SAF has been busy responding to a number of instances of harmful Valentine's Day floral publicity this week, and received a number of responses from the offenders.

Valentine's Day means test order season for journalists, when they put on their consumer-reporting hat and try out different channels for buying flowers. If you don't already subscribe to the "every order is the most important order" philosophy, here is a good reason why you should start, especially before the next test order season - when Mother's Day approaches.

Losing a shipment of flowers is never good, but it's even worse when it happens just three days before Valentine's Day. On Feb. 11 around 8:00 a.m. on I-84 just east of Boise, Idaho, a flower delivery truck transporting flowers from DWF Wholesale Flowers' Boise facility caught fire, according to KIDK TV Idaho Falls. Fire crews told the station that the fire probably began in the truck's refrigeration unit.

Floral importers are closer to having another two-plus years of duty-free flowers. A bill extending duty-free status through September 30, 2010, for flowers exported to the United States from four Andean nations has been introduced in the House of Representatives.

The ABC affiliate in Phoenix aired a report on Feb. 7 that explained the deceptive phone listings issue and encouraged consumers to know from whom they are ordering their Valentine's Day flowers.

The positive effects of flowers have been making news around the country in newspapers, magazines and Web sites this month.

FTD Florists rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

Ever dream about giving your boss the old heave ho - or, worse yet, do your employees ponder the same about you? Probably, according to a new Gallup poll, which says that 25 percent of employees would fire their bosses.

Since firing the boss isn't exactly an option (link to previous article), why not just quit and get a new job? That's one idea gaining steam, according to a Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) HR Week article.

A San Francisco artist is bringing flowers into bathrooms in a very new and unexpected way: Clark Sorensen's Nature Calls series of works "is a line of one-of-a-kind, handmade, porcelain [urinals] in the shape of gigantic flowers - art that can actually be plumbed and used in a bathroom," according to a recent Columbia News Service story.

BloomNet is following the green trend, by going paperless, planting trees and rewarding florists who do the same.

A new company is making it easier for consumers in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York to find environmentally-friendly businesses. Greenopia.com acts as a virtual directory of green businesses that are categorized and rated through the "leaf awards."

There is still time to register for Congressional Action Days and the Pest Management Conference. SAF's 28th Annual Congressional Action Days takes place on Feb. 25-26, 2008 in Washington, D.C. Learn the issues and receive step-by-step professional training as you join forces with others from your state to tell your story to your legislators.

• SAF's Congressional Action Days: Feb. 25-26, 2008, in Washington, D.C. Register online.

• SAF's Pest Management Conference: Feb. 28-March 1, 2008, in Atlanta. Register online.

• SAF Palm Beach 2008: Sept. 17-20, 2008, at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla.

In the February 6 Wednesday E-Brief, we attributed the Home Ecology of Flowers Study solely to SAF in the articles "CNN Report Features SAF's Home Ecology Study" and "Florist Uses SAF Study, Promotes Flower Initiative." The Home Ecology of Flowers Study is in fact a direct result of a strategic alliance of SAF with the Flower Promotion Organization (FPO). We regret the error. 

Members are discussing where to buy balloon inflators, how to prevent gerb petals from curling and even strategies to reach out to funeral directors.

The results of last week's e-poll show that 46 percent of respondents are projecting Valentine's Day sales will be down this year.

Last year, more than a third (37 percent) of retail florists provided incentives for customers to order their Valentine's Day flowers early, according to the results of 2007's SAF post-holiday survey.