/\m FLORISTS and NURSERYMEN

Toward Longer-Lasting FlowersEditor's Note: A series oj

articles have been completedand edited by Ralph Freeman,Cooperative Extension Agent,Long Island, on the topic "Toward Longer-Lasting Floioers."The information contained inthis series is a comprehensivecompilation of many years ofresearch reported in the UnitedStates Department of Agriculture Bulletins, College Experiment Station Bulletins, Professional Journals and ResearchReports.

This subject has been of interest to the florist industry formany years. Many . hours ofresearch work have been expended iywestigating the problems. All kinds of results havebeen obtained with all types ofinterpretations. Sometimes interpretation of these resultswas based on scientific fact,sometimes folklore. It is thegoal of Cooperative Extensionto provide flower producers,retail florists, wholesalers andconsumers with current recom

mendations and background information on how to prolongthe life of cut flowers andpotted plants.

Structure of PlantsHorticultural plants vary

greatly in form, structure, andhabit; however, they all exhibit one basic configuration.They have roots, stems, leavesand flowers. An understandingof the general activities andfunctions of each of the majorparts of the plants will serveas background informationwhen trying to understand thevarious concepts of post-harvestphysiology of cut flowers andpotted plants.

Cells and tissues: All plantsare composed of organs, forexample, a leaf. A leaf is madeup if tissues, for example, thewater-conducting system. Thetissues are composed of individual cells. The cell is the

structural unit of the plant. Itis the smallest unit of livingmatter capable of continuedindependent life and growth.The cells in some tissues are

arranged with a resemblance to

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bricks in a brick wall. Many ofthe cells within particular tissues and organs have specificshapes and specific functions.

Stems: The chief function of

stems are mechanical supportfor themselves and for the

leaves, flowers, and fruits; conduction of water, inorganicsalts and foods; storage of carbohydrates and other foods inthe pith, cortex, phloem parenchyma, and wood rays; storage of water in the plants likecacti; photosynthesis in greenstems and a means of reproduction of many kinds of plants.

Leaves: Leaves are generallythe most conspicuous part ofplants. They are borne on petioles which are attached to the

nodes of stems. Green leaves

owe their color to a complexpigment called chlorophyll.The two chief parts of the leafare the leaf blade and the

petiole. The usually green, flatextended portion of the leaf iscalled the blade. The three

main types of tissue in the leafare the epidermis, mesophylland vascular bundles. The epidermis is usually a single layerof interlocked cells that norm

ally contain no chloroplasts.These cells are continuous over

both leaf surfaces except forthe stomates which are specialized cells and are present toallow gases to enter and leavethe leaf. The mesophyll layeris a group of specialized cellsbetween the epidermal layerswhere photosynthesis takesplace. The vascular bundles arespecialized strands of tissuethat function both in supportand in conduction of water and

food.

Roots: Roots anchor the plant,absorb minerals and water from

the soil, transport materialsfrom the region of absorptionto the base of the stem, andthey may serve as food storageorgans. The root has twospecialized structures whichshould be mentioned. One is

the root cap which is a thimble-shaped cap of specialized cellswhich covers and protects thegrowing tip. In many species,the cells of this structure are

loosely attached and the outer--most cells are continually wornaway. This group of slimy cellsfacilitates root tip growththrough the soil. The secondstructure is the root hair. The

root hairs .re specialized structures that absorb water and

nutrients into the roots.

Flowers: The basic role of

flowers is that they contain thestructures for sexual reproduction. They are essential to theproduction of seed. Many flowers, particularly those of flori.cultural crops, have aestheticvalue. The three main parts ofthe flower are the sepals whichmake up the calyx; the petalswhich make up the corolla; andthe sexual organs, stamens andpistil. Edited bv_Ralph N. Free-"»an.

Continued Next Month

Flower RetailingBy Mass Outlets

Note: The folloioing articlecontains excerpts from bulletin817, Northeastern Regional Re-scarcli Publication by MauriceBaker (Rutgers) and DanaGoodrich (Cornell). Most areaflorists might be too busy todigest all the implications ofwliat this research, which wasinitiated in 1962, has revealedat this time. However, I tfiouglitI'd send it to you now becausethe impact of the discountstore, the chain stores, the foodstores, and other seasonal spec,ialists is most evident duringthe spring. Marketing of floralproducts by mass outlets is always a hot topic in our area.It's one which evokes a rangeof industry opinions from "theyought to be outlawed becauseGod put me here to sell flowers" to "let's iqnore the mass

outlets, they don't hi a. ./impact on us professional florists." When you find the time,look this article over. I'm sure

you will find it will give youan interesting insight to thepotential of mass outlets.

Supermarkets and varietystores added flower retailing totheir multi-product businessseveral years before World War

II. Since then, however, theso-called mass outlets have sub

stantially increased their flower-marketing efforts. If quantitative evidence of this expansion is lacking, a qualitativeindicator is the deep concernmany traditional retail floristshave for the future of their

business under the stepped-upcompetition.

