Despite shift to new varieties, Tempe florist reports carnations still top the list for Mother’s Day

By Deborah Hilcove

Each of us has one. Some of us may have several. Perhaps they’re living or maybe they’re gone. Some are birth, foster, adoptive. Many serve in the military; others are away on business. Some wait in prison or in mental hospitals; others walk the streets or sleep on park benches. Some enjoy a penthouse; others love their ranch or trailer home.

Wherever they may be, whatever they may be doing, they’re mothers, and there’s one special day set aside to honor them. An estimated 85 million mothers live in the United States. It’s the peak day for long-distance phone calls and the busiest day of the year for most restaurants. Next to Christmas, it’s the day of most gift-giving, and according to an informal Hallmark survey, more than 96 percent of American customers mark the holiday, most often with cards and flowers.

No one knows this better than Jimmy Davis, owner of Tempe-based, family-owned Bobbie’s Flowers. Davis anticipates a busy holiday again this year, noting that he’ll hire an extra 10-15 drivers, three or four designers and probably another three or four phone operators. Mother’s Day has an advantage, he says, because “unlike Valentine’s Day, it’s not just one day. We can deliver Thursday through Sunday. Moms are happy as long as they’re remembered.” As to what’s new on the Mother’s Day scene, Davis suggests flower preferences are shifting. Whereas white or pink carnations are traditionally associated with Mother’s Day, he receives many requests for multicolored Spring flowers, like stocks, larkspur, tulips, daisies and roses. “There’s a trend toward orchids, with Dendrobium and Cymbidium becoming really popular,” he says. “And I’m getting a lot of requests for lime green and plum-colored flowers.” He continues: “We’ve been doing a lot of cubes and cylinders. Now people are asking for tight, compact bunches of flowers. Rounded.

Another trend is more stylized arrangements, set in a low tray, with birds of paradise and Dendrobiums. A ‘Zen’ look.” But what about those carnations, the traditional Mother’s Day flowers? “Oh, I’ll have plenty of those, too. I drive over to San Diego on Fridays, go to the flower market,” he says. “That’s why my flowers are so fresh. I’ll probably have another 2,000-2,500 carnations by then. Those are shipped in from either Colombia and Ecuador, or from Mexico.

Much better quality control.” Davis looks out his office window at the customers who just walked in, checks to make sure someone is helping them. “I’m not a designer,” he says. “My dad was, though. I’m more interested in the business side.” He checks again on his customers, nods and picks up where the conversation left off: “People tend to think carnations are cheap. They aren’t. They often cost more than roses when you’re looking for good quality. Strong stems, a good flower.” In between phone calls, Davis suggests a look at his walk-in refrigerator.

Measuring about 800 square feet and chilly enough to cause shivers, the room is lined neatly with work tables and buckets filled with multi-colored flowers. “It’s almost bigger than my first apartment,” Davis laughs. “And, yes, there will be plenty of pink and white carnations for Mother’s Day.” Getting back to his office, he summarizes: “Moms don’t always care about what kind of flowers or the arrangement. They just want to be remembered.”