Formation of the Japanese Floriculture in Northern California

Abstract

Japanese immigrant agriculturists on the west coast of the United States in the pre-World War II period enjoyed a highly competitive position with their small but labor intensive operations even under social conditions that often discouraged their activities. One of the biggest factors in their competitive success in agriculture was their organizational effectiveness. Ethnic solidarity was maintained by first generation immigrants of most ethnic backgrounds both in fraternal and economic activities and they tended to cluster geographically and by occupation. But the Japanese agriculturists developed especially tight and efficient organizations to meet special needs and to protect themselves in this new and unaccustomed environment.The present paper describes and analyzes the development of Japanese floriculture in the San Francisco Bay Area from its beginnings in the late nineteenth century to the World War II relocation of the Japanese, with special emphasis on grower organizations as a key factor in their success.The early pioneering efforts and success of the immigrants, who were mostly of rural background, invited the participation of other Japanese in commercial flower production. The mild climatic conditions of the Bay Area, especially the absense of temperature extremes, were favorable for cut flower production, and the rapidly growing population created an increasing demand. Although two other ethnic groups, Italians and Chinese, were already in the business when the Japanese first started to grow flowers commercially, the industry itself was not fully organized. The Japanese thus moved into a niche that was waiting to be filled.In the early period the Japanese flower growers were mainly located in the East Bay region, producing carnations, roses and chrysanthemums in greenhouses. Marketing of flowers was undertaken on an individual basis, peddling them from wicker or bamboo baskets carried on the back or by opening flower stands on busy streets, which was generally inefficient and time consuming. As the number of growers increased and production expanded, intense competition developed among them. Gradually they became aware of a need for their own trade organization and marketing facility.