Economists have examined

this competitve pressure inflower marketing with an eyetoward determining the likelyimpact of such floral sales uponthe traditional flower shop. Results of such investigationshave, for most part, supportedthe hypothesis that flower salesthrough mass outlets are largelyadditional to sales made by retail florists.

For example, it was foundthat in the mass outlets th»

proportion of flower sales thatrepresented substitutions forsales which might have been«^.made by the retail florist was ^<indeed small. Services offered^!by the typical retail florist,*^*such as arranging and deliver-ffJWing flowers, most likely con-g%|.tributed to this finding. ™

Several studies of new mer

chandising practices adaptedfor the mass outlets have rep. 3firesented virtually the only re- "*search efforts by agriculturaleconomists in the marketing of ^flowers by nonflorist outlets. ^"YThe consequence is a wealth of »^Jdata describing sales responsesto selected packaging, display,or pricing techniques. At thesame time there remains adearth of statistical informa

tion on the extent of day-to-dayinvolvement in flower marketing by the nonflorists. Just howfar these more progressive merchandisers have gone in devel-oi lg ongoing or even inter-mittant or seasonal flower-mar

keting programs has not beenfully assessed. Also scarce isinformation that will, first,assist the florist industry inevaluating the overall opportunity for flower sales throughmass outlets, and second, enable the individual grower orsupplier to correctly weigh theadvantages and disadvantages

5

ERIE COUNTY FARM NEWS / MARCH 1971

of specific business deals offered by these retailers.

This publication representsefforts by researchers in theNortheastern U.S. to providethe missing information. Therole of the mass outlets in

flower marketing is discussed,and their merchandising practices and problems defined.Finally, for those in the flowerindustry with interest in inassoutlets as markets for theirgoods, this report suggests thepatterns of operation that appear most desirable from boththe supplier's and the massmitlet operator's standpoint.

Development

In the Northeast, nearly two-thirds of the variety chains andmore than one.half of the foodchains offer floricultural crops.Of these, two out of three ofthe variety chains but less thanone out of four of the foodchains have offered floral products for more than 13 years. Inmany instances, part of thestores in a chain reportingflower retailing do not offerfloral products.

Growers and wholesalers in-

erestcd in developing the massnarket may find the variety

•mains more receptive to thenclusion of floricultural itemsn their product line.

Seasonality

Except for foliage plants, the>roportion of flower-selling•hains reporting year-round of-erings of major types of plantsiverages no more than 10 per-•ent. Suppliers of floriculturalproducts cannot expect mass>utlets alone to level out market peaks for these products.Suppliers must be prepared toservice the food and variety•hains during many of the sametoliday peaks that confront theetail florists.

Sales Volume and

Type of Flower Offered

Among the stores offeringlowers, average annual salesf those crops averaged about

$1,200; however, stores in foodchains had significantly highervolumes than did the varietystores. Further, small foodchains (less than 10 outlets)reported greater sales per storethan their larger counterparts.

Cut flowers were offered lessfrequently than growing plantsby both the food and varietychains. Food chains more frequently offered a greater variety of products than did varietystores. Likewise, the large foodchains offered a greater varietyof products than did theirsmaller counterparts, and theywere more likely to carry cutflowers as an item in the floricultural product line.

Suppliers for food storesmight well be prepared to offera greater variety of plant materials than those who supplyvariety stores. Those who canmeet this need of the foodchains can expect a larger salesvolume than from variety stores.

Cut flower suppliers are morelikely to find the large foodchains receptive to the inclusion of their products in thechains' floral offerings. Although the degree remains undetermined, chains can expecthigher floral sales volumeswhen a greater variety of products is offered.

Floral Productsand Future Plans

Food and variety chains gaveprofitability as the most frequent reason for entering flower retailing and for retainingthe floral line. Other reasonsincluded customer convenience,build customer traffic, and"dress up the store." Few firmsreported grower or other sup.plicr requests as a reason forstarting this line of merchandise.

One chain in three indicatedplans to expand their floricultural business. Greater initiativeand better salemanship on thepart of suppliers could resultin increased sales through massmarket outlets to the mutualbenefit of supplier, retailer, and

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Responsibility forProcurement Policy

Responsibility for procurement was vested in store man

agement more often by varietychains than by food chains. Except in the case of foliageplants, chains with less than 10stores delegated authority forestablishing procurement policyto store personnel more often

than larger chains. Such a situation offers a sales potential invariety chains for the small tomedium grower who can supplyonly one or two stores. However, the volume of sales canbe expected to be less than infood stores. If a larger suppliercan offer the selection andvolume of plant material, hemay be able to deal either withone or two of the large foodstores, or with food chains operating 10 or more stores. Anysupplier, large or small, mustfirst learn who is responsiblefor procurement if he is todevelop a sales program withmass market outlets.

Continued Next Month

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