Hello autumn, so much to look forward to this season. After all the rainfall we have had this year, forests have grown bigger and greener. The colorful festivals Dashain and Tihar are right around the corner.

Hello autumn, so much to look forward to this season. After all the rainfall we have had this year, forests have grown bigger and greener. The colorful festivals Dashain and Tihar are right around the corner.


Families planning their trips, shopping to be done, houses to be cleaned and flowers to plant. It’s the season for autumn flowers to shine bright. Marigolds (Sayapatri), Globe Amaranth (Makhmali), and Chrysanthemums (Godawari) are the headliners for the next two months, and a good reason too. If you haven’t still potted your seasonal flowers you still have a little time. Almost all flower nurseries are stocked up with these flowers just waiting for you to take them home and add color to your garden.

Flower language became extremely popular gained during the Victorian period and it set the tradition of sending and receiving floral arrangements as a way of expressing one’s feelings. In Nepal, while being widely used for decorative purposes, flowers have always held symbolic significance during auspicious occasions like weddings, funerals, and religious ceremonies like Dashain and especially Tihar.

Marigolds are extremely low-maintenance annuals that give you bright orange and yellow blooms. They attract butterflies, bees, and ladybugs while adding color to your garden. The golden yellow blooms represent wisdom, happiness, and cheerfulness. The prediction is this year we are going to have a smaller supply of flowers due to the long heavy rains which disturbed the proper flowering of marigolds. This means the costs of buying your flowers this season is going to go a little high.


Globe Amaranth is the second most important flower during Tihar and as we all know how very special it is for the Bhai Tika ceremony. Why this particular flower you might ask? I read up a lot of articles to come to a distinct reason and I found this little story about how one Yamraaj the God of Death paid a visit to his sister the Yamuna was welcomed and worshipped with delicious food, gifts, and garlands made of marigolds and the globe amaranth. The reason for using the globe amaranth can only be because the flowers last for so long and retain their color and beauty long after they have been plucked. It pairs well with the wishes of a sister for her brother, a long-lasting healthy life.

Last but not least are the beautiful Chrysanthemums fondly called ‘Mums’. Mums are hardy perennials that are planted in early spring just in time to bloom in Autumn. The chrysanthemum was first cultivated in China back in the 15th century B.C and the blooms back then were simple just like a daisy. With time and experiments, the flower has been bred in so many exquisite shapes and sizes in a multitude of colors.

In Asia, chrysanthemums represent life and rebirth, making them excellent choices for occasions like birthdays and religious festivals. The very fact that they bloom during Tihar makes it even more popular here in Nepal.

Here’s The Green Owl team wishing you an exciting festive season ahead. May your garden be full of color and may you always find the time to appreciate and conserve nature.