There is no replacement for fresh roses on Valentine's Day.

It's one of the busiest times of the year for florists, who sell hundreds of flower arrangements up to and on the 14th.Denise Sebelin, owner of Deezines Flowers & Gifts in Jim Thorpe, said that Valentine's Day is the busiest single day of the year for florists.So busy in fact, that several florists said they were too busy to comment Monday night.At Petal Pushers Floral Company in Hometown, husband and wife co-owners Kathy Schock and Joel Essington were hard at work. It's the first Valentine's Day that the former Guy's Flowers & More is under new ownership.The walk-in cooler was full, with bouquets ready for delivery at 9 a.m. Some deliveries had already gone out on Monday."Some people don't like them, but the majority are roses. Red, white and pink are the big sellers," Essington said.They started preparing in mid-January, when wholesale rose growers wanted their orders submitted.In all, they sold more than 1,400 roses alone in the days leading up to the holiday. It's the most they'll sell during the year. Only Mother's Day, Easter and Memorial Day come close, Essington said.The real work began late last week, when Essington and his wife, Kathy, started unboxing and cleaning more than 1,000 roses of their thorns. The roses are then placed in water and ready for delivery."If they get them delivered, they want them delivered to work. Everybody wants their other half to have it at 9 o'clock," Joel Essington said.On Valentine's Day, Essington is a popular sight at offices around western Carbon and eastern Schuylkill counties, as he delivers bouquets.Schock joked that she should have taught Joel to arrange the flowers so that she could see the satisfied customers.The florist will stay open until 7 p.m. today and has plenty of flowers in stock for latecomers who want to find the perfect bouquet."If you're driving by at 2:30 in the afternoon and remember you forgot to buy flowers - you can give us a call and we'll try do something for you," Essington said.