A world of industry ideas at the Keukenhof

Transcription

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KeukenhofSpecial2010•www.floracultureinternational.com
The business magazine for floriculture worldwide
A world of industry ideas
at the Keukenhof
DAFFODILS
Growers showcase latest
varieties 14
CARNATION
Dianthus
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ED GROOT • Email: [email protected]
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CORY SANCHEZ • Email: [email protected]
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The worldwide market leader in lily breeding
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Preface
From Russia with Love is the challenging
theme for Keukenhof 2010. With this theme
the international flower exhibition in Lisse refers to a “massive, magnificent and mysterious
country’. Russia is also an exceptional country
with an exceptional past. Keukenhof 2010 will
highlight different aspects of Russian society: at
the world’s most famous Spring Garden visitors
will be able to see a spectacular flower mosaic
of the famous Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow made of more than 25,0000 flower bulbs,
while this year Keukenhof ’s mini zoo will be
home to typical Russian animals. Furthermore
events will be organized with a Russian theme
and a special Russian garden including the
inevitable dacha and matryoshka dolls will be
designed.
In recent years, Keukenhof has based its events
on a particular theme. China, and in particular
Beijing, was the theme in the Olympic year of
2008 and last year the chosen theme was ‘USA,
New Amsterdam - New York, 400 years’, drawing attention to the fact that four centuries ago
Henry Hudson sailed up the river later named
after him, laying the foundation for what is
now New York. The commemorations of the
birthdays of Dutch Master Rembrandt van
Rijn and the Swedish biologist Carolus Linnaeus also inspired Keukenhof.
Keukenhof closed its sixtieth edition last year
with a record number of visitors. The origin
of these visitors was perhaps influenced by the
worldwide recession: there were more Dutch,
Belgian and German visitors and a remarkable
number from France and China. In contrast,
there was significantly less interest from the UK
and the USA.
At Keukenhof tulips take centre stage, followed
by special summer flowers, and then chrysanthemums. Are roses and gerberas your passion? – or maybe carnations and Hydrangeas?
Daffodils? These days they come in more and
more varieties, with yellow continuing as the
basic colour, but where white, orange, rose red,
cognac and shades of green provide ever-richer
diversity. Every one of these Keukenhof flower
shows is a feast for the eyes.
The shows are held in three special flower
and plant pavilions: Oranje Nassau, Willem
Alexander and Beatrix. Here you will be treated
to superb examples of flower arranging, and
growers use all their skills and experience to
create exhibitions of unsurpassed beauty.
The official opening of Keukenhof 2010 is on
18 March, after which it will be open to the
public until 16 May.
Keukenhof Show Calendar 2010
From 18 March to 16 May Keukenhof presents a permanent floral abundance of unprecedented beauty, in
three specially designed pavilions. This year there are about sixteen permanent and varying indoor shows.
They promise visitors a genuine ‘spring experience’, with thousands of delightful flowers and colours in classic, contemporary and futuristic arrangements. Thanks to these indoor shows Keukenhof is always attractive:
a nine-week long guaranteed sense of spring!
The three special flower and plant pavilions, the Oranje Nassau, Willem Alexander, and Beatrix pavilions,
are located in different areas of the 32 hectare floral park in Lisse. The royal names reflect the majestic
grandeur of the floral splendour. Internationally renowned arrangers present magnificent examples of high
quality flower arrangements, working very familiar flowers and plants in surprising new ways.
Oranje Nassau Pavilion
19-23 March
25-30 March
1-6 April
8-13 April
15-20 April
22-27 April
29 April-5 May
7-16 May
Amaryllis, Fresias and Tulips
Chrysanthemums
Roses
Gerberas
Asters, Limonium, Bouvardia, Saintpaulia (African Violet) and Kalanchoe
Narcissi, Daffodils and unusual bulbs
Alstroemeria, Irises, Lisianthus and Lathyrus
Carnations, Cut flower Hydrangeas, Zantedeschia and Summer flowers (Peonies)
Beatrix Pavilion
18 March-16 May
Orchids, Anthuriums and Bromelias
Willem Alexander Pavilion
18-30 March
18 March-27 April
18 March-16 April
18 March-16 May
16 April-16 May
18 March-16 May
6-16 May
Hyacinths
Tulips, Narcissi and Daffodils
Flowering shrubs (Syringa (Lilac), Viburnum, Prunus and Forsythia)
Cyclamens, Potted Hydrangeas and Begonias
Perennials
Flowering bulbs: Iris, Narcissus, Daffodil, Tulip, Lily, Amaryllis, Zantedeschia, etc.
Lily
Colofon
‘Flower Industry inspired by Keukenhof’ is a special edition of the Keukenhof Spring Gardens and the
monthly business magazine FloraCulture International. All rights reserved. No portion of editorial may be
reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher. Publisher is not liable for advertisements
using illegally obtained images.
Editorial & Administration Offices
FloraCulture International B.V.
Vondelstraat 162, 1054 GV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
T (31) 20 618 2 666 F (31) 20 618 1 333
Editor-in-chief: Ron van der Ploeg ([email protected])
Contributing writers: Anabel Evans
Photography: Keukenhof
Publisher: FloraCulture International B.V. ([email protected])
Printer: Habo DaCosta
Designer: Stadsdrukkerij Amsterdam, Alexis Wrona
Advertising Sales Offices
Dennis Seriese ([email protected])
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T. (31) 20 61 82 666 F (31) 20 61 88 333 M (31) 62 21 65 220
Table of Contents
March 2010 Keukenhof Special
Head to Keukenhof for
8 weeks of Daffodil beauty
The most beautiful Freesias
in the world
Sweet Freesia flower scent will fill the rooms,
while long-stemmed flowers with soft blue,
virgin white, vivid red and cheery yellow will
catch the Keukenhof visitor’s eye.
“Participating in the world’s largest Daffodil Show at the Keukenhof offers the grower an excellent
opportunity to identify his strong and weak points”, summarizes daffodil breeder and grower Jaap
Leenen as the importance of the event which is set to be held from April 22 to 27, 2010.
14
by Ron van der Ploeg
The interview
Mr. Piet de Vries, managing director of
Keukenhof, was asked to unveil the details of
the 2010 edition of Keukenhof.
