Verb agreement when using To Infinitive after ordinal numbers as subject

infinitivesordinal-numbersverb-agreement

I know that after ordinal numbers (the first, the second etc.) we can use to-infinitive clause. E.g:

Ethan was the last person to understand the joke.

My questions is when the above construction acts as the subject of a sentence. Consider this:

Plant scientists have been trying for years to genetically modify
flowers for aesthetic purposes. The first to go on sale were blue
carnations produced by Florigene of Melbourne, Australia, in 1996.

What is the criterion for choosing were after the infinitive? (is it in agreement with the first or the first [flowers])

The sentence is taken from: https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126952-000-valentines-day-special-say-it-with-flowers/#ixzz726Lu0bW6

Best Answer

This is what is known as synesis, or notional agreement.

It’s “sense over syntax”; the meaning rules the subject-verb agreement.

Compare:

Plant scientists have been trying for years to genetically modify flowers for aesthetic purposes. The first [modified flowers] to go on sale were blue carnations produced by Florigene of Melbourne, Australia, in 1996.

and:

Plant scientists have been trying for years to genetically modify the carnation for aesthetic purposes. The first [modified carnation] to go on sale was the blue carnation produced by Florigene of Melbourne, Australia, in 1996.

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