Anniversary flowers by year and card messages

This list follows The Knot. The 1-800-Flowers list gives the same flower for every year it covers: the 1st to the 5th, every fifth year from the 10th to the 30th, the 40th and the 50th.

• 1st: carnation
• 2nd: cosmos
• 3rd: sunflower
• 4th: geranium
• 5th: daisy
• 6th: calla lily
• 7th: freesia
• 8th: clematis and lilac
• 9th: poppy and bird of paradise
• 10th: daffodil
• 11th: morning glory
• 12th: peony
• 13th: chrysanthemum
• 14th: dahlia
• 15th: rose
• 16th: statice
• 17th: red carnation
• 18th: no set flower, so The Knot suggests your partner's favorite, a red rose or blue flowers
• 19th: bronze chrysanthemum
• 20th: aster
• 25th: iris
• 30th: lily
• 35th: coral rose, though The Knot says the year has no official flower
• 40th: gladiolus
• 45th: blue iris
• 50th: yellow roses and violets
• 55th: Green Goddess calla lily
• 60th: orchid

After the 20th, The Knot names a flower only for every fifth year, so years such as the 22nd and the 33rd have none.

Anniversary flowers by year from The Knot

The Knot, 1-800-Flowers and the chart from South Florals, a Florida florist, give the same flower for the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th, 30th, 40th and 50th. They differ on these years.

• 2nd: cosmos on The Knot and 1-800-Flowers lists, lily of the valley on the South Florals chart
• 4th: geranium on The Knot and 1-800-Flowers lists, hydrangea on the South Florals chart
• 8th: clematis and lilac on The Knot list, lilac alone on the South Florals chart
• 9th: poppy and bird of paradise on The Knot list, bird of paradise alone on the South Florals chart
• 11th: morning glory on The Knot list, tulip on the South Florals chart
• 16th to 19th: The Knot names statice, red carnation, no set flower and bronze chrysanthemum, while South Florals says these years have no widely agreed flower
• Orchid: The Knot gives it for the 60th, while South Florals gives it for the 28th and notes that some lists name it for the 14th or the 30th

Where your year has two answers, either flower follows a published list. Pick the one you can get, or the one your partner likes better. For a year with no agreed flower, South Florals suggests repeating a flower from the wedding.

Anniversary flower chart from South Florals

These bouquets and the orchid plant hold the flower the lists give for a year. A flower that is unavailable on the delivery day may be replaced with one of similar or greater value.

• Sunflowers
• Hydrangeas
• Peonies
• Dahlias
• Garden roses
• Lilies
• Phalaenopsis orchids

• Sunflowers

  The sunflower is the flower for the 3rd anniversary, and the Sunflowers bouquet leads with sunflowers.

  Sunflowers are not toxic to cats or dogs.

  Shop Sunflowers

• Hydrangeas

  The South Florals chart gives the hydrangea for the 4th anniversary in place of the geranium. The Hydrangea bouquet pairs hydrangea with roses, so it also suits the 15th.

  Hydrangeas are toxic to cats and dogs. The roses are not. Hydrangeas contain a compound that can release cyanide. Eating them usually upsets the stomach, with vomiting, diarrhea and lethargy; cyanide poisoning is rare.

  Shop Hydrangea

• Peonies

  The peony is the flower for the 12th anniversary. The Peonies and Roses bouquet pairs peonies with garden roses, so it also suits the 15th. Peonies are in season from April to June, and garden roses take their place the rest of the year.

  Peonies are toxic to cats and dogs. The roses are not. Eating peonies can cause vomiting, diarrhea and lethargy.

  Shop Peonies and Roses

• Dahlias

  The dahlia is the flower for the 14th anniversary. Dahlias are in season from July to October, and garden roses take their place the rest of the year.

  Dahlias are toxic to cats and dogs. Chewing them can cause a mild stomach upset, and the plant can mildly irritate skin.

  Shop Dahlias

• Garden roses

  The rose is the flower for the 15th anniversary, and yellow roses with violets mark the 50th. The Garden Roses bouquet holds garden roses and spray roses with eucalyptus. We cannot promise a rose color, so for a 50th the roses may not be yellow, and the bouquet has no violets.

  Eucalyptus is toxic to cats and dogs. The roses are not. Chewing the eucalyptus in this bouquet can cause drooling, vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy and weakness.

  Shop Garden Roses

• Lilies

  The lily is the flower for the 30th anniversary. The White Lilies bouquet holds white lilies and white roses with greenery. White lilies and white roses are also traditional at funerals, so name the anniversary in the card.

  Can cause fatal kidney failure in cats

  The lilies in the White Lilies bouquet are true lilies (Lilium candidum). The ASPCA list gives this warning for true lilies (Lilium) and daylilies (Hemerocallis). Every part is poisonous to cats, including the pollen and the vase water. A bite of a petal or pollen licked off fur is enough. If a cat may have touched a lily, take it to a vet at once.

  Shop White Lilies

• Phalaenopsis orchids

  The Knot gives the orchid for the 60th anniversary, and South Florals gives it for the 28th. The Phalaenopsis Orchid comes in its pot with no other flowers or greenery.

  Phalaenopsis orchids are not toxic to cats or dogs.

  Shop Phalaenopsis Orchid

We do not sell carnations, cosmos, daisies, daffodils, asters, irises or gladioli, the flowers for the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 10th, 20th, 25th and 40th. For those years, choose any bouquet on the anniversary page and name the year's flower in the card.

We do not sell lily of the valley either. If you send it for a 2nd anniversary, keep it away from pets. The ASPCA list marks it toxic to cats, dogs and horses, and eating it can cause vomiting, irregular heartbeat, low blood pressure, disorientation, coma and seizures. Carnations, calla lilies, chrysanthemums, daffodils, irises and gladioli, the flowers for several other years, are on the same list as toxic to cats and dogs.

If a pet chews a plant marked toxic here, or one you cannot name, call your vet.

Pet toxicity from the ASPCA Animal Poison Control plant list

• Happy first anniversary. A year in, and I would marry you again tomorrow.
• Happy 3rd anniversary. Sunflowers are the flower for year three, and you are still my favorite person to come home to.
• Happy 10th anniversary. Daffodils are the 10th-year flower, and ten years with you went by too fast.
• Happy 15th anniversary. Roses are the flower for 15 years, and I'd choose you for 15 more.
• Happy 20th anniversary, Ana and Luis. We still talk about your first dance.
• Happy 25th anniversary, Mom and Dad. Irises mark 25 years. These aren't irises, but they come with all our love.
• Happy 30th anniversary. Lilies are the flower for 30 years. Here's to the next 30.
• Happy golden anniversary, Grandma and Grandpa. You still hold hands at dinner after 50 years, and we love you for it.

The card holds up to 250 characters, counting spaces, which is enough for two or three short sentences and your name.

The Knot suggests a card that explains why you chose the flower. A flower that is unavailable on the day may be replaced, so name the year's flower as the tradition, as in “Lilies are the flower for 30 years,” and leave out any promise about what is in the vase.

For a couple, such as parents on their 50th, address both of them and sign with the names of everyone sending, as in “Love, Maria, Tom and the kids.”

Schedule the delivery up to 60 days ahead and set the anniversary as the delivery date. An order placed before 2 pm Eastern can arrive the next delivery day. Same-day delivery is not available.

We do not deliver on Sundays, New Year's Day, Thanksgiving or Christmas Day. If the anniversary falls on one of those days, pick the open day before it and mention the early arrival in the card.

For parents or friends in another state, we deliver to addresses in the contiguous United States and Washington, DC.