06
Dutch tulips remain irresistible
Tulips are a topper in the huge seasonal
market dominated by the Dutch flower bulb
forcers and are a dominant feature of the
Keukenhof.
by Anabel Evans
09
The world’s largest lily
show
The Lily Parade is the most important event of
the year for the breeders, bulb-producers and
many professional flower growers.
by Anabel Evans
Head to Keukenhof for
6 weeks of Daffodil beauty
10
“Participating in the world’s largest Daffodil
Show at the Keukenhof offers the grower an
excellent opportunity to identify his strong and
weak points”, summarizes daffodil breeder and
grower Jaap Leenen as the importance of the
event which is set to be held from April 22 to
27, 2010.
14
Seeing is buying
“The Specialty Flower Bulbs Show showcases
bulbous, cormous and tuberous plants of such
beauty that it would be a shame if they would
remain unknown to a larger audience”, says
John Boots.
17
A powerful way to promote
Lisianthus
Spectacular
Orchids Display
From March 18 to May 16, 2010, the Beatrix
Pavilion at the Keukenhof becomes the home
of a spectacular display of orchids.
by Anabel Evans
Alstroemeria Show is set
to boost sales worldwide
18
21
Awsome Anthuriums
From March 18 to May 16, 2010, members
of the Dutch Cut Anthurium Association
will participate in the Anthurium Indoor
Show being held in the Beatrix Pavilion at the
Keukenhof.
by Anabel Evans
22
A small but beautiful crop
Strongly supported by Dutch breeder HilverdaKooij, the Dutch Limonium industry will
run a high impact Limonium Show from April
15 to 20, 2010 at Keukenhof.
Perennial popularity
24
Perennial popularity is on the rise as new varieties, different presentations and
inventive marketing continue to inspire
consumers.
by Anabel Evans
With an estimated 80% of Dutch Lisianthus
growers participating, Keukenhof’s
Lisianthus Show is strongly
supported by the sector.
29
Rose Show
As breeding and propagation have led to
stronger and more colourful Alstroemerias,
these exotic flowers are becoming more popular every year. The Keukenhof Alstroemeria
will take place between
April 29 and May 5.
26
25
If you want to see the richest possible display
of rosy red hues, you must not miss the special
rose show that will be held in the Oranje Nassau Pavilion from 1 to 6 April.
31
An absolute must see
Carnation grower Martin Zwinkels along with
former carnation colleagues Rien van Dam
and Han Wijnands consider the Keukenhof
Carnation Show as one of the best ways of
promotion.
32
New in Keukenhof
New in Keukenhof: the Discovery Tour. Explore the park using modern audio and visual
communication aids. Also new in Keukenhof
is the fashion exhibition Gone with the Wind
taking place between March 18 to May 16
2010.
Fashionable
Chrysanthemums
33
The Keukenhof Chrysanthemum Show helps
to give the Chrysanthemum a new image
amongst national and international
visitors.
34
Keukenhof Special 2010 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com
05
The interview
Keukenhof has
fought off the global
economic crisis by
attracting 870,000
visitors last year.
Finances have been
increased by a surge
in visitors due to
a trend towards
a more natural
life style with
more respect for
nature and natural
products, and by
a trend towards
‘staycations’.
“With regards
to the weekly
visitor numbers,
Keukenhof ranks
as the Netherlands
most visited paidfor attractions”,
says Keukenhof’s
managing director
Piet de Vries.
‘If you didn’t visit
Keukenhof, you
didn’t visit Holland’
S
ince the Keukenhof was first
opened in March 1949, it has
now welcomed 45 million
visitors, more than the population of Canada. Dutch tourism
authorities say tourist figures have
stood up well against the recession,
with other attractions including
the Anne Frank House, Madam
Tusssauds and Madurodam all
performing to budget.
Most visited tourist
attraction in Holland
It’s a great moment for FloraCulture
International to have this one to
one with Keukenhof, Mr De Vries.
How is Keukenhof doing?
“Very well indeed. Firstly in terms
of number of visitors. Keukenhof
ranks as one of Holland’s top 20
tourist attractions. Regarding the
number of visitors per week we
are by far the most visited tourist
attraction in Holland. Secondly,
according to the latest visitor survey
visitors really enjoy the Keukenhof.
Of a total sample of 1,000 visitors
Keukenhof scored an overall score
of 8.7, where the average Dutch
tourist attraction gets normally
an 8.0. We are doing well and are
ready to develop new business opportunities in this park.”
In Russian style
According to De Vries the 2010
edition of Keukenhof will be
particularly exciting with the world
famous Spring Garden celebrating
its 61st anniversary in Russian style.
“Since a few years we have developed a thematic approach bringing
a new key market and our central
theme closer together. This generates lots of free publicity. In 2008
we focused on the Scandinavian
market by putting Linnaeus in the
spotlight. The year after the theme
was China and the Olympic games
and 2009 marked the fourth centenary of the historic relationship between the Netherlands and the US,
so the US and New York’s founder
Henry Hudson were chosen as the
theme. This year we put our focus
on Russia with ‘From Russia with
Love’, a more general theme which
is not linked to specific people.
Literally it refers to the James Bond
agent 007 but we don’t like to pay
too much attention to this since this
Bond movie didn’t really contribute
to the positive image of Russia.”
In October 2009, His Excellency
Mr K.G. Gevorgian, Russian ambassador to the Netherlands, joined
forces with Keukenhof to add the
final touches to the flower bulb mosaic of St. Basil’s Cathedral. From
that moment on approximately
seven million flower bulbs were
planted in the park.
More to discover
Initially the priority was on bulb
flowers, but at Keukenhof there is
more to discover.
Aside from the outdoor park,
Keukenhof offers no less than 12
indoor flower shows showcasing
tulips, orchids, roses, daffodils,
mums and all other kind of flowers
you could imagine. Each breeder
or grower is invited to take part in
these exhibitions including a VKC
(the permanent judging committee) quality competition. These
flower shows address a wide audience, from consumer to industry
peers and serve as an important
platform for the exchange of ideas
and research findings. In the four
pavilions breeders, growers and
buyers will find not only the most
beautiful varieties but also the
latest breeding breakthroughs. The
Keukenhof Lily Show deserves a
special mention with more than
30,000 lilies coming in more than
300 varieties. Not only the world’s
largest but also the most interesting show for foreign growers since
most lily breeders are located in the
Netherlands and participate.”
