7
FLOWER IN FOCUS
Mother is the Word
Throughout the decades, pink roses have been the most sought after flowers during
Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day is the second largest in flower demand after Valentine’s
Day. The two seasons are highly treasured by growers in the global ornamental
calendar.
Mother’s Day is celebrated in many countries
around the world, usually in spring, but dates
vary from country to country. For example,
in Greece it is celebrated in February, in
Argentina in October, in America on the
second Sunday of May, in Britain it is held on
the fourth Sunday of Lent. In the Netherlands,
the second Sunday of May was adopted as
the official celebration date and in the mid1930s the slogan Moederdag – Bloemendag
(Mother’s Day - Flower’s Day) was coined and
the phrase was popular for many years.
The annual celebration of mothers and
motherhood is an all year round affair.
Mother’s Day serves to recognize the
contributions of women in nurturing their
families and the ways in which so many have
nurtured their communities.
The history of Mother’s Day
is centuries old. Anna Jarvis
of Philadelphia, whose mother
had organized women’s groups
to promote friendship and
health, is recognized as the
founder of Mother’s Day. She
is also known as the Mother
of Mother’s Day, an apt title
she earned after working
hard to bestow honor on all
mothers. Although Jarvis had
promoted the wearing of a
white carnation as a tribute to one’s mother,
the custom developed of wearing a red or
pink carnation to represent a living mother
or a white carnation for a mother who was
deceased.
Gifts of flowers or chocolates are more
common in celebrating Mother’s Day. Many
adjectives can be used to describe the beauty
of flowers and as such flowers are used as a
means of communication especially with
loved ones. The pink rose flower is believed
to convey grace, elegance, femininity and
appreciation. In modern times, Roses have
long been associated with motherhood,
making them a popular choice for Mother’s
Day celebrations.
In trying to understand how
Kenyan growers keep alive
the traditions of Mother’s
Day, we visited De Ruiter East
Africa to get insights, on the
breeding of pink rose flowers.
The farm manager, Mr. Fred
Okinda reckons, “If a grower
has to deliver flowers to the
market at the opportune
moment then crop timing is an
important factor to consider.
Additionally, a grower has to
understand the flush interval