, other than its
name. Althea was the wife of Oineus, King of Kalydona, and the
mother of Deianeira and Meleager. When her son turned seven days
old, the goddesses of Destiny (the three Moirae) visited her and told
her that her baby would die if the torch that was lit in the house was
burned down to the end. Immediately, Althea put off the torch and hid
it in a chest. Meleager grew up and became a famous hero, but during
the quest for the Kalydon boar, Meleager accidentally killed his
uncles, Althea’s brothers. Althea went berserk and threw the torch
into the fire. Meleager died immediately. When Althea realized what
had happened.

Fir- Greek Fir

In modern times it is known as the most suitable Christmas tree. But what
do Greek myths narrate? Ancient Greeks called the Fir tree, "Pitys," and
together with the Pine tree they were the god Pan’s sacred trees. Pan was once in love with a nymph
called Pity. The god of the north wind was also attracted to Pity, but the nymph chose Pan over him.
The god of the north wind, insulted, blew her over a gorge and killed her. Pan found her lifeless body
laying in the gorge and turned her into his sacred tree, the Fir tree. Ever since, every time the north
wind blows, the nymph cries. Her tears are the pitch droplets that leak out of the fir cones in autumn.

Cyparissus-Cypress
According to tradition, Cyparissos was a handsome young man from the
island of Kea, the son of Telefus and grandson of Hercules. He was god
Apollo's protégé as well as of god Zephyrus (god of the wind). His
beloved company was a holy deer. However on some summer day
while the deer was lying in the sun, Cyparissos mistakenly killed it with
his spear. The young man, in despair, wished that he was dead as well.
He asked the heavens for a favor- that his tears would roll down
eternally. The gods turned him into a cypress tree, the tree of
sorrow. Since then, the cypress tree has been considered a mourning
tree and has been planted in cemeteries.

Centaurea-Cornflower
It is said that this flower was named after the wise centaur, Chiron,
mentor of Asclepius, Achilles, Jason, and Apollo. During the Titan
war, Hiron took Hercules’ side in his battle against the centaurs. But
Hercules, by mistake, wounded Hiron’s foot with an arrow full of
Hydra poison. Chiron used the "Centaurea" plant in order to heal
his wound.

Orchid-Orchis
In Greek mythology, Orchis was the son of a nymph and a satyr.
During a celebratory feast for Bacchus, Orchis committed the
sacrilege of attempting to rape a priestess, resulting in his being
torn apart by wild beasts, then metamorphosing into a slender and
modest plant. Theophrastus was the first of the Western authors to
mention orchids. It was he who first applied the name Orchis
scientifically, echoing the myth of Orchis and reflecting the
resemblance of the double root tubers to tmale genitalia that got
old Orchis in trouble in the first place. Greek women thought they
could control the sex of their unborn children with Orchid roots. If
the father ate large, new tubers, the child would be male; if the
mother ate small tubers, the child would be female.
 Almond-Almond tree
Greek mythology tells of the beautiful princess Phyllis, who was the
daughter of a Thracian king. She fell in love with Theseus' son,
Demophon. The young man ended up there while sailing home from
Troy and the king gave him part of his kingdom and agreed to let
him marry his daughter, Phyllis. After some time, Demophon
missed Athens so much that he asked to go home for a while.
Phyllis agreed after he had promised he would be back soon, and off
he sailed. Phyllis was left waiting at the altar on her wedding day by
her intended, Demophon. Phyllis waited for years for him to return,
but finally died of a broken heart. In sympathy, the gods
transformed Phyllis into an almond tree, which became a symbol
of hope. When the errant, remorseful Demonphon returned to find Phyllis as a leafless, flowerless tree,
he embraced the tree. The tree suddenly burst into bloom, a demonstration of love not conquered
by death.

Achillea-Yarrow
Dispute and Quarrels It is named after the hero Achilles of Homer's
The Iliad, who was said to have been giving this plant to his soldiers
(the legendary Mirmidones) to help stop the bleeding from their
wounds during the Trojan War. Modern tests on this plant have shown
that it does indeed contain chemicals that help blood to clot. It is also
called "devil's plaything" because people in the past believed that
placing yarrow under their pillow would make them dream of
matters of love.