Internationalisation of
bulb growing
70% of the Keukenhof visitors
come from abroad. As the internationalization of the world-famous
Spring Garden progresses, the internationalization of bulb growing
progresses at the same pace. China,
Chile, New Zealand are new bulb
producers. What will be left for the
Netherlands? “Much”, replies De
Vries, “We reckon Holland has the
right climate and a long tradition in
bulb growing. Dutch bulb growing
is not all about competition. The
key question for all entrepreneurs
together is how we can market our
flower bulbs all over the world.
There are so many people left
who still don’t plant bulbs in their
garden. Not because they are not
interested in it but just because they
are too far away from Holland or
the local weather conditions are not
suitable. But the world market for
flower bulbs is so big that there will
be plenty left for Holland.“
In the meantime the number of
bulb growers has decreased by 40%
since 1990, “But the total production area has remained more or
less the same. Furthermore, there
is less spacing between the bulbs
so the production per square meter
increased”, ensures De Vries.
Piet de Vries’ finest hour welcoming the Swedish crown princess
Victoria at the Keukenhof.
Huge promotion
Bulb growers supply each year 7
million bulbs for free. In return
they will be assigned a big stand
at Keukenhof and they can invite
their customers for free. The larger
the exporter the bigger the stand?
“Well, in 1949 some leading bulb
growers, buyers and the Mayor of
Lisse came to an agreement with
the landlord, the Duke Van Linden,
and started with the first edition
of Keukenhof, covering the same
area of land as today’s exhibition:
32 ha. At that time each grower
had his own stand and planted the
bulbs by himself. Today, things
are slightly different although
the grower still occupies his own
stand. In the February of the year
preceding the exhibition we ask the
grower what kind of varieties he
wishes to display next season. So,
last month we have listed all varieties for the 2011 season. Next, our
own landscaper will send a design
to the grower. Somewhere in June
he normally agrees, delivering the
bulbs in September. Showcasing
your products at Keukenhof is a
huge promotion, the website of the
participating companies is linked
with the Keukenhof site, providing all the necessary information
on displayed varieties and contact
details”, comments De Vries.
The importance of
the Holland brand
The present day flower industry
is a dynamic, fast growing and >>>
07
The interview
above all global industry. Isn’t it
about time to open Keukenhof to
imported flowers? “Keukenhof is
the showcase of the Dutch flower
and flower bulb industry. Talking
about the Dutch flower industry
we should realize that a large part
of flowers are grown by Dutch
flower growers running greenhouse operations in important
production countries like Kenya,
Ethiopia or Ecuador. It is true that
the VKC has embarked on a new
course of action increasing its role
outside its national boundaries.
But I repeat that we are the showcase of the Dutch flower industry
although, we are completely independent in that the Keukenhof is
not co-owned by the growers. So,
we are able to open our doors for
foreign products. But here again
a big part of Keukenhof’s success
depends on the Holland brand
including windmills, clogs and
tulips. So we focus on Dutch flow-
ers, but there is no reason to say
this will go on forever.”
In practice it is rather difficult to
convince flower growers to exhibit
at Keukenhof, despite the offered
benefits. “It depends. For the bulb
industry there is a waiting list,
but it is not easy to get the flower
growers here due to a lack of personnel and a traditional business
vision focused on production of
harvested stems. While really they
should also be thinking in terms of
marketing.”
What is the one thing that you
hope visitor’s of Keukenhof go
home with in terms of their experience at the event? “That Keukenhof
has encouraged them to plant flower bulbs in their own garden and to
buy more fresh cut flowers. Also
we hope that they really enjoyed the
event. Then they will act like true
Keukenhof ambassadors stating
that if you didn’t visit Keukenhof
you didn’t visit Holland.“ |||
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Growers’ Association
(KAVB)
150 years of
promoting floral
interests, together
with our members!
In 1860 the KAVB was founded.
The main task at that time was
to organize floral exhibitions.
Nowadays, the KAVB promotes the
national and international interests of
its members (bulb growers, forcers,
breeders and wholesale companies).
An important, international focus of
the KAVB is the registration of flower
bulb cultivars:
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essential that a cultivar can be
identified by its description and
its unique name. For this reason
the KAVB gathers and registers all
cultivars in its databases.
• The KAVB is the international
cultivar registration authority
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25-02-2010 14:30:45
Tulips
Tulips are a topper
in the huge seasonal
market dominated
by the Dutch flower
bulb forcers and
are a dominant
feature of the
Keukenhof with
the outdoor park
area, which covers
32 ha, revealing a
superb showcase
of 4.5 million tulips
in 100 varieties.
Additionally, among
the no less than 12
indoor flower shows,
tulips will be a
definite eye-catcher
inside the Willem
Alexander Pavilion
from 18 March to 27
April 2010.
by Anabel Evans
Dutch tulips
remain irresistible
T
he tulip is seen as one of the
Netherland’s pre-eminent
national symbols and it is,
therefore, not a surprise that the
indoor show of tulips during the
Keukenhof receives a lot of attention from visitors.
VKC Trials
The members of last year’s jury,
representing the VKC Permanent
Judging Committee, were confronted with almost 70 candidates
in the cut tulip category. The
third prize was taken by the red
‘Ile de France’ from B&L Tulips,
described to be a nicely coloured
tulip with a heavy flower quality
positioned beautifully at the top
of the stem. Second and first place
went to Th.C. Hoogenboom & Zn
for the large flowered, cream-yellow
‘Cheers’ and the dark red ‘Pallada’,
respectively. Over the latter, the
jury spoke of a excellent leaf quality,
which is in perfect balance with the
flowers, and an overall high level
of uniformity across the presented
tulips.
Quality
Quality and uniformity is a key
objective of the Dutch tulip forcers,
who have not hesitated to apply
high-technology and the economies
of scale to produce high quality
flowers at a low cost-price, the
majority of which are now exported
to Western European and Scandinavian markets. The President of
the Royal General Bulbgrowers Association (KAVB), Sjaak Langeslag,
says, “There are forcers who grow
75 to 80 million tulip flowers each
year, mainly from their own bulb
production. And while the price
forming for cut tulips in recent
years has slowed down the rapid
increase in production apparent in
early 2007, the Dutch flower bulb
forcing industry remains in a position of slight growth.” Commenting on the price expectations for
this season, Langeslag says, “Tulip
prices have been up and down this
season with some weeks better than
others. In general, and similar to
other cut flowers, we are seeing that
former high market prices have
disappeared; in fact, looking over a
longer time period there is a general
downward trend in average price.”
