By Miriam Fauzia, The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS — While Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate love, for the 250 million roses and other floral bouquets produced for the holiday, it means a slow death.

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That countdown is driven in part by ethylene, a natural plant hormone that speeds up aging in cut flowers. Researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington are testing new ways to blunt ethylene’s effects, with the goal of helping bouquets and fresh produce last longer. Here’s what to know.

What is ethylene?

Plants produce ethylene — an odorless, colorless gas — as they age, when damaged and in response to shifts in temperature, sunlight and other environmental stressors.

“Ethylene plays a vital role in nature, from fruit ripening to leaf drop to seed germination,” Rasika Dias, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry at UT Arlington leading the research, said in a news release. “For instance, fruits such as bananas, avocados and pears ripen because of ethylene. This ripening process transforms starch into sugars, which explains why ripe fruit tastes sweet.”

Because ethylene can drift through the air, it can affect nearby plants, which is why a ripe banana can speed the ripening of other fruit. Depending on how much ethylene is circulating, the gas can visibly age a plant, triggering the yellowing and dropping of leaves, and shortening how long a bouquet can last, according to the American Floral Endowment.

Shipping and storage can amplify those aging effects. Stress and mechanical damage can spur plants to release more ethylene, hastening deterioration unless growers and distributors intervene with anti-ethylene treatments.

Switching off ethylene

To slow ethylene’s effects, floral and produce industries often use 1-methylcyclopropene, or 1-MCP, a chemical discovered in the mid-1990s. It works like an ethylene decoy, attaching to the same places in plant cells that ethylene normally would. But unlike the gas, 1-MCP doesn’t trigger ripening or aging. Instead, it blocks ethylene’s signal from getting through, slowing a plant’s wilting or a fruit’s ripening.

But using 1-MCP has drawbacks. The chemical is highly reactive, can be tricky to handle and typically must be applied in sealed or enclosed spaces to work effectively, according to the American Floral Endowment. And because its effects can last for an extended period, 1-MCP may prevent some fruits from ripening.

With support from the American Floral Endowment and the United States Department of Agriculture, Dias and his lab at UT Arlington are testing alternatives to 1-MCP that aren’t volatile. Some of the most promising candidates include compounds built around metals such as copper. To see whether they slow the wilting process, the researchers take about 30 freshly cut flowers and divide them into three groups: untreated, treated with existing commercial products and treated with the new compounds.

“You monitor how long each group lasts — how fast petals drop, how quickly they wilt,” Dias said in the news release. “If the treated flowers last significantly longer than the untreated ones, that compound shows promise.”

In addition to helping with flowers, Dias hopes the research will reduce food waste. In 2019, 66.2 million tons of wasted food were generated in the food retail, food service and residential sectors, with about 60% ending up in landfills; another 40.1 million tons came from food and beverage manufacturing and processing, according to a 2019 report by the Environmental Protection Agency.

“Fruits and vegetables are thrown away when they over-ripen — bananas turn brown, tomatoes become too soft and people won’t buy them,” Dias said. “This is a major issue during shipping, since most food travels long distances. Without treatment, much of it deteriorates before reaching stores. That’s a huge economic and food-security problem.”

Miriam Fauzia is a science reporting fellow at The Dallas Morning News. Her fellowship is supported by the University of Texas at Dallas. The News makes all editorial decisions.

©2026 The Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

By FARAI MUTSAKA

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Liquidity as affection and trash as a symbol of enduring love. From bouquets fashioned from dollar bills to heart-shaped gifts forged from recycled scrap metal, romance in Zimbabwe is taking strikingly inventive forms, reflecting life in an economy where cash reigns supreme and sustainability gains new social value.

You can’t buy love, the saying goes. But from florists in traditional markets to social media sellers angling for attention on TikTok, dollar bills rolled and pinned together to resemble a floral bouquet are increasingly rivaling fresh flowers as Valentine Day’s most coveted tokens of appreciation in the southern African country.

“Please God, make my lover see this,” commented one TikTok user under a video advertising glittering cash-and-flower arrangements. “May this bouquet locate me in Jesus name, amen,” wrote another.

Cash as courtship

At a decades-old flower market in the capital, Harare, Tongai Mufandaedza, a florist, patiently assembled one such “money bouquet.” Using adhesive and bamboo sticks, he folded crisp $50 notes into decorative cone shapes, weaving them with stems of white roses.

As Valentine’s Day approaches, he expects business to surge.

