Fabric softener (flower)

The detergent-drawer compartment for fabric softener; Bosch also allows liquid starch there.

What it is for

Fill it only up to the MAX mark. Bosch: “Flower = Fabric softener, liquid starch; Do not exceed max. mark”. Hoover: “You will often find “MAX” written in this particular compartment, which indicates the maximum dose”. Detergent does not go here: main-wash detergent goes in II and prewash detergent in I.

Makes differ, check your machine’s manual: the same drawing can mean different things on different brands, and only your model’s manual says exactly what a programme does, how hot and how long.

What it looks like: A small flower of round petals, printed on the detergent drawer between or beside the compartments marked I and II, often with a MAX line.
Names makers use: Fabric softener compartment (Bosch, Hoover); i-Dos flower, softener dose (Bosch)

Where makes differ

Bosch and Hoover print the flower on the drawer. On Bosch machines with automatic dosing (i-Dos) the flower also appears on the panel, where it sets the softener dose: “Fabric softener dosage for a medium level of softness”, with light, medium and heavy settings.

Often confused with

Main wash (II)Two upright lines, the Roman numeral II — on its own over a…

The main wash: on the detergent drawer, the compartment for main-wash detergent; on a display, the main-wash stage of the programme.

Other symbols with the same shapes

CottonsA cotton boll — a round fluffy head of three or four lobes on a…Eco 40-60Two leaves on one stem, the word ECO, or green arrows; some…Synthetics (easy care)A laboratory flask or beaker — a narrow neck widening to a flat…Mixed (cotton and synthetics together)The synthetics flask with a T-shirt beside it.WoolA ball of yarn — a circle wrapped in curved strands with a loose…Delicates and silkA butterfly: two pairs of rounded wings either side of a thin body.

Sources

No single published standard defines washing-machine or dryer programme icons, so this meaning is taken from 2 makers’ own guides and manuals, each fetched and read on the date shown:

Bosch: Bosch Home UK — Washing machine symbols guide — Detergent drawer: “Flower = Fabric softener, liquid starch; Do not exceed max. mark.” i-Dos flower symbol: “Fabric softener dosage for a medium level of softness”, with Light, Medium and Heavy settings. Checked 2026-09-28.
Hoover: Hoover UK — What do the symbols on your washing machine actually mean? — “The flower symbol is for fabric softener. You will often find “MAX” written in this particular compartment, which indicates the maximum dose”. Checked 2026-09-28.

Written in our own words; quotations are the makers’ wording.