I don't think Pablo has a significant other, otherwise he would know the folly of using Valentines Day as an object lesson for responsible eco-friendliness.

If you go that route, be prepared to spend the rest of the winter in the garage.

Besides, who said you even have to give flowers? Consider gathering local organic produce that is in season and making a romantic dinner.

Local, organic produce?! Get real...

"Tonight, my beloved, we have the snowball casserole with ice scrapings, followed by the shaved ice with a drizzle of Kahlua."

Sorry, hon, no flowers; I couldn't shovel my way back to the really warm greenhouse down the street...

I have never liked longstemmed red roses, they are way too cliche for me! Now we find out about the emissions, which doesn't surprise me, because anything that lets a man off the hook that easy without putting any thoughtfulness into this romantic holiday must be a gift sent right from the devil!

snark snark

PS plant your own roses from $5 - $40 a plant and have an exponential amount of roses seasonally. It's a much better return!

Also, for a more locally grown organic option, check out "California Organic Flowers" https://californiaorganicflowers.com !

To the reader who asked where the South Americans get their flowers during their winter, since these countries are located on or close to the Equator (Ecuador), I belive that their winter isn't that much different from their summer. When I traveled to Ecuador in April a few years back, I noticed huge (4 feet wide) bouquets of roses in the hotels and would see large palettes of roses on the airport tarmac waiting to be shipped. What a trip!

Thanks for the article Pablo.

Who grow their crops for ethanol are erasing huge swaths of the rain forest which of course limits the amount of carbon uptake one suspects was part of the originally intended solution.

Soon, everything will be politically incorrect. When it gets to the point that everything you do is wrong, people will stop trying and your message will be ignored.

I love the new Pablo column. I'd never before considered the issue of cut flowers. I always assumed that all the flowers came from local greenhouses.

We really are living in a global economy. My follow up question would be, "where do those South American countries get their flowers during their winter?"

Kenya, that recently war ravaged nation, is a major cut flower exporter to the US. They need our help now more than ever. Unless it's the bad Kenyans who grow flowers in which case we're just abetting world domination globalist capitalism.

Oh mercy me what's a precious progressive to do? I guess I'll just invent my own flower free holiday.

Here's what I don't understand about this logic: Things are going to get shipped no matter what. It's unrealistic to assume that if one opts not to buy flowers, X amount of greenhouse gases will be saved. If they stop shipping flowers, they'll just be grown by artificially enhanced means locally - what's the environmental impact of that? I've had this same argument with people who say you shouldn't ship packages to people as gifts because of the environmental impact. But my decision to send an e-card instead isn't going to stop the mail from being delivered across the country! If the mail is going to be delivered anyway, my package makes little difference.

Better to control what is actually in your personal control - drive less, drive a fuel efficient car, conserve your household's energy use, recycle, etc.

What girl in her right mind would turn down a lovely pair of pearl earrings or dangly gold hoops in favor of a cut stem with a flower on the end of it that will be in the garbage in a week?

If she's of the geekly persuasion, get her an ivy and gift cards to her favorite bookstore and coffee shop.

Just get her something she'd much prefer over flowers and the quandry is solved without angst.

Who came up with the idea of giving a gift of love that will have to be thrown away in a week? I'd much rather get a more personal gift. Plants are okay. I love orchids and they last for many weeks, and I can even sometimes get them to re-bloom. There are many beautiful flowering plants available, some of which can be transplanted outdoors when the ground warms. Or be creative. It's bare root season - why not surprise your love by planting some real roses and throwing in a book on rose care? If you don't have the kind of relationship, there are many gifts that will "keep on giving", things that don't have to be thrown away in a week. Use your freaking imagination - skip the cut flowers.

Locally grown flowers do still exist. I have never seen a certified farmers' market that did not have at least one stall selling them. (In February, the locally grown flowers may not be roses, but if she insists on flown-in roses for V-Day, dump her.)

Hey, if you have to ask whether you should buy flowers for Valentine's Day, your relationship isn't long for this world anyway! Sorry, dude!

Flowers are nice and everything, but make something that takes some thought and imagination. If a woman (or man) doesn't appreciate that, then you've just learned something about them that is better to learn sooner than later. Obviously, you'll have to exercise some taste and judgment. But it shouldn't be cheesy or sappy either -- do something that's in your own style, with your own wit and sensibility.

You can write a story or poem, draw a picture, paint something (gets a little messy though), make a card out of colored pens, crayons, markers and the like, do "photocopy art," make an interesting mix-CD (kind of old-fashioned in the day of .mp3's, unfortunately), do a weird collage, make a funky Photoshop creation and print it out, write a song using Garageband or Audigy or Acid type programs (sorry -- I am not up on the latest), make a great meal from a recipe, get the person something special related to his/her hobbies and interests, and so on, and so on, and so on...