While Texans across the state are praying for rain and some relief in the terrible drought and fires hurting our great state, our growers in South America are hoping and praying for the exact opposite. Here is an excerpt from an email from one of our growers in Miramonte who is experiencing the worst flooding in 50 years:
“Miramonte as a production area has been in existence for 24 years. The area that is now flooded was developed and a dyke was built to protect this area from the river. This dyke has provided this protection for the past 22 years. Saturday, April 23, the water levels were the highest they have been in the past 50 years. Our dyke held – and is still in place, but the volume of water was just too high and the river flowed over the dyke.
Miramonte has two production areas. The area that is flooded had 100% of pompon planting and will greatly affect our pompon production over the next 11 weeks. The second area has the disbuds that are blooming now, solidago, gerbera and foliages, and the mother plants for the pompons. This is a key factor. The loss of the mother plants would delay the return of the pompon crop.”
Since getting this initial email, we’ve learned that pompons aren’t the only flower being affected. Production for garden roses, roses and hydrangeas, amongst many other types of flowers, has also been hurt by the flooding.
Here are the photos she attached to her email:
Miramonte Packing Room
Greenhouses at Miramonte
Miramonte House Protecting Pump Station
We also received this photo from our friend, Jan, at Mayesh, one of our floral wholesalers. This flower farm is in Bogota, Colombia. Jan and the team at Mayesh, along with many of our other wholesalers, do a great job keeping our industry educated and updated with current events.
Flooding at Colombia Flower Farm
Much like the food industry, the floral industry is directly impacted by Mother Nature, politics and the economy alike. Flooding, fires, droughts, and other devastating weather conditions drastically affect our growers, which in turn impacts product availability and sometimes prices. Gas prices, import regulations and taxes, as well as political and economic stability in the countries where our farms are located are all variables that may seem far off when it comes to your wedding or event, but every single one has a significant impact on the availability and cost of your wedding and event flowers. We aren’t trying to scare you by any means, but we do want all of our clients and event industry friends to be aware and reminded that the floral industry is global and influenced by many different variables, and unfortunately, these variables are far beyond our control. If a situation like this should arise that could affect your wedding or event flowers, we will most definitely be in touch with you and let you know what’s going on. We’ll offer you our input and suggestions for substitutions that will achieve the look and style you had in mind, and it will all be beautiful!
Alright, Floral Industry 101 is over, but we really would appreciate your thoughts and prayers for our friends in South America.
by Angela
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