Cut flowers
Professional horticulturists raise the plants specifically for this purpose, in field or glasshouse growing conditions.
The study of the efficient production, distribution and marketing of floral crops is a branch of horticulture, called floriculture.
Common uses are informal and formal bouquets in a glass vase for hospital visits, wedding bouquets, wedding arrangements, funeral casket displays, large arrangements in hotel lobbies and party venues, boutonnieres, wreaths, and garlands.
The cut flower plants that were first used in the development of the floral industry in northern Europe were those adapted to the cool temperatures that occur there.
On the other hand, the warmer temperatures of Southeast Asia, led to the development of different plants adapted to those conditions.
The advent and development of international trade and transportation changed the cut flower segment of the floral industry.
Cut flowers could be grown cheaply in a cool or warm region of the world and shipped to markets in population centers anywhere.
This started in the cool coastal regions of California but quickly expanded into the mountains of Colombia, Ecuador, Kenya, Ethiopia, China, Mexico, etc., and to distinctive environments in Indonesia, South Africa, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, etc.
In many of these countries, flower farmers could choose a location for year-round plant production based on the altitude, cooler crops higher in the mountains, warmer crops at lower altitudes and offer work and income to the local population.
These plants prefer to grow at temperatures of 10 °C (50 °F) to 18 °C (65 °F) These plants prefer to grow at temperatures of 15 °C (59 °F) to 24 °C (75 °F)Others - Banksia marginata, Chinese Lanterns - Alkekengi, Clematis - Clematis, Cyclamen - Cyclamen persicum, Epacris impressa, Fuchsia - Fuchsia, Freesia - Freesia, Leucodendron, Love-in-a-Mist - Nigella damascena, Pansy - Viola x wittrockiana, Pelargonium, Primrose - Primula, Protea
These plants prefer to grow at temperatures of 18 °C (65 °F) to 30 °C (86 °F)Others - Begonia, Ylang Ylang - Cananga odorata, Cooktown Orchid - Dendrobium bigibbum, Tasmanian Blue Gum - Eucalyptus globulus, Poinsettia - Euphorbia pulcherima, Gladiolus - Gladiolus, Gumamela - Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, Busy Lizzie - Impatiens, Lobelia - Lobelia cardinalis, Oleander - Nerium oleander, Frangipani - Plumeria rubra, Petunia, Sampaguita - Jasminum sambac, Sturt's Desert Rose - Gossypium sturtianum, Waratah - Telopia specisissima, Royal Bluebell - Wahlenbergia gloriosa Flowers removed from the plant remain alive.
[5] The cut stems go into clean buckets with low pH water as a hydrating solution.
The flowers are carefully removed from the shipment boxes and placed into low pH water in clean buckets to begin hydration.
[7] These include: The Brooklyn Botanical Garden tested different items that have been claimed to prolong the lives of cut flowers when added to the vase water.
[10] Cut flowers have become a part of international trade and an active economic engine in a number of tropical countries (for instance in Kenya[11]).
[13] Union Fleur,[13] a European international flower trade association, represents the interests of Austria, Colombia, Denmark, Ethiopia, Germany, Italy, Kenya, Netherlands, Sweden, Turkey, Uganda, and the United States.
In recent decades, with the increasing use of air freight, it has become economic for high value crops to be grown far from their point of sale; the market is usually in industrialized countries.
[22][23][24] As with the production of fruit and vegetables, the industry depends on significant amounts of water, which may be collected and stored by the farm owners.
The Patel Dam failure in May 2018, associated with a large Kenyan rose farm, killed dozens of people.
These facts have spurred the development of movements like "Slow Flowers", which propagates sustainable floriculture in the consumer country (U.S., Canada) itself.
