The flower traditionally given on Valentine’s Day is the rose.
Roses became linked with romantic love through their long-standing associations with beauty, desire, and affection. Red roses in particular came to symbolize passionate love, while other colors developed additional meanings in later floral traditions. Their seasonal availability and popularity as cultivated flowers also helped make them a practical Valentine’s gift.
The modern custom grew alongside the commercialization of Valentine’s Day in the 19th century, when greeting cards, florists, and gift shops promoted flowers as expressions of romance. Shakespeare and earlier European love symbolism had already helped reinforce the rose’s connection with courtship.
A common mix-up is treating all Valentine’s flowers as equally traditional. Tulips, lilies, and daisies may be gifted, but the rose—especially the red rose—is the canonical answer in a general trivia question.