A trader puts roses onto his truck at a flower market in Kunming, Yunnan province, on Feb 11. [Photo / China Daily]

BEIJING/KUNMING -With Valentine's Day just days away, Zhao Zhiman has already ordered 22 roses for his special someone from a local Beijing flower shop.

"Every single rose has a meaning and 22 means 'love follows in pairs'," he said.

Little does Zhao know, however, that at least 18 out of those 22 roses probably came from Kunming's Dounan Flower Market in the capital of Yunnan province, where more than 80 percent of roses sold across China this season are traded.

More than 10,000 traders exchange up to 12 million flowers every day at Dounan, China's largest marketplace for cut flowers. At the moment, more than a third are roses, according to Lu Jiliang at the Yunnan Flower Association.

Due to the trade volume, Dounan is often recognized as the barometer of China's flower markets, forecasting prices nationwide three to four days in advance.

Compared to last year, the average wholesale price of a single rose at Dounan has gone up 50 percent, reaching 1.5 to 2 yuan (20 to 30 cents). "This is the highest since 2005," said Lu.

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Although rising production costs partly contribute to the price hike, Lu explained that there has also been more demand for flowers in many second- and third-tier Chinese cities, like Nanjing, Suzhou and Hangzhou. Such demand significantly outgrew the 8-percent increase in the volume of flowers in Yunnan from 2009 to 2010. "Supply is falling short of demand," he added.

Dounan trader Cai Liping plans to sell 500 to 600 bundles of roses (20 roses make a bundle) on Valentine's Day, twice her usual volume. She has wholesalers in Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Hubei and Hunan provinces.

"It's hard to say how much I'd charge for a bundle on Valentine's Day," said Cai. "You know, prices fluctuate."

Although demand for roses peaked on Feb 8, trader Yang Zhi said Dounan Flower Market extended its trading hours 10 days ahead of Valentine's Day. Rather than opening at 2 am, as usual, the market now opens at 8 pm and lasts until late morning.

Sales in Beijing are yet to reach a peak, however. Liu Xu, who owns a florist shop in the capital, had only received three Valentine's orders by Feb 9, although he is expecting to have at least 100 orders on Feb 13 and 14.

"I think I can charge at least 15 yuan per rose on Feb 14. The better ones can cost up to 20 yuan each," said Liu, who added that he suggests customers order roses in advance to ensure the best quality and prices.

"It's extremely normal for roses to rise three to five times in price on Valentine's Day," said a Beijing flower seller called Xiang, who usually charges 5 yuan per rose. Both Liu and Xiang purchase their roses from Yunnan province.

Price differences between Dounan and Beijing come down to the fact that flowers are normally transported and traded between two or three wholesalers before finally reaching consumers, said Lu of the Yunnan Flower Association.

According to data released on Wednesday by Taobao, China's largest online retail website, its users have traded about 2.1 million flowers every day since the start of February, roughly 110 percent more than the same period last year.

See more on http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/video/2011-02/11/content_11988203.htm