View Comments With causes ranging from rioting in Colombia to a volcano in Chile to COVID-19, there has been a flower shortage this year. "It's a number of factors leading up to a holiday where everybody wants flowers," said Josh Maurer, general manager for Alta Florist & Greenhouse on South Home Road in Mansfield. Maurer was, of course, referring to Mother's Day, the second biggest day for flowers after Valentine's Day. Most florists and owners who talked to the News Journal say they have weathered the literal storm. Cold, floods in South America The flower-growing region in South America experienced a stretch of cold weather, followed by flooding that made roads inaccessible.