Daisy Flower Meaning: Innocence, Joy and New Beginnings

Daisies mean innocence, purity, cheerfulness and new beginnings. They're the flower most people draw when they draw a flower, a simple, open, sunny face, and their meaning is just as uncomplicated.

This guide covers what daisies symbolize, what each colour and type means, including the gerbera daisies that fill so many bouquets, and when to send them. For arrangements with daisies, see our daisy guide.

What does a daisy symbolize?

The core daisy meanings:

• Innocence and purity: the white petals and simple shape made the daisy a symbol of childhood and innocence.
• New beginnings: a fitting flower for a new baby, a new job or a fresh start.
• Cheerfulness: few flowers look happier.
• Loyal love and keeping a secret: two older meanings from the Victorian language of flowers. The phrase "I'll never tell" was once attached to the daisy.

Where the daisy's meanings come from

The English name comes from the Old English dæges ēage, "day's eye", because the common daisy opens at dawn and closes at dusk. The flower belongs to the aster family, Asteraceae, one of the largest plant families on earth.

The meanings travel with the stories. In Norse myth, the daisy was sacred to Freya, goddess of love and fertility, which is one reason daisies became a new-mother flower. In Celtic legend, daisies were said to grow where a child had died, a gentle way to comfort grieving parents. And the game of pulling petals off one by one, "he loves me, he loves me not", goes back centuries in France, where it's called effeuiller la marguerite.

The daisy is also a traditional April birth flower, alongside the sweet pea. Our birth month flowers guide covers the full calendar.

Daisy meaning by colour

Colour adds a layer:

• White: innocence, purity and new beginnings, the classic meaning.
• Yellow: friendship and joy. A good friendship or get-well flower.
• Pink: gentleness and affection.
• Red: love and devotion, usually in gerbera form.
• Orange: warmth, enthusiasm and energy.

Gerbera daisy meaning

Gerbera daisies are the big, bold, saucer-sized daisies that come in nearly every colour except blue. They mean cheerfulness, innocence and the joy of life, and they're one of the most popular cut flowers in the world after roses and carnations. Our gerbera daisy guide covers how florists use them.

They were named after the German botanist Traugott Gerber, and the first gerberas came from South Africa in the 1800s. Because they're so bright, gerberas are a go-to flower for birthdays, get-well wishes and anything that needs instant cheer. The Gerbera and Rose Bouquet pairs them with roses.

One care tip: gerberas have soft, hairy stems that bend and clog easily. Give them shallow, clean water, recut the stems often, and they'll last about a week. Our vase life guide has more.

When to send daisies

Daisies suit occasions that call for warmth rather than formality:

• Birthdays, especially for kids, teens and anyone who loves bright colour. See our birthday flowers.
• Get-well wishes. Cheerful, unscented and easy to look at from a hospital bed. See get-well flowers.
• A new baby, for innocence and new beginnings.
• Friendship and thank-yous, especially yellow daisies.
• An apology or a cheer-up, when you want to make someone smile.

Amazing Daisy and Once Upon a Daisy are both daisy-led designs. Daisies are less common at formal funerals, though white daisies suit a memorial for a child or a young person.

Daisies in Canada

The white-and-yellow daisy you see along Canadian roadsides in June is usually the ox-eye daisy, a European wildflower that spread across the country after settlement. It's pretty, but several provinces list it as an invasive weed because it crowds out pasture plants. The Shasta daisy, a larger hybrid, is the garden version, hardy across much of southern Canada. Florist daisies are different again: chamomile-style daisy sprays, daisy pompons and gerberas, all grown for long stems and vase life. Our daisy pompon guide covers the small, button-shaped kind.

What to write on the card

A line about the flower's meaning turns a daisy bouquet into something more personal. A few to borrow:

• "Daisies mean new beginnings. Here's to yours."
• "A little sunshine for your day. Feel better soon."
• "Loves me, loves me not? Loves you, definitely."
• "For the friend who always looks on the bright side. Thank you."

Sending daisies anywhere in Canada

Flowers on Demand delivers across every province and territory through a network of local florists, who arrange and hand-deliver each order. Delivery is a flat $19.99. For same-day delivery, order before 1:00 PM in the recipient's time zone, Monday to Saturday; there's no Sunday delivery.

Start with our daisy arrangements, or find the town you're sending to on our delivery cities page. Local florists occasionally swap a stem for one of similar style and value when a flower is short, so if one flower matters most, say so in the card or delivery note.