November 1

In Belgium, the custom of placing flowers on family graves is primarily tied to All Saints' Day. This cultural and religious tradition brings millions of people to cemeteries across the country to honor, clean, and decorate the final resting places of their loved ones. In the Flemish part of Belgium, the cemetery visit is traditionally paired with returning home to eat freshly made pancakes as a family.

The defining feature of this custom is the chrysanthemum. During late October and early November, flower shops, supermarkets, and roadside stalls across Belgium are flooded with these colorful potted plant. Afterall, they're resilient, fall-blooming plants that can withstand the cold, damp Belgian November weather far better than delicate cut flowers like roses or lilies.

In the Catholic liturgical calendar, November 1 is All Saints' Day (honoring the saints) and November 2 is All Souls' Day. However, because November 1 is an official Belgian national holiday and November 2 is a normal working day, the custom of visiting graves and laying flowers is almost exclusively practiced on November 1st (or the days immediately preceding it).

While the tradition remains deeply ingrained in the older generation, its expression is changing. With a massive shift toward cremation over traditional burials in Belgium—especially in Flanders—fewer traditional gravesites exist. Instead, smaller floral arrangements, dried flowers, or wreaths are now increasingly left at columbariums (urn walls) or ash scattering lawns.