Enthusiastic second
time exhibitor
One of this year’s participants at the
Keukenhof tulip show, Siem Mun-
ster, confirms that prices have been
variable this season with the run
up to Valentine’s Day seeing an improvement in demand and therefore
price forming. His nursery, Kwekerij Siem Munster, has proven its
success in growing tulips, delivering
around 8 million tulips each year.
Next to the tulips the nursery offers
tulip excursions to foreign visitors
and grows flower bulbs on the field,
around 20 ha. Siem says, “We use
part of these bulbs to produce tulips
in our own greenhouses, the other
part we sell all around the world.”
Siem participated in the Keukenhof for the first time in 2009 and,
in 2010, will be again presenting
up to 15 varieties from a wide
selection of single flowered, double
flowered and parrot tulips grown
in the nursery. He says, “Every year
we carefully make a selection of
different colours, so we can make a
good offer for all of our customers.
Widely known cultivars as Abba,
Viking, Monte Carlo, Prinses Irene,
Winterberg and Purple Prince
can be chosen, or newer cultivars
like Sunny Prince, Candy Prince,
Strong Gold and Escape. We also
produce more exclusive cultivars as
Lucky Parrot and Bright Parrot.”
Three of his other favourites, which
he believes have a strong appeal
during the celebrations around
the International Women’s Day
on March 8, are Super Parrot, Top
Parrot and Dynasty. He ends, “Our
first year at the Keukenhof resulted
in a positive experience with a very
international audience and our
main goal was definitely achieved;
namely, a higher degree of name
recognition for Munster Flowers in
the market and a higher number of
visits to our websites
(www.munsterflowers.nl and
www.tulipexcursion.com).” |||
09
Lily
The Keukenhof Lily
Parade (6th -16 th
May 2010) is the
most important
event of the year
for the breeders,
bulb-producers and
many professional
flower growers. It
is a special event
where the lily sector
comes together
to show its latest
introductions and
share experiences
in an inspirational
and attractive
environment. Many
foreign growers are
present, taking the
opportunity to meet
the breeders and
their bulb-suppliers.
by Anabel Evans
World’s Largest
Lily Show
L
ast year the VKC Permanent
Judging Committee was full
of praise over the 14 exhibiting companies, which included the
worldwide market leader in the field
of lily breeding, Gebr. Vletter &
Den Haan. Together with the stand
of Royal van Zanten Flowerbulbs,
Vletter & Den Haan received close
to the highest number of points
from the VKC jury for their showcase of top quality lilies in a wide
assortment. Another company, the
Lily Company was praised for its
unusual and unique assortment of
historic lilies.
The trend of recent years at the Lily
Parade to have a lower number of
new varieties in the asiatics group
is seen as a consequence of the
introduction of the LA-hybrids.
Compared to the more than a hundred new varieties judged by the
VKC in earlier years, from among
the seven candidates in 2009 the
orange ‘Caluroso’ from De Jong
Lelies received the VKC Award for
Best Asiatic, noted in particular
for its shape and beautiful, bright
coloured flowers.
In the orientals, the white ‘Signum’
from Royal van Zanten catched the
eye of many show-goer, while in the
longiflorum group, ‘White Heaven’
from Mak Breeding is seen as the
most important market leader with
other varieties having so good as
disappeared.
Breeding breakthroughs in the LAhybrids concentrate on the creation
of varieties with less coarse leaves
and a good balance between flowers
and leaves. Vletter & Den Haan
were commended in last year’s jury
rounds by the VKC for developments in this group, and had their
name against the top three varieties.
The white ‘Richmond’ received the
final Award with close runner up being the orange variety ‘Hyde Park’.
Similar to Vletter & Den Haan in
the LA-hybrids, Mak Breeding was
highly praised for its OT-hybrids. In
the LO-hybrid group, where breeders are also highly concentrated on
new developments, the jury chose
‘White Triumph’ from Royal Van
Zanten Flowerbulbs as the winner
for the second year in a row.
The Keukenhof
Lily Show is an
event where the
lily sector comes
together to show
its latest introductions.
10
www.FloraCultureInternational.com | Keukenhof Special 2010
High level again in 2010
In 2010 visitors can expect the same
high level of lily presentations with
the 14 companies again participating in the Lily Parade. In the weeks
before the event FCI asked Nico
Vletter about the current market
situation and their own breeding
developments. “After the worst
year ever for the bulb trade in 2009
and a subsequent reduction in the
hectarage of lily bulb production,
at the end of last year we saw an
improvement in the price forming, which is directly related to the
higher demand for bulbs in the
coming season – in particular from
Asia and South America. Meanwhile, the price forming for the cut
flowers in Europe remains under
pressure. This makes it increasingly
difficult for the flower growers –
facing the predicament of sourcing
(expensive) bulbs while the price for
cut lilies can only be described as
“cheap”.”
Vletter & Den Haan started
importing new lily varieties and
crossings (hybrid material) from
the United States at the end of the
1960s. These were used for forcing
(production) and it was some time
later, Nico Vletter explains, that
they began selecting, breeding and
multiplying lilies themselves.
The four main groups making up
the market for lilies are orientals,
asiatics, longiflorums and the
crossings between the longiflorums
and asiatics (LA and OT hybrids).
The latter group is a prominent
field of development for Vletter &
Den Haan. Nico summarises the
key characteristics of the individual groups: “Oriental hybrids
have either pink/purple or white
flowers, or are bicoloured. The
asiatics are frequently yellow or
orange. Longiflorums are generally
‘Nashville’
‘Eremo’
‘Burlesca’
Unique flowering trial
white in colour and are renowned
for their long, classical cup-shape.
LA-hybrids are mostly apricot or
salmon-coloured. The light scented
OT-hybrids are a crossing between
the orientals and trumpet lilies.”
