Minnesota-grown flowers for Valentine's Day

St. Paul, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Department of Agriculture has a proposal for Valentine's Day - show your love with Minnesota-grown flowers.

Even though it's the middle of winter, the department says many retailers and florists statewide offer a variety of Minnesota-grown flowers in gorgeous colors. It suggests looking for bouquets wrapped with the official Minnesota Grown label.

Marc and Jaque Halverson of Brainerd Floral in Brainerd say they make it a priority to purchase Minnesota-grown flowers whenever possible.

Len Busch Roses in Plymouth grows and distributes nearly 10 million roses and fresh cut flowers each year to retail florists in a five-state area. The company is the largest rose grower in the U.S. outside of California, and says it employs 180 full-time employees.

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On the Net:

Minnesota Grown program: http://www.minnesotagrown.com

Len Busch Roses: http://www.lenbuschroses.com

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