08. Stock
BOTANY
Media Used: watercolor, colored pencil, acrylic, graphite, ink, linocut on handmade cotton rag paper
2024
For my upcoming nature compendium book! Learn more here.
Matthiola incana
Also known as the gillyflower, stock are a common garden flower often cultivated for use in floristry. These heavily-scented blossoms are found in a variety of colors, ranging from whites & creams to pinks & violets. Similarly to carnations, different colors can mean different forms of affections. In general, though, stocks symbolize a happy, contented life. During the Middle Ages, English landlords would sometimes accept bouquets as a form of rent payment. In Victorian England, they were used to treat ailments such as venomous bites, as some believed the florals to have healing properties. The botanist after whom the flower was named, Pietro Andrea Mattoli, thought that a powerful love potion could be made from stocks.