2007年VOA标准英语-Many Express Love with Flowers on Valentine's D

By Brian Wagner
Miami, Florida
14 February 2007
 
watch Valentine's Day Flowers

Flower sellers in the United States rushed to meet the demand for roses and other varieties that are given as gifts on the Valentine's Day holiday. Most of those flowers come from Latin America, where growing conditions are ideal in February. From Miami, VOA's Brian Wagner has this report.

There is a special scent¹ in the air at Miami International Airport. It is the fragrance² of roses, carnations³ and other flowers arriving from Latin America for the Valentine's Day holiday. With much of the country gripped by the cold of winter, florists⁴ in the United States look to farmers south of the border to the meet intense demand ahead of the February 14th holiday.

 
The FedEx facility in Miami handles many of the fresh flower shipments from Latin America
For the shipping⁵ operations of FedEx in Miami, it is the busiest time of year. FedEx and other shipping companies must move quickly and carefully, to ensure the flowers survive their journey. Michael Connor is senior manager of the FedEx operation at the Miami airport.

"One of the most critical things about speed to market from a flower grower's standpoint, is to get them from the cutting table to the customer as quickly as possible. What we do here in Miami is we have a cooler that we maintain between 38 and 40 degrees (about four degrees celsius) so we can help those shippers maintain the life of those flowers.

Boxes arrive in Miami from Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, as well Holland, and then travel by plane or by refrigerated truck to the rest of the United States. Connor says at least 60 percent of the flowers imported into the United States move through Miami.

 
The tradition of Saint Valentine's Day goes back centuries and involves lovers exchanging gifts, such as flowers, chocolates or notes. This year, the National Retail⁶ Federation⁷ says Americans will spend on average about $120 for the holiday.

For florists, such as one near downtown Miami, it is a very busy time of year. Owner Emil Ciuraru says dealing⁸ with such delicate objects can be a risky⁹ business. "Colombia had like four or five days of bad weather. Let's say 80 percent of the product gone. So that makes the market very tight."

Ciuraru says he has already spent $60,000 of his own money on his holiday supply, hoping it will all sell. And with 16 years in the business, he is confident he will make a profit.

Of course, buying flowers during the U.S. winter is more expensive than at other times of the year, partly because of shipping costs. But that does not mean that customers should not get their money's worth, says Monica Ullrich, marketing¹⁰ director of Esmeralda Farms.

"Customers typically have very low expectations. Once they bring home the flowers, they're looking more for the 'wow' effect, for the gift effect, but they typically don't last for more than four or five days," she says.

Ullrich says Esmeralda has worked to breed varieties of flowers that will last up to two weeks in a vase. And she says the quality of the company's flowers results from investments in environmental and working conditions on their farms in Latin America.

"It results in a top quality product as well. If people are happier about their job and what they're doing and the environment they're working in, that's going to show in the end result."

Many U.S. customers may not ask about the origin of the flowers they buy for loved ones on Valentine's Day. But the farmers and florists who market them hope that customers know just how much of their love and hard work goes into Valentine's Day.

1 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

2 fragrance   

n.芬芳，香味，香气

参考例句：

• The apple blossoms filled the air with their fragrance.苹果花使空气充满香味。
• The fragrance of lavender filled the room.房间里充满了薰衣草的香味。

3 carnations   

n.麝香石竹，康乃馨( carnation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You should also include some carnations to emphasize your underlying meaning.\" 另外要配上石竹花来加重这涵意的力量。” 来自汉英文学 - 围城
• Five men per ha. were required for rose production, 6 or 7 men for carnations. 种植玫瑰每公顷需5个男劳力，香石竹需6、7个男劳力。 来自辞典例句

4 florists   

n.花商，花农，花卉研究者( florist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The little dressmaker bought an envelope of nasturtium seeds at the florists. 那个个子矮小的女裁缝在花铺里买了一包金莲花种子。 来自辞典例句
• I have more important things to do than petulant florists. 我有比教训坏脾气的花匠更重要的事情要做。 来自互联网

5 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

6 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

7 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

8 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

9 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

10 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。