“Our most important activities involve the multiplication, selection
and breeding of lilies along with
the multiplication and sales of lily
bulbs.” In the field of breeding,
Nico emphasises that quality is
the main priority. He says, “In the
selection programs our intuition
relating to grandeur, when we talk
about lilies, results in the creation
of splendid, intensively coloured
lilies, which with their pleasant
scent, ensure an irresistible pleasure. Life at its best!”
Gebr. Vletter & Den Haan is not
only busy with breeding within the
main groups, they also combine
the powerful characteristics of the
different groups. Crossings made
in a careful manner across groups
target improvements or supplements to the current assortment.
“We use the newest techniques
in breeding and biotechnological
areas for this,” says Nico. Together
with their rich genetic pool, the
company thus has sufficient possibilities to regularly provide the
market with new varieties. The
breeding process not only seeks
to unveil new forms and striking
colours, but there is also a lot of
attention directed towards disease
resistance, productivity, multipleuse potential and long shelf life.
Following on from the VKC
Awards received in 2009, Nico has
similar high hopes for several of
their newest varieties during the
VKC judging this year. He mentions, for example, the LA-hybrids
‘Nashville’ and ‘Eremo’ with
their yellow and orange flowers,
respectively. Among the orientals
his enthusiasm points towards the
soft pink ‘Burlesca’.
The new varieties are always first
tested in-house in cooperation
with a number of prominent bulb
and flower growers in the Netherlands but also Italy, France, Japan
and the USA. Their own production is currently based in the
Netherlands and Chile. Further,
more than 300 bulb growers in the
Netherlands and foreign countries
are growing the company’s lilies
under license. |||
Onings Holland is a renowned exporter of bulbs and tubers. The
Onings family business was established over 60 years ago and
enjoys a strong reputation for quality and reliability. Besides
being a top supplier of lily bulbs, Onings Holland is also a valued
supplier of other bulbs and tubers such as tulips, irises, freesias,
hyacinths, gladioli and a wide range of miscellaneous bulbs for
both growers as well as dry sale purposes. The company sources
the bulbs and tubers from carefully selected growers from around
the world. Before the product finds its way to customers in over
50 countries, the bulbs are strictly inspected at the facilities in
Poeldijk. Additionally, from all lot numbers that lily bulb growers
deliver to Onings, 30 bulbs are selected and planted in the testing
greenhouse. Hans Onings says, “For more than eight years now
we have organized Open Days for our clients from the Netherlands
and abroad to allow them to see this flowering trial in our test
greenhouse located in Poeldijk. With more than 3,000 lot numbers
in all possible bulb sizes of over 500 different varieties, the Open
Days from 6 to 16 May present the industry with the world’s biggest
collection of flowering lilies.”
Hans adds, “The annual Bulb-in-Bloom Days at the Onings testing
greenhouse have long been a highlight for bulb growers, flower
growers, exporters and flower traders to judge and compare all
available lots and varieties (listed by growing location and harvest
date) in one complete planting. We see the number of Dutch and foreign guests increase each year. Growth and flowering performance
of each lot number is monitored and recorded in a detailed test report.
The results are freely available from our website: www.onings.com.
Inside the testing greenhouses we also make sections available for
breeders to show their newer varieties.” The Open Days are timed to
coincide with the Keukenhof Lily Show where Onings Holland will
also be present with a wide assortment of lilies, which are available
to the trade, including the newest varieties.
11
Daffodil
“Participating in
the world’s largest
Daffodil Show at the
Keukenhof offers the
grower an excellent
opportunity to
identify his strong
and weak points”,
summarizes Daffodil
breeder and grower
Jaap Leenen as
the importance of
the event which
is set to be held
from April 22 to 27,
2010. Jaap Leenen
runs together with
his sons Jaco and
Dirk a Daffodil
breeding and
production company
in Sassenheim, the
Netherlands.
14
A kid in a
candy store
T
he forerunner of today’s
official Daffodil Show
first appeared in the 70s
in Hillegom at the weekly flower
bulb performance trials with the
brothers Leenen and the company
Lemmers putting up a modest Daffodil Showcase. This show was not
immediately recognized by the bulb
industry as it received little response
from the exporters. Then, in 1980
Keukenhof director Henk Koster
invited daffodil grower Jaap Leenen
to set up a daffodil stand in Keukenhof’s hothouse. Jaap’s wife Truce
contributed largely to the success of
this show by realizing revolutionary
daffodil arrangements. Following
the Leenen’s success, Keukenhof
inaugurated in 1983 the first edition of Keukenhof’s Daffodil Show
which at that time still carried the
name of Daffodil Parade. “The deal
was simple, Keukenhof paid for the
flower arrangers, while we daffodil
growers had to look for participants. That’s how we started with
four growers from the province of
South Holland and four growers
from the province of North Holland. The show, being held in the
Queen Juliana Pavilion, immediately reported a massive success. In
the second year the event was held
during the weekend of the region’s
annual flower parade attracting a
record number of visitors. Sadly
enough it was extremely hot on
those days and all the flowers
completely wilted. So, in 1985 the
Dutch daffodil growers were the
first to exhibit in the brand new Beatrix Pavilion”, recalls Jaap Leenen,
one of the driving forces behind the
Keukenhof Daffodil Show.
Growing
international reputation
Today, the Keukenhof Daffodil
Show has an established and growing international reputation, bringing together industry professionals
from all over the world. “Every two
years the World Daffodil Convention is being held somewhere in the
world. In 2008 the Netherlands
hosted the event making members of the international daffodil
societies more acquainted with
the Dutch daffodil industry. It
was good to experience how some
misconceptions about the Dutch
daffodil growers, which wrongly are
believed to pursue only quick mass
production and sales to the detriment of quality, were replaced by a
more realistic view and a tremendous overall appreciation.”
An unique showcase
Eighteen growers of the in total 400
Dutch daffodil growers participate
in the Keukenhof Daffodil Show
and although the participants only
represents 4.5% of all growers, the
Left to right: Jaco, Jaap and Dirk Leenen.
show perfectly reflects the current
developments in breeding and marketing concepts. And although it is
pretty common for people to think
that daffodils are always yellow, the
show will feature a wide array of
colours and shapes ranging from
the well-known trumpet daffodils,
large cupped daffodils, smallcupped varieties and double cultivars. “We do know that Keukenhof
is an unique showcase attracting
more than 700,000 visitors, nevertheless we merely exhibit for our 25
customers: Dutch bulb exporting
companies supplying mail order
companies and garden centres all
over the world. Exports account
for up to 90% of our business with
Japan having a 25% market share,
followed by the US with 50%
and Europe 25%. Regarding the
domestic market we mainly sell to
municipal park departments using
our daffodil bulbs for landscaping
purposes”, says Leenen.
