{"id":3240,"date":"2024-06-18T09:56:31","date_gmt":"2024-06-18T16:56:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/?p=3240"},"modified":"2024-06-18T09:56:34","modified_gmt":"2024-06-18T16:56:34","slug":"flower-business-in-los-angeles-from-growing-to-importing-flowers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/eternal-3240-flower-business-in-los-angeles-from-growing-to-importing-flowers","title":{"rendered":"Flower business in Los Angeles: From growing to importing flowers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>In the early twentieth century, Los Angeles emerged as a hub of agricultural and industrial production. In 1877, the city was first connected to the transcontinental rail network, and by 1887, ventilated and cooled railcars had been introduced. Wheat was the first cash crop shipped to Eastern markets, but citrus fruits were the ones that dominated the market. Between 1890 and 1938, the main cash crops were citrus fruits, olives and, more recently, flowers and bulbs. California&#8217;s moderate environment enabled producers to supply demand for flowers that were out of season in the eastern United States. You may also learn about <a href=\"https:\/\/i-los-angeles.com\/uk\/eternal-najsuchasnishi-startapy-los-andzhelesa-v-sferi-ohorony-zdorovya\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">some of Los Angeles&#8217; most advanced healthcare startups<\/a>. Read more at <a href=\"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/\">los-angeles.name<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.los-angeles.name\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2024\/05\/ad_4nxfu0rw-x3lj43hwzmimi0oan0iq9m75xuimwx2zzi5mfudvv0jxrdypjbxvz0bswmxzkerrvkm3ffcv2n8yaaj-xk2n5xia_349v07elov9ro8cxxbjybvvywhlebwjbpcqe1zqnb3cxreko1tsgawgqzokeyases-prhqt5m7ifh_c_k3w.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_74 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a05735486fac\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a05735486fac\"  aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/eternal-3240-flower-business-in-los-angeles-from-growing-to-importing-flowers\/#The_role_of_the_Japanese_in_the_flower-growing_culture\" >The role of the Japanese in the flower-growing culture<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/eternal-3240-flower-business-in-los-angeles-from-growing-to-importing-flowers\/#Foundation_of_a_flower_market\" >Foundation of a flower market<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/eternal-3240-flower-business-in-los-angeles-from-growing-to-importing-flowers\/#Southern_California_Floral_Association\" >Southern California Floral Association<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/eternal-3240-flower-business-in-los-angeles-from-growing-to-importing-flowers\/#Changes_after_World_War_II\" >Changes after World War II<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_role_of_the_Japanese_in_the_flower-growing_culture\"><\/span>The role of the Japanese in the flower-growing culture<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Following the first waves of Japanese immigration to California after 1884, Japanese immigrants dominated flower cultivation and sale, as well as many other elements of agriculture. There are two popular explanations for the engagement of Japanese immigrants in the state&#8217;s floral industry. First, Japanese immigrants began farming in California, as many came from agricultural cities in Japan. The state&#8217;s first flower farms were established south of San Francisco in the 1880s. Flower producers in San Francisco were in business with other immigrants from their hometowns. This explanation is equally applicable to Italian immigrants. They set up flower farms in the same areas south of San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another explanation for the concentration of Japanese immigrants in the flower industry is that Japanese immigrants who arrived in San Francisco in the late 1800s attempted to pursue traditionally urban professions such as engineering and teaching but faced discrimination and eventually turned to agriculture. The combined effect of the community of immigrants, as well as prejudice from the residents, undoubtedly influenced the decision of many Japanese immigrants to engage in agriculture in California.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.los-angeles.name\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2024\/05\/ad_4nxczi0gp2egpsr-bwvrppcou8gavpd0soddrjfypp_2896blre1buelpierex5u78z6wmg4fk5khzpdrpd2wgfzvurztzvzw9plz4-xtd0ztkeptxk2dg-ffsu_oj2ipyecywhkza0damdqr_ymrpmpfk9epkeyases-prhqt5m7ifh_c_k3w.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In 1908, there were 30 florists and 60 nurseries in Los Angeles. The names of florists and nurseries mentioned in the city&#8217;s 1905 catalog demonstrate that the early Los Angeles flower industry was not dominated by any ethnic group. Two florists and sixteen nurseries were run by people with Japanese names. Unlike other cash crop industries in Los Angeles at the time, the flower business lacked a wholesale distribution list. Following the devastating earthquake in San Francisco in 1908, many Japanese immigrants relocated south and joined the Los Angeles flower industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By the 1910s, the majority of flower farmers in Los Angeles who did not own retail nurseries sold their flowers at informal markets. Sixteen Japanese immigrants have established flower-growing centers in West, South and Long Beach. Japanese growers have pioneered techniques such as cultivating flowers with multiple blooms on one stem.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Japanese immigrants also formed agricultural cooperatives fashioned after traditional Japanese organizations. These producers gathered in informal markets around downtown Los Angeles to sell their products.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Large-scale flower production began in the 1910s, and with it, more structured sales operations emerged, transforming flowers into a cash crop. Cooperatives and informal markets could no longer meet supply and demand. City catalogs began to include lists of wholesale flower businesses separately from florists and nurseries. One of the first suppliers to identify as a wholesale company was the Ocean Park Floral Company in the early 1900s. The company sold flowers from its flower fields near the city of Santa Monica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.los-angeles.name\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2024\/05\/ad_4nxf9a3rkrr2vlw46_edws_xbfrr5lyq9s-rxthua4uljdtar461q1xkfl7zfi0cvm7prdve9gca0z_t-jtzptyjji7dt2k64e8lhqfpu68kca0jaecgwh7evkermbaflxjhqkjvreqq2szhicwk1binrjgzbkeyases-prhqt5m7ifh_c_k3w.