Voyage of the roses
Ninety percent of the flowers Americans will give to their sweethearts on February 14 are imported, and nearly all of those imports originate in Colombia and Ecuador.
A worker prepares roses for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day at Rio Roses greenhouse in Cayambe, Ecuador February 8, 2012. Ninety percent of the flowers Americans will give to their sweethearts on February 14 are imported, and nearly all of those imports originate in Colombia and Ecuador.
An aerial view of the Rio Roses farm where workers are preparing roses for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day in Cayambe, Ecuador February 8, 2012. They must get from the fields to the flower shop to the recipient's vase at precisely the right moment: Late flowers aren't exactly the height of romance.
A worker prepares roses for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day at Rio Roses greenhouse in Cayambe, Ecuador February 8, 2012.
Roses for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day are seen at Rio Roses greenhouse in Cayambe, Ecuador February 8, 2012.
A worker carries gerbera daisies for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day, at Elite greenhouse in Facatativa February 6, 2012.
Workers prepare roses for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day at Rio Roses greenhouse in Cayambe, Ecuador February 8, 2012.
A customs inspector X-rays boxes of flowers packed for export and ready to be loaded onto cargo planes to check for drugs before the upcoming Valentine's Day at Quito's Mariscal Sucre International Airport February 10, 2012.
An Ecuadorean police dog named Simon sniffs for drugs in boxes of flowers packed for export and ready to be loaded onto cargo planes before the upcoming Valentine's Day at Quito's Mariscal Sucre International Airport February 10, 2012.
An Ecuadorean police dog named Simon sniffs for drugs in flowers packed for export and ready to be loaded onto cargo planes, before the upcoming Valentine's Day at Quito's Mariscal Sucre International Airport February 10, 2012.
An Ecuadorean police dog named Simon sniffs for drugs in flowers packed for export and ready to be loaded onto cargo planes before the upcoming Valentine's Day at Quito's Mariscal Sucre International Airport February 10, 2012.
A worker prepares roses for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day, at Elite greenhouse in Facatativa February 7, 2012.
A worker prepares roses for export before the upcoming Valentine's Day, at Elite greenhouse in Facatativa February 6, 2012.
Bunches of roses from Ecuador are stacked for delivery at Liberty Wholesale in the flower market in preparation for Valentine's Day in Los Angeles February 10, 2012.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agriculture Inspection officers look for pests in boxes of imported roses at United Parcel Service (UPS)'s shipping facility at Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida February 10, 2012.
Justin Vitello, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agriculture Inspection officer, examines a pest that was dislodged during his inspection of a box of imported roses at United Parcel Service (UPS)'s shipping facility at Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida February 10, 2012.
Justin Vitello, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agriculture Inspection officer, uses a magnifying glass to look for pests as he inspects imported roses at United Parcel Service (UPS)'s shipping facility at the Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida February 10, 2012.
Celeste Roldan, 28, stands on discarded roses as she packages roses from Ecuador at Liberty Wholesale in the flower market in preparation for Valentine's Day in Los Angeles February 10, 2012.
A man packages rose petals from Ecuador at Liberty Wholesale in the flower market in preparation for Valentine's Day in Los Angeles February 10, 2012.
Florist Trinidad Rojas, 36, prepares roses for Valentine's Day in Los Angeles February 10, 2012.
A woman buys flowers from a florist ahead of Valentine's Day in Los Angeles February 10, 2012.
A florist arranges flowers in preparation for Valentine's Day in Los Angeles February 10, 2012. Ninety percent of the flowers Americans will give to their sweethearts on February 14 are imported, and nearly all of those imports originate in Colombia and Ecuador.