Trial garden
According to the 63-year old
Leenen, show participants are offered an unique opportunity to discover their strong and weak points.
“It’s very useful in terms of developing a business strategy. Established
in 1954, W. F Leenen & Zn, has
been active in different market segments. We too have been growing
and trading retail cultivars like
‘Tête à Tête’ and ‘Bridal Crown’,
On Friday February19 old internationals Arnold Mühren and Pier Tol christened Leenen’s
new daffodil ‘Volendam’ at the centre spot on the pitch of the Volendam stadium.
but some years ago we decided to
grow only our own, protected varieties. Dating from 1850, our daffodil
collection is one of the oldest in
Holland. Today we focus on specialty varieties: coloured trumpet
and double flowered daffodils, and
the group of green flowered Narcissus viridiflora. I have to say, in all
modesty, that we’re currently one of
the world’s trend setting companies
for daffodils: big firms in Japan and
the US are preparing their offering
lists and catalogues based on our
new assortment.”
Leenen has no idea what proportion of their annual sales are likely
to be generated at the Keukenhof
Daffodil Show. “We consider it our
trial garden”, says Leenen, “a very
photogenic garden, because during
and right after the show the bulb
export companies receive plenty
of pictures from their customers
asking if they can supply this or
that special variety. Thanks to the
Daffodil Show we can also achieve
dramatic rises in our website’s
traffic. When asked about the disillusion of a Keukenhof visitor when
discovering that the displayed daffodils are not for sale at Keukenhof,
Leenen concludes, “Our goal is to
provide as much entertainment as
possible. Some daffodil show goers
at Keukenhof feel like a child in a
candy shop. But some candies will
simply never be for sale and are
just meant to raise the consumer’s
appetite.” |||
15
WHOLESALE - NURSERY - IMPORT - EXPORT
Leidsestraat 100
Ma
c2
2182 DR Hillegom (Holland)
Telephone +31 (0)252 516 541
Fax
+31 (0)252 520 940
Internet:
www.csweijers.nl
E-mail:
[email protected]
[email protected]
FLOWERBULB SPECIALISTS SINCE 1926
25-02-2010 14:37:02
12-2-10 8:49
PhotoCredit:www.visionspictures.com
Weijers_178x124.indd 1
Advertentie FloraCulture.indd 1
The most
picturesque
Daffodils and Sonatini’s
in the world!
Leenen_178x124.indd 1
25-02-2010 14:32:14
Specialty Flower Bulbs
“Running through
the Keukenhof’s
most busiest Flower
Parade weekend
, the Specialty
Flower Bulbs Show
showcases bulbous,
cormous and
tuberous plants of
such beauty that it
would be a shame if
they would remain
unknown to a larger
audience”, says
managing director
John Boots of bulb
wholesaler C.S
Weijers & Zonen
B.V. headquartered
in Hillegom, the
Netherlands.
Seeing is buying
C
.S. Weijers & Zonen B.V.
began breeding and producing Dahlias in 1926. Since
that time the company has evolved
into the Netherlands premier
wholesale supplier of speciality bulbs to the high profile bulb
export business. “My definition of
specialty bulbs are all flower bulbs,
except Hyacinthus, Narcissus and
Tulipa, says Boots, “Specialty bulbs
comprise a wide array of extravagant species like Muscari, Corydalis, Iris reticulata, Leucojeum and
Crocus. They are not only different
in the way they look but also how
and when they bloom. One good
example would be Galanthus, more
commonly known as snowdrops,
which start to flower in February
while the bluish Camassia unveils
its blooms only in the late Spring
when most tulips have wilted.”
Two distinct audiences
The Specialty Flower Bulb event at
Keukenhof addresses two distinct
audiences. Cees van Roon, sales
manager C. S Weijers, says, “Here
you have the general public looking
for the lavish flower arrangements
and beautiful blooms and on the
other hand industry professionals
much more focused on shelf life,
sturdy stems, bud presentation
and product transportability. This
means you’ll always have to make
concessions. In 1990 we strengthened our position by joining forces
with the Daffodil Show combining
the best of both worlds. Daffodils
and specialty flower bulbs are a
perfect match requiring more or less
the same temperature conditions.”
Cees van Roon (left) and John Boots.
the forcing of the bulbs to the
Zwaagdijk bulb research centre”,
explains John Boots. “Some crops
like Galanthus and Crocus are
quite difficult to force into bloom
at the right moment. So we prefer
to leave this to the Zwaagdijk
specialists. Two days before the
show all plants are brought to
our premises in Hillegom. “We
transplant them into another pot
and water them. Then they are
stored in the cooler overnight.
Once conditioned, the blooms
will be stronger, stiffer, and better
able to withstand the stresses of
arranging.”
For many years arranging the flowers was the job of Dutch flower
arranger Truus van Lierop who,
due to some health problems, will
hand over the arranger’s baton to
Heleen Valstar this year. |||
For further information look on their
website: www.csweijers.nl
No small job
In nature, specialty bulbs bloom at
different times. A successful flower
show requires that all parties
involved communicate and work
according to a shared time line.
Around 10,000 bulbs have to be
forced to bloom indoors. This is
no small job. “We have outsourced
17
Orchids
From March 18 to
May 16, 2010, the
Beatrix Pavilion
at the Keukenhof
becomes the home
of a spectacular
display of orchids.
More than 40 Dutch
orchid growers use
this indoor show to
present the visiting
audience with a
couple of hundred
of the best cultivars
in the sector’s
assortment.
by Anabel Evans
Spectacular
Orchids Display
T
he Association of Dutch
Orchid Producers (KNOP)
work closely with the
Keukenhof to create a spectacular
display of orchids in the Beatrix Pavilion. KNOP coordinates with the
many participating orchid growers
to ensure that the Beatrix Pavilion’s
orchid decorations are continually
renewed with in total three refreshing moments for the flower displays
and two for the potted orchids.
