If Jove would give the leafy bowers

A queen for all their world of flowers,

The rose would be the choice of Jove,

And blush the queen of every grove.

(Sappho of Lesbos, ca 600BC)

 No other flower has generated such poetry, prose or praise as the "queen of flowers", the rose. One legend tells how the rose was the work of Aphrodite, Dionysus, Zephyrus and Apollo.

Unfortunately, despite the fame and joy they give to recipients, roses do not benefit planters. All year round, a rose plant is sold for Bt70-Bt80 while a big cut rose costs no less than Bt100, whether it is the season of love or not.

None of those who are involved in rose-growing, from wholesalers to middle-man traders and stallholders, has ever enjoyed selling rose bushes at a premium during any festive season, even on Valentine's Day.

Two sides of Kanchanapisek Road, an outer ring road northwest of Bangkok more than 20 kilometres long, are lined with a variety of plants owned by large wholesale and retail shops and stalls.

The road is in Bang Yai, Nonthaburi, and delivers, to large markets like Chatuchak and Sanam Luang II and other markets in the south and east.

"We sell rose bushes at the same price [Bt70-Bt80 per bag] as two years ago, and we buy them from wholesalers at the same price [Bt45-Bt50 per bag]," said a plant trader who asked that her name not be disclosed.

"So the sales margin on a rose bush is always the same and very thin compared to other plants," she said.

Veerapong Piriyasert, a stallholder in Rayong's plant market, mainly orders rose bushes from Bang Yai. He said they would hardly sell if he raised the price. "Customers are satisfied at the price of Bt70 to Bt80 per bag," he explained.

"Even for the upcoming Valentine's Day I will not raise the price," he said.

Usanee Udomchoke, a stallholder in a Sattahip flower market, said demand for rose bushes had been increasingly every year but the retail prices remained the same. One reason may be that the rose is considered one of the hardest plants to grow unless it is given very good care.

"Many of my customers tell me that it's affordable at this price [Bt80 per bag] if the rose plant dies," she said.

However, plant merchants are willing to continue to sell rose bushes even though they reap a narrow margin. Retailers said that roses were necessary because of their charm in decorating shop-front shelves to attract walk-in customers.

Usanee said the rose bush was just a magnet to attract customers to buy other plants in her shop. "We can compensate for the narrow margin on rose bushes with a wide margin on other plants," she said.

Samran Garden, one of the largest half-dozen rose-bush wholesalers in Bang Yai, retains its wholesale price at Bt45 per bag. "We've been selling at this price for two years," said shopkeeper Pinyo Usamran. Her shop has around 20 regular big clients for rose bushes.

She added that even though there was a higher demand for rose bushes around Valentines' Day, her shop never raised wholesale prices. One thing that is different is the larger number of rose bushes that she has to order from growers in Chiang Mai. "We can sell more," she said with a big smile.

She said more than 50,000 rose bushes had been loaded on pickups and six-wheel trucks, besides those that went to small retailers, from nurseries in Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Tak for shipment to Bang Yai last week.

Pinyo said her shop normally had one or two six-wheel trucks of rose bushes per week, accounting for 3,000 to 4,000 bags. But a week before the Valentine's Day, Samran Garden took more than five shipments.

Small plant retailers and stalls also tripled their orders to prepare for a rise in demand.

One client ordered more than 600 bags of rose bushes from Samran Garden last week, up from the previous 200 a week, to distribute to her customers who have flower stalls. Usanee prepared about 300 bags of rose bushes, up from 100 a week

All plant retailers and stalls expect Valentine's Day to boost the domestic plant market after a bleak year.

Want to help them? Buy a potted rose on Valentine's Day rather than a cut rose. Indeed, the receiver of your gift should be more pleased, for the plant will last longer than just a few days.

Sasithorn Ongdee

The Nation