“What would I get if I added
powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?” translate,
using the Victorian
language of flowers, to “I bitterly regret Lily’s death.”
Similarly, Snape is frequently rude about James, the schoolground
bully who fathered Harry, but never his wife, Lily.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/books/what-to-read/jim-kay-first-picture-snape-harry-potter/
