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Myron with the morning harvest
of roses |
Roses
grown in the Negev desert can now be delivered year-round, anywhere in the
US. With eight varieties, some hybrids, and in a wide variety of colors,
such as red, yellow, pink and creams, owner Myron is able
to accommodate most tastes.
Myron, who moved to Israel in 1974,
is originally from the windy city Chicago. Clearly, Myron acclimated to the
Negev and its growing conditions.
Together with 26 other English speaking
families from America, Canada, England, New Zealand, South Africa and Australia,
Myron and his family settled on a barren site in the Negev, seeking to "make
the desert bloom."
While many of the new members were
were novices in agriculture, they tended to be highly educated with at least
one university degree. Some held Ph.D's in areas such as physics, English
literature, and political science. There were teachers, pharmacists, accountants,
speech therapists, and a lawyer or two. Most importantly, they were motivated.
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Myron tried his hand at flowers. And
in fact, he has been growing flowers in his family business for the last 25
years. The flowers, which are grown in hothouses in a relatively small area,
yield a good return per acre.
Growing with the times, Myron began
to work in the hothouse and on the computer about three years ago when he
realized that he could sell his roses to individuals, schools, and institutions
over the internet. For Myron and his roses, the World Wide Web allowed him
to open new markets while continuing to operate out of his own hothouses.
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Miriam & Myron with
desert-grown roses |
A personal
connection over the internet is one of the ways that Myron gets to know and
address customer needs. Myron told me that he reviews and discusses all
the orders with his customers before the
orders are shipped in order to be sure his customers will be satisfied.
A minimum order of four-dozen roses
is required. While it sounds like a lot of roses, the prices are right, and
48 roses certainly do make an impression! There is a one-week turn around
time, from initial e-mail order until delivery.
All flowers are sent via Agrexco,
Israel's agriculture exporting company, to the US where UPS then delivers
them to their destination. The company exports three million roses to Europe
and tens of thousands to the US annually.
Use fresh roses
to fundraise for
your organization and help Israel's economy at the same time! Members order
roses in quantities to suit personal needs and orders get distributed at
a central location.
This is an excellent way to have an
Israeli product at your wedding, bar/bat mitzvah or organizational dinner
as well as a simple gift to yourself or someone you care about.
Text by Michele Kaplan-Green.
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Updated contact information will be sent
