Florists add a dash of local color

This Valentine’s Day, as flower purchasers bring home bouquets of red roses and vases of pink carnations, few may realize that their blooms traveled from as far as Colombia and Ecuador before reaching their significant other.

But some area florists are allowing customers to buy flowers from a little closer to home — selling from growers within a few hours’ drive — in an effort to support the local economy and promote environmentally sustainable practices.

According to Ellen Frost, owner of Local Color Flowers in Baltimore’s Waverly neighborhood, 80 percent of all flowers sold in the United States are grown in other countries, mostly in South America.

Local Color Flowers is at the other extreme. Frost said no flowers at her shop, which she opened in 2008, come from farther than 100 miles outside of Baltimore, and her selection depends on what the farms have in season.

“Especially here in the mid-Atlantic States, there’s a pretty big cut-flower industry,” Frost said.

Frost, who runs the business with her husband, also hosts floral design classes and open-studio time, when anyone can try his or her hand at arranging. She also collects unique bottles and vases — some from the annual Baltimore bottle show, to be held this year on March 3 — which she lends to clients.

Frost has been making mostly small arrangements for Valentine’s Day, the start of her season after winter, but Local Color Flowers can’t comply with too many specific requests.

“We can never promise any one flower,” she said. “We use whatever is available, even flowers that won’t bloom until the spring.”

In Takoma Park, Park Florist calls itself a green florist, too: It recycles its waste, and it has a small carbon footprint. The shop sells flowers from local farms in the spring and summer and imports plants in the winter that are certified by a recognized eco-labeling program known as Veriflora, said the shop’s owner, Jeanne Ha.

Veriflora’s Certified Sustainably Grown label certifies that flowers have been produced in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. The label promotes fair labor, community benefits and conservation.

Ha said that although Veriflora flowers are more expensive, the flowers are a better product, and she knows they come from farms that treat workers fairly and regulate pesticides.

“The quality is superior,” Ha said. “Their vase life is longer, they’re fresher. They’re very consistent.”

The shop sells Valentine’s Day arrangements with names like “Dripping Kisses,” and “More Than Just Friends.” The holiday is Ha’s second busiest time of the year, behind only Mother’s Day, she said.

For local floral enthusiasts like Andrea Gagnon, buying flowers from farms in the area is an easy switch to make.

“It would be no different than sourcing your food locally,” she said.

Gagnon, an ex-architect who runs LynnVale Studios in Gainesville, Va., with her husband, has been growing flowers and selling them to businesses like Local Color Flowers since 2002. The farm has more than 100 varieties of flowers and often works one-on-one with designers and eco-conscious brides.

LynnVale and other farms differentiate themselves from the overseas growers by offering unique plants such as herbs and dahlias that wouldn’t survive a plane ride.

“They don’t ship well,” Gagnon said. “Some lose their aroma.”

Many flowers, dipped in chemical preservatives, start in South America, travel to the Netherlands for a flower auction, go through customs in Miami and then travel to Baltimore, Frost said. This process can take up to a week.

“We’re really offering our clients a much fresher product,” Frost said.

There are other reasons for concern about overseas flowers, according to the International Labor Rights Forum, a Washington-based nonprofit. The forum says flower workers in top-producing countries are often prevented from unionizing, and there are few regulations on pesticides — hurting the local environment and workers’ health. It accuses some farms in Ecuador of employing child labor.

Florists believe that keeping your flower purchases local and from environmentally friendly farms is best to keep your Valentine’s Day flowers “green.”

As the former mid-Atlantic regional director and treasurer of the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers, Gagnon said that many flower buyers aren’t even conscious the local option is out there.

“There’s a need for raising awareness that it’s even available,” she said.

Though it’s hard to compete with large grocery store chains with cheap bouquets, Frost has seen double the volume every year since opening Local Color Flowers. After moving to different locations, she notes that the community of locally oriented businesses is growing.

“If anything we’ve seen people wanting to buy local more,” Frost said.

Her advice for Valentine’s Day flower purchases: Keep it close to home.

“Supporting small businesses in your local community makes it more vibrant,” Frost said. “It helps keep local dollars in the community.”