Dianthus caryophyllus

In the heart of Türkiye's cut flower production hub, the southwestern province of Antalya, preparations for Valentine's Day are in full swing, with a noteworthy demand from Europe worth a staggering $7 million in vibrant flower exports.

The ornamental plants and cut flower sector in the southern province of Antalya has started shipping a total of 75 million cut flowers, mainly carnations, and 4 million Christmas wreaths to nearly 30 European countries and Russia for Christmas and New Year celebrations this year.

Flower shops across the country are working diligently to meet the soaring demand for floral arrangements to be used in commemorative events for the 85th death anniversary of modern Türkiye founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk on Nov. 10.

According to sector representatives, Türkiye, which currently supplies 80 percent of the world's carnation needs, has the potential to generate significantly more revenue from manufacturing with more sophisticated marketing strategies.

Producers in the southern province of Antalya export flowers to 33 countries in Europe, especially the Netherlands.

Planeloads of Turkish carnations are headed to the United Kingdom for Queen Elizabeth II's funeral next Monday.

Flower producers in southern Türkiye are working to meet high demand for the event in London.

There has been a significant increase in flower demands from the U.K. following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Turkish firms have said, forecasting a total of 1.5 million carnations to be sent during the funeral ceremonies.

Florists saw one of the busiest days of the year as Turkey marked Mother's Day on May 8.

Like most other countries in the world, Turkey celebrates Mother's Day on the second Sunday of May every year.

"Customers usually prefer wild flowers, such as carnations and daisies, on this day," said Yıldız Çalıoğlu, who is running a florist shop in Istanbul's Taksim Square.

Boxes of roses, lilies and carnations pile up as influencer Caicai speaks into her smartphone from a small studio at Asia's biggest flower market - with thousands of customers eagerly awaiting her view on the best deals.

E-commerce is big business in China and influencers and livestreamers have made their fortunes showcasing products for luxury brands and cosmetics firms.

Turkey exported $107 million worth of flowers to 83 countries in 2020 despite the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the Ornamental Plants and Products Exporters Union, which embodies the export of cut flowers, indoor and outdoor plants, flower bulbs, and wreaths, the number of branches of flowers sold abroad reached 505 million in 2020, most of them carnations.

Turkey's flower growers are looking for new foreign markets as demand has dropped significantly because of the global pandemic.

The industry's exports stood at $107 million last year and growers had initially set a higher revenue target of $125 million for 2020, however the coronavirus outbreak shattered their hopes.