The Keukenhof, on its part, makes
the building and décor available,
along with a number of dedicated
flower arrangers. The end result is
one of the most attractive shows at
the Keukenhof, whose showcase of
a wide range of orchids is always a
point of amazement to the attending public.
The Netherlands is Europe’s leading
producer of pot orchids, a product
which has long been seen as an
exclusive product for privileged
florists and garden centres, but
Phalaenopsis Amadeus
18
more recently has seen sales expand
into DIY and retail stores and even
at gas stations. The grower suppliers
of pot orchids have reacted to the
product’s market popularity with
auction statistics indicating a more
than 135% increase in volume
over the last five years and a 172%
growth in orchid turnover: Expectations for further increases in
production continue into 2010.
Numerous categories
Visitors to the Keukenhof can expect to see a leading array of orchid
varieties from this famous Dutch
orchid sector, from pot Cymbidiums including large and small
flowered assortments, to Dendrobiums, Onidium/Odontoglossum,
Paphiopedilum, Vanda, Mitonia
and other hybrids, Phalaenopsis
and Phalaenopsis Multiflora.
Apart from these different orchid
categories, which are each carefully
judged by the VKC Permanent
Judging Committee, all the individual winners go forward to compete
for the top prize – The Keukenhof
Orchid 2010. In 2009 the winner
was Cymbidium Candy from Sanfiero, whose many flowering stems
became increasingly impressive
during the Keukenhof period, according to the VKC jury. The close
runner up was Vanda Exotic Purple
from Anco Orchideeën, noted for
its highly appealing flower colour.
With a résumé of the individual
category highlights from 2009, we
can begin to imagine the spectacular showcase of orchids awaiting to
inspire all the 2010 visitors:
•Theo Ammerlaan Orchideeën
won the award for large
flowered Cymbidium with his
favourite, deep red ‘Ferr-Ari’.
From among ten candidates of
mixed, large flowered Cymbidiums, where the individual presentations contain four stems, each
of a different colour, the winner
was Arie van Daalen & Zn.
The highest honours for the small
flowered Cymbidium went to
French Mustard from Nursery
Leekade. The jury spoke of an
unusual and bright green cultivar
with flowers positioned nicely
around the stem.
In the small flowered Cymbidium Mix, Paauwe Orchideeen
was the winner of the challenge
to present a beautiful mix of
distinct colours with stems and
flowers of uniform quality.
•The Dendrobium Award went to
De Hoog Orchideeën for white
‘Apollon’ with its very rich flowering and uniform appearance.
•Burrageara Nelly Isler from Geest
Orchideeën qualified as the best
plant in the Onidium/Odontoglossum category with the colour of the large flowers standing
beautifully against the leaves.
•Paphiopedilum ‘Delenati’ van P.
P. Orchideeën was the outright
winner in the remaining hybrid
selections in pot. The jury spoke
of a superb growing achievement,
to grow such a plant in an 8 cm
pot; the dark leaves and pink
flowers being of perfect quality.
Among the orchids displayed as
cut flowers Pulcher Potcultures
took the prize for the large white
flowered cut-Phalaenopsis Kobe,
which was commended for the
floriferous form and length of
the stem.
•In the Unusual Creation category
using a single stem, the Paphiopedilum-creation of a natural
heart shape from PP Orchideeën
received the top prize.
New Calla
Kapiteyn reports
success with
Calla breeding
• From the 30 candidates for the
Phalaenopsis pot category the yellow
cultivar Piko 108 from Piko Plant
was the award winner, scoring high
points for the very good balance
between flowers, stem and leaves.
The colour that in particular caught
the jury’s attention was yellow with
an orange lip.
In the newer category for smaller
flowered Phalaenopsis there were 25
candidates, also of excellent quality.
The lemon yellow ‘Amadeus’ from
Van Der Hoorn Orchideeën received
the award, noted for a minimum of
three stems, full of flowers.
Stands set to inspire
For the more than 40 participating orchid growers, who collectively present a
couple of hundred varieties, the Keukenhof Orchid Show is not only about
the VKC judging. Steef van Adrichem
has been an exhibitor at the Keukenhof Orchid Show for 18 years. His
company Anco Orchideeën has been
growing Vanda orchids, imported from
Thailand, since 1998 and is the biggest
nursery in the Netherlands. Besides the
main breed Vanda Blue Magic, Anco
grows a wide variety of Vanda breeds
under 25,000 m2 of greenhouse. He
says, “We always display more than
20 varieties at the Keukenhof with the
stand arrangements primarily aiming
to attract the attention of both the
general public and the trade visitors to
our inspirational Vanda assortment.
Our breeding objective is to provide
perfect bright colours, large flowers and
beautiful stripes or spots; all of which
easily grow new branches, especially at
the homes of our clients!” |||
Kapiteyn was able once again to present a new Calla variety
at the international Horti Fair, held in Amsterdam in 2009.
This time the variety presented was ‘Captain Ventura’®,
with its beautiful white flowers. It is just one of the many
excellent products that has come out of the intensive
breeding programme that the company, located in Breezand,
the Netherlands, initiated almost twenty years ago.
Kapiteyn regularly lives up to its reputation of being ‘Innovators in flowerbulbs’. This is
particularly the case with respect to breeding Callas. In addition to being a grower, trader
and exporter, breeding bulbs and tubers has become a core activity for the company; it is
conducted under the name Kapiteyn Breeding B.V. The breeding process takes time and
is very intensive. It has already resulted in a striking number of impressive Calla varieties.
These stand out with respect to their flower shape, colour, growing power, high disease
resistance and good forcing properties. These Callas are suitable for growing in pots and
for producing cut flowers. One of Kapiteyn's first successes was ‘Captain Safari’®. This was
followed by a series of other successes, including the ‘Captain Cupido’®, ‘Captain Palermo’®, ‘Captain Promise’®, ‘Captain Reno’® for growing in pots, and the cut flower variants
‘Captain Chelsea’® and ‘Captain Romance’®. The presentation at Horti Fair 2007 of the
pot variety ‘Captain Eskimo’® even resulted in Kapiteyn being awarded a prestigious prize
by an expert jury. And at Horti Fair 2009, the cut flower variety ‘Captain Ventura’® in
particular received high praise. In short, a nice boost for the breeding team that saw their
efforts of the last years rewarded. Kapiteyn Breeding is continually expanding its product
range with the new Calla varieties being launched onto the market via the Captain Select
cooperative growers association.
