Kaz: Jean-Claude Flornoy once quoted the following (I'll translate it after quoting the original French):
"nous découvrons les sept couleurs symboliques que nous retrouverons dans tous les tarots anciens; couleurs définies, entre autres, par la vieille phrase traditionnelle, encore chantée aujourd'hui par les compagnons du devoir :
Blanches, les larmes de Maître Jacques
Noire, la terre qui l'a porté
Rouge, le sang qu'il a versé
Bleus, les coups qu'il a reçus
Jaune, la persévérance
Verte, l'espérance"
Translation: "we discover the seven symbolic colours that we find in all the historical tarot decks: colours defined, amongst others, by an old traditional poem, still sung today by the companions:
White, the tears of Maîtres Jacques
Black, the earth that carried him
Red, the blood he shed
Blue, the knocks he received
Yellow, the perseverence
Green, the hope".
As to the colours of the stems and flowers: my personal opinion is that Camoin and Jodorowsky's colours don't make much sense. They may have good reasons to have done this, but they do not explain it properly on their web-site. I could go to one of Camoin's courses, but I have friends who attended them and after hearing of their experiences, I have decided not to.
Hadar's choice of colours is remarkably sensible.
Myself, I don't attach much importance to the actual number of the leaves (maybe I should) - to me it is more important to know that there are leaves and where they are placed, and if there are few or many. The flowers are of vital importance to me: are they open, closed, what form do they have, and how different are they compared to the preceding card and the following card. I do attach importance as to the colour of the flower, according to my interpretation of the colour scheme in the Tarot of Marseilles.
Hmm. I haven't really answered your question, have I. I have just been rambling like I often do.
I wonder if this thread shouldn't be moved to the Historical Section. I will have to ask a moderator.