THE SPACE DIMENSION OF THE ORNAMENTAL PLANTS AND FLOWERS NETWORK OF THE STATE OF RIO DE JANEIRO: AN ANALYSIS FROM NOVA FRIBURGO MUNICIPALITY, BETWEEN 2002 AND 2018

Abstract

Global data on world trade in flowers and ornamental plants show the growth of production and consumption of this segment in recent decades, including in Brazil. This research shows how the trade in flowers and ornamental plants is organized in the form of geographic networks, since both production and consumption articulate different spaces. In the constitution of the network of flowers and ornamental plants, it is essential to identify its agents or spatial elements and the interactions established between them. The interactions between these agents occur at different scales (local, regional, national or global). Both the connection and the scale – marks of the spatial dimension – are largely influenced by the temporal dimension, which in turn is influenced by the intensity of flows, duration and frequency. These considerations are important for the identification of the different networks of  flowers and ornamental plants addressed during the research: the global, led by the relations established by the Netherlands; the national, based on the activities of the cooperatives of São Paulo, and the regional, through the network of flowers and ornamental plants found in the territory of Rio de Janeiro state. In the territory of the state of Rio de Janeiro, the formation of the network of flowers and ornamental plants is analyzed from the spatial interactions established through the rural area of Nova Friburgo, the municipality with the largest number of producers in the state and which stands out in the cultivation of cut flowers. The time cut begins in 2002, and extends until the year 2018, when the last field surveys were carried out. The methodological path has as its reference the qualitative approach such in the selection of the theoretical references as in the analyses of the field collected data though observation, images, segment diagnostics and interviews with network space agents. It is hoped that this research will serve as a further reflection tool for the decision-making of actions that may contribute to the development of such a relevant segment to the state of Rio de Janeiro.