The history of Plumeria in Italy begins in Palermo in 1822, becoming over time the symbol of the city.

In fact, the climate is the most suitable for the needs of the Plumeria plant which was previously known as Frangipani.

Preserving its oldest specimens is the Orto Botanico dei Borboni di Boccadifalco in Palermo. The citrus, soft and sweetish scent filled the vases on the balconies of the city's buildings, so as to let you breathe, walking along the streets, a healthy air recalling notes of vanilla, jasmine, wild rose and cinnamon.

In Sicily there are different varieties of plumeria:

  • small white flower with yellow interior;
  • medium-sized white flower, with a yellow interior, but with red streaks at the edge;
  • the “Palermitana pink color” variety;
  • the “Palermitana” variety with large flowers and pointed petals;
  • the “Palermitana” variety with rounded flowers.

How can you not be inebriated by the streets of Palermo, by the scents released by the plumeria, white and pulpy petals, rounded and overlapping each other with yellow or pink streaks of varying vivacity.


Origins and symbolism

To connect plumeria to history , we must call it “ frangipani ”. This name in fact comes from a nobleman who lived in Italy in the 12th century named Muzio Frangipani , it was he who created a perfume similar to the plumeria flower.

The plant is typical of the Maldives, where it is called “ temple plant ” as it is often found near temples and mosques and is therefore considered a sacred plant.

In Hawaii, it is used to create garlands to give to tourists as a sign of friendship. Citizens consider it a flower with properties of immortality, peace and good luck, because even once a branch is cut, new flowers continue to bloom. On the island of Crete, it is used to enrich fences and hedges.

The extraction of gum from the wood of the plumaria has an excellent anti-inflammatory action for redness and swelling caused by blisters.

The symbol of plumeria in the language of flowers is that of simplicity and beauty .

Plumeria, the symbolic flower of Palermo

Plumeria is a tropical shrub that is a symbol of Palermo, but can also be found along the entire coast of its Sicily.

With its fresh and fruity scent, it symbolizes purity, fertility in a city of rebirth.

The first sharp-leaf variety is the one from Palermo. Noble girls and ladies who lived in the aristocratic villas and sumptuous castles of Palermo, showed off bouquets of “ Plumeria Palermitana ”, they were therefore flowers that manifested sumptuousness, wealth and beauty, coveted by all the women of Palermo.

Even today in Palermo the plumaria is given to young brides by their mother as a symbol of parental inheritance.

Many writers report that the name of the plumeria plant comes from an emigrant who returned from the Hawaiian Islands where it is called “paw melia”, and gave it the name after admiring and recognizing it.

Palermo is the city that has adapted best to the habitat of this flower because it is sunny throughout the year. It needs a lot of water that makes the leaves robust, rounded as designed by Giotto, colorful and scented.

Another theory on the origin of this much appreciated plant in Palermo is given by the writings of Professor Attilio Carapezza who connects the arrival of this flower in Palermo with the arrival of some traders who dealt with exotic countries and specifically the Ingham families with their “Sumatr” and Whitaker.

Instead, regarding the name, the policeman, but also writer Antonio Pizzuto, asserted that “plumaria” was nothing other than a distortion of the flower which has the rounded shape of an apple and the purity of a camellia.

A beautiful Sicilian village disputes the plumeria as its symbol, it is Riposto, overlooking the sea near Etna, where apparently this flower finds one of its favorite climates.

The inhabitants of Riposto organize fairs, exhibitions and cultural events connected to “La Pomelia”, acclaiming it as the city of its origin and greatest flourishing.