Mother's Day flowers cost in South Florida being driven by timing, demand, florists say

If you're planning to send flowers for Mother's Day, be ready to pay a little more.

The holiday, second only to Valentine's Day in flower sales, is driving up demand and pushing prices higher across South Florida.

At Universal Greens and Flowers, a Doral based supplier, the rush is already underway. Dozens of truckloads of flowers are moving out of the warehouse daily as businesses prepare for one of the busiest weeks of the year.

But it's not just the volume that's up.

"I would say there's about a 5% increase in an arrangement of flowers," said Carlos Rodriguez, who has run the company for more than 40 years.

Cost of Mother's Day flowers being driven by timing, demand

Rodriguez said the spike isn't being driven primarily by tariffs or fuel costs, but by timing and demand.

"Prices started going up about a week and a half ago due to the high demand and the volume needed in such a short period," he said.

Those flowers often make their way to local shops like Trias Flowers, a family-owned business with roots dating back to Cuba in the early 1900s.

Owner Julio Trias said Mother's Day isn't the only factor driving up prices right now. Prom season is adding even more pressure on supply.

From wholesaler to customer, he estimates prices have increased by about 10%.

"The tariffs haven't gone away, so we still have roughly a 10% tariff on these flowers," Trias said. "Then there's a fuel charge, since most of the flowers arrive by cargo plane."

With demand high and inventory limited, timing matters.

"I tell everybody to place their orders early," Trias said. "We have a limited stock based on what we had to pre-order months in advance."

If you haven't ordered flowers yet, don't wait.

Ordering early may not save you much money, but it could make the difference in getting exactly what you want verses what's left for Mother's Day.