“The market has improved because of the money bouquets,” said Mufandaedza, who has worked at the country’s biggest flower market for three decades.

“On Valentine’s Day, we are going to have more, more, more customers, because this is something which is trending. Everyone wants to impress,” he said, then patched the arrangement in bright red wrapping and ribbons.

Among those browsing the market was Kimberleigh Kawadza. Her preference was clear.

“The person who came up with the trend, I just need to give them a hands up. They did a good job,” said the 23-year-old. “It’s a way of appreciating my partner, it’s a 100 for me, it’s a 100.”

Practical romance

While Generation Z is driving the craze, Mufandaedza said demand is spreading across generations. Some parents, he added, are even buying money bouquets for their daughters “so that they don’t fall into peer pressure and get tempted to go for sugar daddies who can lure them with such gifts.”

Prices vary widely. Smaller bouquets may contain as little as $10, while larger arrangements can run into the thousands. In some cases, they are even cheaper than traditional floral gifts.

A bouquet of dollar notes with a value of $10 costs $25, while a bouquet of 10 good-grade red roses costs between $35 and $40, he said. Many ask “where is the money?” if Mufandaedza delivers a bouquet of flowers without a cash design, he said.

Unlike traditional floral gifts, the appeal of money bouquets is as practical as it is romantic for Zimbabwe’s economic realities, where liquidity often carries more immediate value than luxury.

“People still love flowers, but when they see the notes on top, the love feels hotter and the gesture even more meaningful. Survival matters more in these difficult times and money plays a bigger role,” he said.

The U.S. dollar has dominated transactions since hyperinflation forced authorities to abandon the local currency in 2009. Although Zimbabwe has since reintroduced its own currency, the dollar remains legal and dominant.

With crisp notes scarce, worn and tattered U.S. bills, sometimes jokingly referred to as “war veterans,” are hardly suitable for decorative bouquets, spawning spin-off businesses of enterprising traders who supply clean replacement notes at a commission.

Zimbabwe isn’t alone in flirting with the fusion of cash and courtship. Money bouquets have also surged in popularity elsewhere in Africa, including Kenya, one of the world’s largest flower exporters.

Before Valentine’s Day, Kenya’s central bank warned of stiff penalties of up to seven years in prison for folding, stapling or gluing banknotes into bouquets, arguing that damaged currency disrupts cash-handling systems and violates laws against defacing money. The directive sparked lively debate online, with critics accusing regulators of overreach.

Stephanie Charlton, the owner of a gift shop that retails in recycled aluminium gifts, holds “love” signs in Harare, Zimbabwe, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Ufumeli)

Love from scrap

Back in Zimbabwe, no such restrictions exist. But for some, love is finding expression not just through cash, but through trash recycled into keepsakes.

At an upscale shopping center in Harare, aluminium heart-shaped key rings, necklaces, platters and wine holders crafted from reclaimed scrap were lined up next to chocolates and gift boxes in Simpli Simbi, a decor and gift shop. “Simbi” means metal in the local Shona language.

“We are taking something that was unloved before, polishing it up and making it beautiful again towards a gift to someone that they can treasure forever,” said Stephanie Charlton, founder of the shop.

Charlton said that her customer base, once dominated by tourists and diaspora Zimbabweans, is increasingly local because of rising environmental awareness.

In an industrial area nearby, her foundry was stacked with discarded car radiators, rims and scrap metal collected from roadsides and landfills, before being melted in an open furnace and transformed into handmade gifts.

“Women love chocolates and flowers, but they are here today, gone tomorrow,” said Charlton, a former horticulture exporter who now employs 20 people.

“This is something that we have collected that would be filling up a landfill. But we have made it into something beautiful that you can give to (your valentine), show them that you treasure them. There is a meaning behind it, there is a story to be told with each piece.”

Associated Press writer Evelyne Musambi contributed to this report from Nairobi, Kenya.

For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Tabitha Peterson landed her closing stone on the button Friday to make Team USA curling history, giving the Americans a 9-8 win over Canada in Cortina D’Ampezza, Italy.

United States’ Tara Peterson reacts during the women’s curling round robin session against Canada, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Misper Apawu)

The shot sealed Team USA’s first-ever Olympic victory over their neighbors to the north after eight previous losses.

Canada has won each of the past two World Championships, with star skipper Rachel Homan beating Peterson and Co. 8-4 in last year’s World Championship group play battle.

The win also improved Team Peterson — which features East Metro sisters Tabitha and Tara Peterson as well as Taylor Anderson-Heide and Cory Thiesse, the latter of whom won a silver in mixed doubles earlier in these Olympics —to 2-1 in group play.

