Don’t stop and smell the roses. Apparently, there’s more going on with roses than just a pretty look and cautious thorns.
The hidden truth of roses
In a viral video with more than 860,000 views, Detroit-based farmer-florist Andrew Park (@bucket.works) warns that he generally steers clear from grocery store roses.
It’s so serious that if he absolutely has to touch them, he’ll only do it with gloves.
Park only works with seasonal flowers, which he grows himself using regenerative and low-cost Korean natural farming techniques. He owns Bucket Works, a company that offers retail bouquets and floral design services for weddings, events, and editorial work.
“Here’s why I never ever ever smell the roses from a grocery store or retail florist and why I would never set up a rose petal bath for someone I care about, and why I use gloves if I have to work with them,” he says in the clip.
Park explains his reasoning by reading a descriptive passage from a book called ‘Flower Confidential: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful‘ by Amy Stewart that delves into industrial flower production around the world.
The passage Park narrates is Stewart’s first-person account of a rose farm in South America.
She described barrels of roses being dunked into a barrel of fungicide head first and then stem first.
“This had to be the nastiest job in the production room. The men handling the roses wore respirator-style masks … but there were no masks for the rest of us, and the smell was horrible,” Stewart recounted.
Rose growers assured her that they took the necessary precautions to protect works and keep chemicals out of the waterways, “but keeping runoff contained seemed like an impossible task.”
She added that the men doing the dunking were drenched in the fungicide, which dripped on the flowers all over the floor.
A production manager explained to Stewart that the fungicide lost its effectiveness as each day went by.
“As a contaminant for humans, it’s very low, but—and he flashed me a warm smile—I would never recommend that you take a bath of rose petals. Never,” she wrote.
@bucket.works DON’T SMELL THE ROSES! (from a grocery store or a florist who imports flowers) #roses #datenight #floristsoftiktok #weddingtiktok #weddingflowers #bride #happybirthday #loveislove ♬ La vie en rose (Cover Edith Piaf) – 田东昱
Do imported flowers really get treated with fungicide?
Park is absolutely right. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), roses and other agricultural goods imported to the United States usually require treatment to prevent the introduction of pests and plant diseases. The process, known as a phytosanitary treatment, can be chemical or nonchemical.
Chemical treatments: Fumigants, dips, and sprays.
Nonchemical treatments: Cold treatment, hot water immersion, vapor heat treatment, steam sterilization, and irradiation.
Performing these treatments helps protect the local ecosystem from invasive species and diseases that could disrupt not only the ecosystem but commercial crops too.
Is there a workaround?
If you’re determined to do a rose petal bath or make your own rose water, other experts recommend running the petals under cold tap water or washing them with a fruit or vegetable wash.
In an email response to the Daily Dot, Park recommended that folks “source their blooms from farms or farmer-florists in their area.”
“Farmers markets are also usually a good place to look if the flowers are actually grown by farmers (and not imported through a wholesaler). Just ask the vendor,” he said.
“Around 80% of flowers sold in the US are imported from abroad and they are the go-to choice for most consumers,” he continued. “There is a whole diverse world of safe, locally-grown flowers available to most people that is accessible with just a little bit of research.”
Commenters react
“Why is everything I love POISONED & TOXIC ?!?!?!” a top comment read.
“Can’t drink water, can’t eat food, can’t smell roses,” a person said.
“If you want a rose petal bath, you want food grade roses. :),” another suggested.
The Daily Dot reached out to Park for comment via email and Instagram direct message.
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