May Birth Flower: Lily of the Valley + Hawthorn
May has two birth flowers in the traditional list. Lily of the valley (the popular one) and hawthorn (the older European). How to grow each — and why one is dangerous around children and pets.
May has two traditional birth flowers in Anglo-American tradition: lily of the valley (the popular modern choice — fragrant white bells, shade groundcover) and hawthorn (the older European choice — flowering shrub or small tree). Lily of the valley is toxic in all parts; hawthorn fruits are edible and medicinal. Both grow across most of zones 3-9.
Lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis)
The popular modern May birth flower. Symbolism: sweetness, return to happiness, humility. The white bell-shaped flowers carry an intense perfume that travels twenty feet from the plant. Hardy in zones 3-8, part to full shade, spreads aggressively by underground rhizome. Plant pips in fall, 1-2 inches deep, in soil amended with leaf mold.