advertisement

Harrisburg florist handles Valentine's Day rush

HARRISBURG -- It's mid-afternoon on Feb. 14, and one group of women is seeing red. And pink. White, too. Plus other assorted colors.

The ladies working at Child of Mine Flowers and Gifts at 819 S. Main St. in Harrisburg are carefully (and quickly) cutting and arranging flowers for the Valentine's Day rush.

Owner Beth Fulbright said a good deal of planning goes into every mid-February at the business, which she's owned since 2014.

"We put in our flower orders fairly early," she said. "They come from several locations that are very far away. Some come from California, and others come from places like Ecuador."

The popularity of various roses varies year to year, she said.

"Sometimes, colored roses are the thing, then sometimes it's red. This year, we happened to run out of white roses. Everyone wanted white," Fulbright said.

And, the earlier the orders, the better prepared a flower shop can be, she said.

"We prefer a week's notice," she says, then adds a smile. "But, of course, some men do wait until the last minute."

At this particular moment, not everyone who works at the flower shop is there at one time. While Alta Thomas, Beverly Reed, DeAnna Morse and Pam Ratley make floral arrangements, Ronita Murray and Fulbright's sister Brenda Winter are busy making deliveries. It's one of the busiest days of the year in the flower business.

"We're very busy the whole day, but that's a good thing," Fulbright said.