The florist of Melbourne, Jane Marx, founder of the delivery service the same day The Beautiful Bunch, is preparing to send more than 1,000 bouquets this Mother's Day. Each craft arrangement – Sweet peas with pastel tones, fishing tulips – will come from Victoria farms. “Because the best flowers are the ones that are closest to you,” she says.
“We are fortunate to have a lot of variety in Victoria,” explains Marx. “Our customers trust that everything we put in our arrangements is the best of the season, but unfortunately, this is not more widely reflected in the market for flower consumers.”
It is estimated that only 50% of flowers bought in Australia are cultivated here, according to Flower Industry Australia. General director Anna Jabour says that the percentage moves again during rush hour. “There is an influx of imported flowers, mainly because large supermarkets buy a large quantity of flowers imported for periods such as Mother's Day,” she says.
Although all the flowers sold in supermarkets are not imported, Jabour says that there is no compulsory labeling of the country of origin for flowers cut in Australia. It makes it difficult for customers to make an informed choice. “We believe that if the community realizes that not all flowers are cultivated here, they will choose a cultivated Australian,” she says.
Although flowers are an expensive purchase – with bunches that often sell more than $ 100 – florists say they are often an impulsive purchase. This means that buyers do not always make informed decisions on quality.
Flowers are imported to meet demand all year round for popular varieties such as roses, which are generally led by Colombia and Ecuador.
Imports are not necessarily cheaper and carry additional costs. There is a quality cost because they have undergone fumigation and other chemical treatments, explains Jabour. “The flowers that are imported into Australia are smoked with methyl bromide and they are soaked in glyphosate,” she says. Flowers cultivated abroad also bear an environmental cost, because they have traveled by plane or ship, and a social cost, due to the poor Working conditions of workers.
The florist of Sydney Sarah Rejea, who directs the delivery service the same day Little Flowers, is committed to selling 95% Australian cultivated flowers for these reasons. “With local flowers, you get better quality, better freshness, no transit time and less environmental impact,” she says.
“We consider imports is a last absolute resort. I think customers do not necessarily think of it proactively, but they care once they know it, ”she says. “This is part of our responsibility as a business owners to help educate people – in a pleasant way.”
The beautiful group, which employs women from refugees, is committed to selling 95% of the Australian cultivated flowers. “We have a social impact integrated into the work we make, so the imported purchase is not a good choice,” explains Marx.
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Janae Paquin-Bowden, who runs a micro Flower Farm, Fleur de Lyonville, in the Victoria region in Macedoine Ranges with her husband, Chris, noticed this change. “At the Melbourne farmers market, we now have florists who come to tell us to say that they [buy] Australian cultivated flowers. We didn't have that 10 years ago.
Hortesias, tulips, poppies and sunflowers are some of the cultivated Australian flowers in season this Mother's Day, explains Jabour. “These are very beautiful flowers with great character.”
“Visit your local florists and specifically ask for Australian cultivated flowers,” she says. “And avoid supermarkets.”
For an affordable alternative, search for local producers on the producer markets and ask what is in season.
Chrysanthemums flourish naturally before Mother's Day, which is why they are closely associated with the date. That and they contain the word “mom”. “April-May is their natural flowering period, so it is easy to grow them at this time of the year,” explains the third generation farmer Aldo Vumbaca, who only does chrysanthemums.
VUMBACA says white is their most popular color, followed by roses and pastels. Recently, florists also asked for “autumn – oranges and brown colors and sunset colors,” he said.
At Little Flowers, REGAN sells bouquets of mixing stems bought that morning from its network of producers at Sydney Flower Market. “I buy from people who have worked on flowers for generations. There is mud in the bucket. Altered hands. I think there is just a magic. ”
It also sells abundant seasonal flowers in mass – such as elegant Tulips from Victoria, bushels of brilliant sunflowers cultivated in the highlands of southern NSW, and by storing Sydney steering wheel, known for its distinctive moutard scent.
“The first thing you do is bury your nose once you have received flowers,” explains Marx, who also sells peas, local roses, worries and an orange bankie this Mother's Day.
“Often, the flowers that have been imported and treated have no scent,” explains Chris Paquin-Bowden.
VUMBACA says that it is not totally against imported flowers, but notes that they have longevity problems. “You are fighting to get out three days from the imported one,” he says. Based 35 minutes from Sydney Flower Markets, his company, Flowers Commercial Flowers, can cut and sell flowers in one day. “We practically guarantee anything up to three weeks of vase life on our crying.”
If you buy in season, the local cut flowers will usually last approximately a week, explains Marx. “It will be a higher product; tulip vase life, for example, is important because they are in season. We sell mass tulips, not mass roses, because this is what we can get a lot for the moment.”
The best thing that customers can do, she says, is to support florists who buy locally. Secondly to that: “Look at the most delicate flowers – like the sweet pea, the stock, the purple – because they are almost impossible to import,” she says.
“Look at what you can't imagine survive on an plane,” suggests Marx. “In addition, if he does not grow in your street, it has probably been imported.”
