A TURKISH ROSE

Artisoy — Ever since I was a little girl, roses have always been in my life. Everyone in my family, and everyone that I know, has been farming roses to make a living. I started harvesting the roses myself at the age of sixteen.

Artisoy — Harvesting roses is not only a job for me. It’s something that I also enjoy doing. You can always find work that will pay you, but being with the roses is something very special that makes me feel good.

Artisoy — I’m not sure how the roses came to this area, but it was way before I was born. This is an ancient tradition in this part of the world. It’s a symbol that represents Isparta and all of Turkey as well.

Artisoy — I am in charge of twenty-five to thirty workers. We are all women, and we also work together at different times of the year harvesting various crops in the area. We are all from this area, some are my relatives. It’s fun to work together. We always find something to laugh about, especially when enjoying our lunch together. We play music and dance when it is the right time. There is no stress, no worries here.

Artisoy — The best time to harvest roses is early in the morning at first light. The blooms must be freshly blossomed and pink in order to be full of oil. As the day progresses, the sun matures the rose. When the sun shines on the flowers that have bloomed, they lose their preciousness. The oil dries out, the petals become whiter and spread before falling out. Therefore, we have to work very quickly to harvest the best roses in the morning hours before this happens.

Artisoy — It really depends on the day. Usually my team and I can harvest one and a half tons a day during the peak season. We have much larger fields now, so there are many roses to pick. Sometimes we will work in the fields picking roses from five in the morning until five in the afternoon. Of course, it is better to harvest the flowers in the morning, but there aren’t enough of us to make it to all the rose fields. These are long days, but it’s wonderful because you are surrounded by the smell of roses.

Artisoy — We collect the petals and then take them to the factory to be weighed, and prepared for distillation. There they process the petals to extract the rose oil and rose water. I don’t see this part of the work, so I am not familiar with the exact process. I know that they will be used to make perfumes and beauty products.

Artisoy — I look forward to waking up in the morning during the season, knowing that I will be going into the fields. Everywhere in the air, it smells of roses. I fill with joy, and forget about any problems.