Your significant other absolutely loves sterling roses. You've been to every florist in the city and every one of them has just run out. A couple of them say they might have the roses in tomorrow, but you had a big surprise planned for this evening. What do you do now?

Well, if you'd thought of it two hours earlier, you could have saved yourself the time and energy of the hunt by letting an online florist farm out the work for you. By looking through an online directory of flowers, instead of shops, you can pick what you want, and have the order sent to a local florist who can fill it. Have the roses delivered with an invitation for a dinner under the stars. Still want to give the flowers personally? No problem, have the florist send them to you and bring them with you on that romantic picnic dinner.

Perhaps you're looking for an exotic plant that you can't even pronounce. In fact, you wrote it down with the correct spelling and phonetically just so you don't sound silly when you call the shop on the phone. You don't even have to put yourself through the trouble, and embarrassing linguistic tongue-tying. A quick scan will tell you which sites have the plant and how long it will take to get it to you. A little more research should be able to tell you just how long it should be in the sun and how often the plant needs to be watered. Some might even tell you just how much your plant will benefit from bedtime stories or singing to it. You can even have it delivered to that person you're trying to impress with your botanical chops, or have it sent to your own house. Score another one for the online florists!

Family far away? Perhaps you have a son or daughter stationed in Germany or France in the military. Maybe you just have family back home in another country, or maybe they've taken a job overseas. It's easy to get homesick when you don't see your loved ones for long stretches of time. You'd like to let them know you're thinking of them, and even though you know they appreciate the letters, you'd like to send something special. Let them know you're thinking about them by sending a small gift or basket through an online florist.

Most online florists have affiliate shops in countries all over the world and can have your delivery of flowers or a gift sent through any one of them, from Argentina to Germany to the Netherlands. You know they'll love it! Everyone loves to get some smiles in the mail.

Many online florists also offer same day delivery which can be very convenient when you are in a hurry for a gift.

To view our list of our most recommended online florists, visit: Recommended Online Florists

Carrie Reeder is the owner of eZerk, an informational website with articles and the latest news about various topics.