Sommarblommornas intåg. En studie av gravplanteringar inom Svenska kyrkan 1940 - 2019

Abstract

This survey investigates grave plantations within The Church of Sweden from 1940 until 2019, with a particular focus on summer flowers. Within The Church of Sweden, there is often a selection of plants that are planted on all graves that the cemetery administration has at its disposal. Most times, today’s grave plantations in Sweden are considered very decorative with the blossoming flowers but at the same time they can be perceived as repetitive and impersonal. This made me wonder if the appearance of grave plantations always have looked this way, but also why and when summer flowers first started to be used in the great extent in which it is done today. Through a study mostly based on literature, but also an archive and interviews, I will answer these questions: ● How have grave plantations been designed and managed during different time periods? ● When did the using of summer flowers in grave plantations begin and why? ● How has the view of the material and intangible cultural heritage represented by the cemeteries looked and changed during time? The results shows different categories of reasons for the use of summer flowers; new cultivation methods, choice of plants (colors, long term flowering etc) and management. The plantations of summer flowers began in the middle of the 20th century.