From Farm to Florist – How Our Ecuadorian Flowers Stay So Fresh

At Santa Maria Garden, we work with a small number of carefully selected farms in Ecuador to import premium and luxurious Ecuadorian flowers and roses. These aren’t just any suppliers; they are partners who share our standards for sustainability, fairness, and quality. Ecuadorian flowersEcuadorian flowersEcuadorian flowersEcuadorian flowersEcuadorian flowersEcuadorian flowers

Each of these farms operates under fair trade principles, ensuring that the people who grow and harvest your flowers are treated and paid fairly. But beyond ethics, these farms deliver results. Why? Because they’ve perfected the process of cultivating premium stems for global export.

Step 1: Cutting with Precision

The process begins in the early morning, when the flowers are at their most hydrated. Experienced workers hand-select each stem for maturity, symmetry, and head size. Roses are cut at the precise stage just before bloom — giving them the strength to open beautifully once they reach your hands.

Immediately after cutting, the stems are hydrated in cold water and moved into a chilled processing area, where they’re trimmed, cleaned, and grouped by variety and length.

Step 2: Chilled, Checked, and Packed

Once sorted, the roses are packed into temperature-controlled boxes lined with insulation and water-preserving sleeves. At this stage, they’re maintained at a consistent 0–2°C to keep them dormant and fresh.

Each order is checked before it leaves the farm — only top-grade blooms are selected, with damaged or underdeveloped stems discarded.

Step 3: Direct to Ireland in Under 96 Hours

From that point, time is critical. Flowers are immediately sent to the courier partners and then to Quito Airport and shipped directly to Dublin, avoiding the long detours and delays that come with multi-stop distribution networks.

From cutting to your hands, the entire journey takes between 5-6 days — which means:

• Longer vase life & less wasted products 
• Less shrinkage
• Better performance for your clients

We don’t rely on wholesalers or cold-chain middlemen. We know exactly who cut your flowers, when they were boxed, and how they travelled — and that makes all the difference.

Because when freshness matters, details matter.