Friends often ask me “…when is Mother’s Day anyway?”  Having been born into the flower industry as the third generation in my family the answer is written indelibly in my DNA.  It is always the second Sunday in May or the week after the Kentucky Derby, which usually works better for the guys.  This year Mother’s Day falls on Sunday May 13.

Mom is where the heart is.  This is so true.  Mom drove you to school on those rainy days.  Always made sure you had a piece of fruit in your lunch bag (whether we ate it or not doesn’t really matter).  Mom sat through all your long hot recitals in June.  Mom cried when you left for college.  After all you are her baby.  It’s as close a bond as any human being can have with another.  It’s no wonder that Mother’s Day is the busiest holiday of the year for giving flowers.   Having delivered flowers to Mother’s for the better part of my 56 years I can honestly tell you there is no one happier than a Mom who has just received a bouquet of flowers from her “baby”.  The smile she wears is genuine and is born straight from the heart.  After all her “baby” remembered her on her special day.  For Mom, nothing does the trick like flowers.  It’s a gift from your heart that touches your Mom’s heart that gives birth to that smile she will be wearing all day.

People are often surprised to learn that Mother’s Day, not Valentine’s Day is the biggest flower giving holiday of the year.  Think about it….everyone has at least one Mom maybe two if you’re married and don’t forget Grandma!  And they all get flowers….or should get flowers if you ask me!  Alas, not everyone has a sweetheart….yet.  Let’s be optimistic!  So Mom truly is where the heart is.  Let her know you remember all she has done for you and all that she means to you.  Flowers from her baby will touch her heart like no other gift.  My Mother who has served thousands of Mother’s their flowers on Mother’s Day over the years will be receiving a special heartfelt bouquet from me…and she will smile.

Does your office have the “Ho Humms”?  Are you so focused on the job that you forget about your surroundings?  The fact is that how you decorate your office matters.  Texas A&M conducted an 8 month study that evaluated how the presence of flower bouquets and plants effected workers’ productivity in the work place.  I think we can all agree on the effect winter flower bouquets have on our moods!  I’ve been delivering flower bouquets for the better part of my 55 years and I can’t remember a recipient not breaking out in a broad smile upon being handed a floral bouquet.  My favorite reaction is when I’m carrying a beautiful bouquet of flowers through an office looking for the lucky recipient.  With sparkle in their eyes just about every woman in my path would ask: “Are those for me”?  Each time I reply,  “I wish, maybe next time”.  The lucky recipient is always thrilled and the attention that follows makes her “Queen” of the office for that day.

As it turns out the positive effect of winter flower bouquets in the workplace is real.  The Texas A&M study evaluated workplaces with plants and flowers against those that had no decorative embellishments.  The findings were astonishing!  Both men and women were effected positively by the presence of flower arrangements in the office.  Even more interesting is the fact that men and women were effected in different ways.  Men who were faced with problems came up with 15% more solutions when in the presence of flowers and plants. Women, on the other hand became more creative and flexible in their approach to problem solving when in the presence of flowers.

So if you’re looking for ways to improve employee productivity, “just add flowers”! Don’t allow the winter doldrums to effect office morale – a winter flower bouquet here and there can brighten the mood and foreshadow the spring season ahead. Besides becoming a more productive and creative office, you just might find you and your staff smiling a lot more.