During the early Middle Ages, the secrets of horticulture developed by early civilizations and kept alive by the Greeks and Romans gradually disappeared from the public domain in Western Europe. Horticulture and flowers for pleasure all but disappeared, save for the occasional walled garden for the rulers and wealthy landowners.
Gardening thrived, however, in the Muslim world, where gardens were cultivated in enclosed courts with elaborate colored tile-work, pools and fountains. Water and shade were very important features of these gardens because of the dry terrain of the Middle East.
During the Middle Ages, the Moors built similar gardens in Spain, whence the Muslim style of gardening was taken to South America by Spanish explorers and settlers. While the use of flowers and gardens in the West inclined toward the practical — herbs and medicinal plants — the tradition of flowers for beauty was kept alive in the Muslim world and as the Muslim culture spread out of the Middle East, the gardens and flowers went with it.
This tradition carries on in diminished form in Saudi Arabia despite the dry harsh environment. Public and private gardens of all shapes and sizes can sometimes enliven the barren ugliness of Saudi cities. Landscape designs range from the simple to the truly grandiose — most of it, however, concealed behind high walls.
The modern floriculture industry has radically altered the production and delivery of both live and cut blooms. The industry in the Kingdom has developed dramatically in the last decade. Thirty years ago in Jeddah, there were only a few flower shops and nurseries. Today, there are over 30 florists and a dozen nurseries that are distributed throughout every neighborhood.
“In the past five to six years, the competition increased tremendously among florists with shops opening everywhere even in grocery stores,” said Husni, the manager of Gardenia flower shop, one of the long established florists.
One reason for this increase is the rapid growth of local flower farms. Many of the smaller shops get their flowers from these local farms dotted around the country, especially around Tabuk, Taif, Madinah and Riyadh.
Alwan, also one of the older flower shops in Jeddah, imports its flowers from Holland directly to the store. The estimated export of flowers and plants from the Netherlands alone to Saudi Arabia in 2003 totaled 4.2 million euros, according to sources.
“No matter where else a store gets its flowers from, it cannot do without flowers from Holland, if it wants the best and most variety,” said Said Al-Derhali of Panorama Garden Center. Shops also import flowers from Ecuador, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, South Africa, Columbia, India and Egypt.
These stores rely on wholesale trading companies that import in bulk and distribute the flowers. Unusually, there is no flower market in Jeddah where individuals or stores can buy their flowers wholesale from the growers as at a vegetable and fruit market. Neither is there a central warehouse.
“We place a weekly order to our suppliers abroad, which is shipped to us by air and takes three to four days to arrive and clear from customs. We then put the flowers in our cold room in the store,” said Al-Derhali. All this adds to the stores’ expenses and is reflected in the flowers’ prices. The strength of the euro has had a direct effect on prices and therefore turnover of stock.
Besides the wholesale trade in blooms from the Netherlands and the individual flower shops, local farms buy flower bulbs, grow them here and then supply hotels and shops, according to Oesha Ramdolam, assistant agriculture attache at the Dutch Embassy in Riyadh. The locally grown flowers and trees are generally of good quality.
“It depends how they are watered, whether with clean water, salty water or with sewage water, and of course on the soil they are planted in. All this affects the quality, color and life span of the plant,” said Mahmoud from Gardenia nursery.
“Even though locally produced flowers are cheaper to buy, they lack variety and because they are transported by land, they usually arrive in a poor condition and don’t last long,” said Al-Derhali.
Apart from the two Eids, the busiest season for florists and nurseries is during winter because the plants are in bloom due to the cooler, wetter weather, and during the holidays, the high season for weddings and other celebrations. But the ephemeral beauty of cut flowers that makes these occasions as special as they are is as expensive as it is spectacular.