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Tulips and lilacs in bloom at the Lake Harriet Rose Garden in Minneapolis.
Tulips and lilacs in bloom at the Lake Harriet Rose Garden in Minneapolis.Luke Taylor | MPR

by Jill Riley and Nilufer Arsala

May 21, 2024

The flowers are blooming! The lilacs are lush, the bleeding hearts are bursting, the peonies are about to pop — and gardeners across Minnesota are shopping for and planting their annuals. 

Not only that, but the stinky corpse flower at the Como Zoo and Conservatory in St. Paul is about to bloom. The corpse flower (Amorphophallus titanum) — affectionately nicknamed “Horace” — will bloom for the first time since arriving at Como in 2019. There’s even a live cam where you can watch it all happen … fortunately, it’s not smell-o-vision.

MPR News: Plug your nose! Malodorous corpse flower to bloom soon at Como Park Zoo and Conservatory

Whether or not you have a green thumb, flowers bring color and joy to springtime, and the beauty of flowers is certainly not lost on those who make music. There are all kinds of songs that mention specific flowers, flowers in general, blossoms, blooms, etc. Now that we’ve planted the seed, let’s take out that garden spade and dig into this topic to find out what it yields.

So for today’s 9:30 Coffee Break, what songs about flowers do you want to hear?


Respond with your song ideas in the comments below.

Have an idea for a Coffee Break topic? Submit your idea for a future theme and browse past Coffee Breaks in our archive.

Songs Played
Waxahatchee – Lilacs
The Zombies – A Rose For Emily
JJ Grey and Mofro – Orange Blossoms
J. Roddy Walston and The Business – Marigold
The White Stripes – Blue Orchid
The Rolling Stones – Dead Flowers
The New Pornographers – The Bleeding Heart Show
The Foundations – Build Me Up Buttercup