The Americans next play Japan at 12:05 p.m. Central on Saturday. They finished Friday’s slate tied for third in group play alongside South Korea, a team the U.S. already has toppled. The Americans’ lone loss is to Sweden, which sits atop the table as the lone 3-0 team.

The top four teams at the end of group play reach the medal rounds. The Americans have never medaled in women’s curling.

Friday’s affair was a back-and-forth thriller in which Canada held early leads of 2-0 and 3-2, but the Americans were propelled by a 4-point end in the sixth.

Team USA led 7-5 heading into the ninth, but a missed double on its final stone left the door open for Canada, which capitalized for a 3-point end to capture an 8-7 advantage heading into the 10th end

But it was the Canadians who erred in the final frame, with Homan failing to connect on a double on a fairly simple draw with their closing stone, which set the stage for Peterson’s walk-off winner.

NBC Sports play by play man Jim Kozimor called the victory the “Biggest win in U.S. history.”

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“The child care industry requires an immediate jumpstart to support this expansion. Incentives for entry-level employees can balance the low-wages and school debt that come with being a teacher.”

Mayor Zohran Mamdani visits a home-based childcare provider in Manhattan on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

New York City is once again daring to lead as Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced a proposal to increase funding and take a major step towards implementing Universal Child Care. With this initiative, we have a once in a generation opportunity to change the lives of working families. 

Care for children from 6 weeks to age 2 is complex, workforce intensive, and costly to deliver. If universal child care is going to become a reality, it must be built with, not merely for, the providers who already carry the system. To ensure it is sustainable, equitable, and grounded in operational reality, we must include family child care providers, community based nonprofit organizations, and long standing neighborhood institutions that have served working families for decades. 

We need more highly-trained educators to make universal child care possible. A lot more. Gov. Hochul’s proposals for strengthening the workforce pipeline by partnering with higher education are laudable, but the child care industry requires an immediate jumpstart to support this expansion. Incentives for entry-level employees can balance the low-wages and school debt that come with being a teacher. 

We must think big—like making tuition at CUNY and SUNY schools free for students pursuing Early Childhood degrees who commit to working for community based organizations serving children 2 and under. This would immediately improve our pipeline and bring new, highly trained educators into the workforce. 

Universal child care must start with affordability for families, but it must also deliver stability for providers. Child care providers operate on razor thin margins. Payments are delayed. Contracts are complicated and unpredictable. Federal funding disruptions have frozen hiring and strained programs that families rely on. Without reform, even well intentioned universal policies risk accelerating provider closures and consolidation, undermining access and stability in the very communities that need care the most. 

That means predictable, multi-year funding. It means modernizing city procurement and payment systems that ensure timely reimbursement and reliable cash flow. And critically, it means valuing teachers with appropriate salary and benefits whether they work for the Department of Education or local community providers. 

Salary parity is essential to recruiting and retaining qualified educators, reducing turnover, and ensuring consistent quality across all programs. The current system pays teachers at programs operated by New York City Schools more than those at other providers, creating constant turnover and instability. Highly trained educators doing the same work for the same public purpose should not be paid differently simply because they work in community based settings, rather than city-run programs.

Importantly, we must ensure access for all families for truly universal care by making it possible for child care centers to operate throughout the city. Government owned buildings, public housing, mixed use developments, and underutilized commercial space all represent opportunities to expand child care supply in high need neighborhoods if paired with smart capital investment from government and thoughtful real estate incentives. 

New York has built durable public systems before. Our public schools and public health infrastructure did not emerge overnight. They were built deliberately, with phased implementation, clear standards, and shared responsibility across government, labor, philanthropy, and the private sector. 

Universal Child Care deserves the same seriousness. 

That is why implementation must be guided by broad cross sector engagement that brings parents, providers, educators, labor, and community voices to the table. 

Done right, universal child care will be one of the most powerful workforce, equity, and economic development strategies New York City has ever pursued. The mayor and governor have made this a defining priority. Now the task before us is to deliver a system that is ambitious and durable. 

Rita Joseph represents Brooklyn’s District 40 in the New York City Council and serves as chair of the Council’s Committee on Higher Education. Robert Cordero is chief executive pofficer of Grand Street Settlement, one of New York City’s largest community based early childhood and family service organizations.

The post Opinion: Universal Child Care Must Work for the Providers Who Make It Possible appeared first on City Limits.