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Foundation_of_a_flower_market\"><\/span>Foundation of a flower market<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In 1912, 54 Japanese flower producers founded the Southern California Flower Market, a trade organization for Japanese flower growers and sellers in the Greater Los Angeles area. The first flower market in Southern California opened in 1914. Throughout the 1910s and 1920s, the Southern California Flower Market had multiple locations. However, from its founding until the 2000s, it was primarily located a few blocks along Wall Street. In 1914, a group of sellers formally established the Southern California Flower Market as a cooperative professional organization and place to sell flowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Simultaneously with the foundation of the Southern California Flower Market, a professional group of European American manufacturers and wholesalers from Germany, Italy, Holland and Greece, subsequently known as the American Florists&#8217; Exchange, created the wholesale flower market in Los Angeles. The European American flower market in Los Angeles was housed in several buildings along South Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. However, these communities will always be interconnected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In response to hostility toward the Japanese community&#8217;s success in California&#8217;s agricultural industry, two foreign land laws were passed in 1913 and 1920. The former attempted to prevent farmers from immigrating, however, the Issei farming and market cooperative support network encouraged new immigrants to engage in agriculture. The second law of 1920 aimed to prohibit the leasing of property for agricultural purposes. Immigrants responded by purchasing and renting out land under the names of their American-born children. They also concentrated on the cut flower industry, producing annuals rather than perennials for nurseries. Perennials were more profitable, but they also were risky investments. This resulted in a higher percentage of Japanese people working in the cut flower industry than in other agricultural industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.los-angeles.name\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2024\/05\/ad_4nxdbzc8ph1xxunqiywsac84u3y9tk0b7acjht6r4bvfq-qfy1srot3jvnl7pwqyksm5btpu9culuuufok4chsrqun2lmtqi32iqprf3tupzmcuqakijmoup42yjgr2nt8wbfi5k2bu75kkgkzpu1rjjjjmnekeyases-prhqt5m7ifh_c_k3w.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Southern_California_Floral_Association\"><\/span>Southern California Floral Association<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>While agriculture continued to thrive, the Great Depression, the New Deal reforms and the National Recovery Administration made changes to the cut flower industry in Los Angeles, particularly in an effort to regulate market competition. The National Recovery Administration has commissioned two major flower markets in Los Angeles to collaborate on self-regulation efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite their support for autonomous markets, European and Japanese organizations founded the Southern California Flower Association in 1933. The National Recovery Administration also obliged the two organizations to reach an agreement on wages, opening hours and pricing. The language became a significant challenge to the negotiations.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Changes_after_World_War_II\"><\/span>Changes after World War II<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>At the beginning of World War II, all Los Angeles entrepreneurs were deported to internment camps and forced to leave their businesses. During the war, other flower vendors rented out the property. Most Japanese flower growers and retailers have never recovered their pre-war popularity, losing both property and customers. Newcomers from various ethnic backgrounds began to replace them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the war, Americans and Japanese continued to dominate the cultivation of the remaining flowers in California, producing 65% of the flowers planted in California in the 1970s. Imported flowers and market shifts posed a challenge to the wholesale flower industry until the 1970s. The mid-1970s saw the opening of the first major craft stores offering silk flowers, Christmas decorations and plants. This business was the primary source of income for retail florists, and many of them were closed down resulting in a loss of wholesale customers. In the early 1900s, the majority of flowers sold in the United States were grown within the country. In the 2000s, three-quarters were imported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Supermarkets began selling flowers and purchasing surplus supplies from Colombia. Sales of cut flowers in supermarkets increased significantly in the 1970s. Supermarket chains consolidated between 1990 and the early 2000s, and they rarely purchased flowers from local wholesalers. This has further impacted the industry. The wholesale flower industry continued to diversify throughout the 1980s when Latin American sellers entered the market.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the early twentieth century, Los Angeles emerged as a hub of agricultural and industrial production. In 1877, the city was first connected to the transcontinental rail network, and by 1887, ventilated and cooled railcars had been introduced. Wheat was the first cash crop shipped to Eastern markets, but citrus fruits were the ones that [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":325,"featured_media":3125,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[338],"tags":[2343,2339,2336,2341,2345,2342,2337,2338,2340,2344],"motype":[325],"moformat":[22],"moimportance":[30,33],"class_list":{"0":"post-3240","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-developments","8":"tag-as-well-as-many-other-elements-of-agriculture","10":"tag-flower-business-in-los-angeles-from-growing-to-importing-flowers","12":"tag-japanese-growers-have-pioneered-techniques-such-as-cultivating-flowers-with-multiple-blooms-on-one-stem","13":"tag-japanese-immigrants-dominated-flower-cultivation-and-sale","14":"tag-southern-california-floral-association","16":"tag-the-role-of-the-japanese-in-the-flower-growing-culture","17":"tag-there-were-30-florists-and-60-nurseries-in-los-angeles","18":"motype-eternal","19":"moformat-longrid-korotka","20":"moimportance-golovna-novyna","21":"moimportance-retranslyacziya-v-agregatory"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/325"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3240"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3240\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3241,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3240\/revisions\/3241"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3240"},{"taxonomy":"motype","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/motype?post=3240"},{"taxonomy":"moformat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/moformat?post=3240"},{"taxonomy":"moimportance","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/los-angeles.name\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/moimportance?post=3240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}