Valentine’s Day is on Friday and you know what that means:

Flowers — especially roses — are for sale everywhere, from gas stations to grocery stores to floral shops.

The Pioneer Press stopped by Bachman’s Maplewood on Wednesday to ask CEO Susan Bachman West what to know about flowers ahead of this day that celebrates love, flowers and chocolate.

Here are five things we learned.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Roses rule

Roses are the queen of Valentine’s Day, including at Bachman’s, where floral designers use an estimated 40,000 stems of roses for holiday arrangements.

“Roses are the most traditional and the most common,” Bachman West said of Valentine’s Day flowers.

No pressure, though.

“It doesn’t necessarily matter what is the most popular or traditional,” the CEO said. “Instead, think of the recipient and really, what they would like. That is a true gift from the heart.”

Valentine’s Day vs. Mother’s Day

Susan Bachman West, CEO of Bachman’s Floral, Home & Garden, in the company’s Maplewood store on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. Founded in 1885, Bachman’s remains a family-owned business, with fifth-generation Bachman family members leading the company today. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

If you stop by a Bachman’s location around Valentine’s Day, the CEO herself might help you pick out a bouquet. Or, perhaps one of the company’s accountants will deliver your flowers.

“Everyone gets reassigned for Valentine’s Day,” Bachman West said with a laugh.

But, despite approximately 4,000 floral deliveries on the week of Valentine’s Day, is it actually the biggest day of the year for flowers for this Minnesota-based company?

“Valentine’s Day is the busiest floral holiday,” Bachman West said. “Mother’s Day is the busiest holiday.”

That is, most people choose fresh-cut flowers for Valentine’s Day, while they might opt to purchase a hanging basket or something else for the garden on Mother’s Day.

From Ecuador to Farmington

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If you live in Minnesota, those roses you’re buying might be from Colombia or Ecuador — they grow well there, in higher elevations — but that’s not the case if you choose another option, like the Watch ‘Em Grow personal bulb gardens (a pot of mixed spring bulbs that grows and blooms over the course of several weeks).

“A lot of the blooming plants are grown at our growing facility down in Lakeville and Farmington,” Bachman West said. “That includes all the Watch ‘Em Grows, a Bachman’s exclusive.”

Bachman’s, which was founded in 1885, is celebrating its 140th anniversary in 2025 as the fifth generation of Bachman family members lead the business today. The company operates six floral, home and garden centers throughout the Twin Cities, a hardscapes center in Farmington and 29 floral departments within Lunds & Byerlys grocery stores, among other green ventures.

After the delivery

Outside Bachman’s Maplewood, a sign says, “Stop in the name of love.” Inside the greenhouse, floral designer Kim Bauer is working on arranging a Valentine’s Day bouquet in the name of love.

Her creativity is apparent as she opts for choices beyond the red rose.

A bouquet of roses at Bachman’s Floral, Home & Garden store in Maplewood. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

“I’m going to put in something that’s a really pretty flower with a horrible name called scabiosa,” she said with a laugh.

What advice does she have for making a Valentine’s Day bouquet last?

“We always send them home with preservative,” she said. “So, every couple of days, I encourage them to lift them up, dump out the water, put in fresh, put in new preservative, give them a fresh cut and I’m going to put them back in and they’re going to look exactly the same.”

If that seems like too much work, just remember this:

“Changing the water,” she said, “makes a big difference.”

Cupid’s Quick Lane

Valentine’s Day is one of those holidays that can sneak up on people. If you want to order flowers for delivery on Friday, it’s a good idea to place that order by the end of the business day on Thursday.

Or you could just get some help from Cupid.

Cupid’s Quick Lane, that is — a new option that starts on Thursday and continues on Friday at all Bachman’s floral, home and garden centers, including the Maplewood location at 2600 White Bear Ave. N.

“We just want to make it easy for people,” Bachman West said.

Here’s how it works:

After driving up to the “quick lane” at Bachman’s, you will be handed a pink menu filled with photos of flowers and plants.

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On this menu, there are nine options to choose from, from a 12-stem bouquet of pink roses ($24.99 plus tax) to an 18-stem bouquet of colorful tulips ($24.99 plus tax) to a 10-inch Watch ‘Em Grow bulb garden ($29.99 plus tax) to a dozen red roses with accent flowers in a vase ($139.99 plus tax). There are also Abdallah chocolate hearts ($16.99 plus tax) and more.

“If somebody didn’t plan as much ahead and they’re on their way home but in a time crunch,” Bachman West explained, “they can just swing by and we got it.”

The Bachman’s Maplewood, along with the company’s other floral, home and garden centers throughout the Twin Cities, have extended hours for Valentine’s Day, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday.

Find more information at Bachmans.com.