Thanks to its years of experience, Kapiteyn can support its clients in many areas. With
respect to growing Callas, the company has its own production facilities where all of its
products are first thoroughly treated before being delivered to professional cut flower
and pot plant growers. And the Calla Team can always be relied on to supply technical
support related to establishing planting and forcing schedules. This makes Kapiteyn a
reliable partner both at home and abroad. For more information: www.captaincalla.nl
A wide array of Calla’s will be on display during the Keukenhof Calla Show taking
place between May 7 to 16 in the Orange Nassau Pavilion at Keukenhof.
The presentation of the new Calla variety Captain
Ventura® received high praise.
19
Freesia
Freesia Maxima(al)
Maxima(al)
®
®
Nowadays you can buy very large and heavy Freesias in
various colours. The name under which these Freesias are
®
sold is Freesia Maxima(al) . These beautiful and nice
smelling Freesias are available year round. This unique and
purely Dutch product is cultivated with utmost care and
distributed through the flower auctions in the Netherlands.
www.freesiamaximaal.com
LTO_Groeiservice_178x124.indd 1
25-02-2010 14:33:48
BW_178x124.indd 1
25-02-2010 14:27:15
Alstroemeria
As breeding and
propagation has
led to stronger and
more colourful
Alstroemerias, these
exotic flowers are
becoming more
popular every year.
The Keukenhof
Alstroemeria
Show, taking place
between April 29
and May 5 is set to
boost Alstroemeria
sales worldwide.
Alstroemeria Show is set
to boost sales worldwide
T
housands of international
visitors will flock to Lisse
for the presentation starting
on Thursday April 29 of about
seventy vases with more than 50
Alstroemeria varieties, including
stunning flower arrangements and
20 cultivars being debuted at the
prestigious Keukenhof Alstroemeria
show.
An relatively
unknown assortment
“The Keukenhof Alstroemeria
Show is the annual showcase for
breeders and growers to highlight the best they have to offer.
Colourful, big budded and exotic,
Alstroemeria rank among the most
beautiful flowers in the world. And
such beauties should be put on view
for everyone to see”, says André
Vreugdenhil, commercial manager
of Dutch Alstroemeria breeder
Royal Van Zanten. “The Keukenhof Show serves as a platform to
display the wide, but relatively unknown assortment of Alstroemerias
to a wide consumer audience. There
is also a more commercial aspect
in the sense that Keukenhof offers
the three leading Alstroemeria
breeders, Royal Van Zanten, Konst
and HilverdaKooij an unique
opportunity to hook up with their
customers, the Dutch Alstroemeria
growers. The show also attracts
quite a lot of exporters who usually
do good business with the growers”,
knows André.
Alstroemeria Award
The total area of Alstroemeria
production in the Netherlands is estimated at 65 to 70 ha divided over
40 growers of which up to 50%
participate in the show. According
to André, the growers take part in
the VKC quality competition with
the Alstroemeria Award for the
best vase as the highest recognition to receive. “Breeders compete
in the Best Novelty Competition.
Last year our company Royal
Van Zanten took the Alstroemeria Award with ‘Nadya’, a true
red variety with a huge market
potential”, says André. Backed by
an impressive promotion campaign
entitled ‘From Nadya with Love’,
prize winner ‘Nadya’ perfectly suits
the theme Keukenhof has chosen
for 2010; From Russia with Love.
André continues, “Actually Russia
is a rather important market for
Alstroemerias requiring mostly
premium quality products. At last
year’s trade show Flowers in Moscow, our red ‘Nadya’ was awarded a
first prize.”
Hundreds of crossings,
thousands of seedlings
In the past year, Dutch Alstroemeria breeders have realized hundreds
of crosses and thousands of seedlings; the main criteria to double
check being bud presentation,
resistance to disease, heat tolerance,
good transportability and production. “It takes an average of 5 to 6
years to develop a new variety. Out
of hundreds of selections we finally
pick out 7 to 8 new varieties. This
‘new harvest’ will be featured in our
new catalogue which normally appears in August. But at Keukenhof
visitors from all over the world are
already given a preview of the our
new selection.” |||
André Vreugdenhil, commercial manager of Royal Van Zanten
21
Anthurium
From March
18 to May 16,
2010, members
of the Dutch
Cut Anthurium
Association will
participate in the
Anthurium Indoor
Show being held in
the Beatrix Pavilion
at the Keukenhof.
Cees Jan van
der Stoep from
Flowercity, one of
the association’s
members,
describes the
showcase as a very
beautiful display
of anthuriums,
which aims to
inspire consumers
as to the many
different and
wonderful ways the
anthurium can be
used in decorative
ornamental
displays.
by Anabel Evans
Awesome
Anthuriums
A
nthurium originally came
from the rain forests of
Colombia, South America.
It was first grown and bred in
France and Belgium. Anthurium
(from anthos = flower; oura = tail)
therefore literally means tail flower.
In 1876 the andreanum hybrid
was developed and named after the
French landscape gardener E.Fr.
Andre, who was also the editor of
'Revue Horticulture'.
All anthuriums have the typical
beaker shaped inflorescence or
arum. In recent years there has been
an increase in the colour diversity as
a result of selection. The long vase
life is attributable to the fact that
the entire process of flowering and
the maturing of the berries takes
about 6 months.
The trendy anthurium suits many
indoor decorating styles, from
traditional to contemporary and is
very versatile in arrangements. But,
the most important reason behind
Cees Jan van der Stoep (right) and his
son keep a strong faith in the Anthurium.
22
the rising popularity of the cut
anthurium is the huge upgrading
and expansion of the assortment.
However, it can take up to ten years
before the development of a successful new cultivar is complete.
Wide assortment
Flowercity is a relative newcomer to
anthurium breeding, a venture that
was founded on the company’s expertise in both rose and anthurium
production. Owner Cees Jan van
der Stoep has always been attracted
to the anthurium with its luxurious appeal and keeping qualities;
he is sure that production and sales
worldwide will increase. He says,
“Anthuriums fit perfectly within a
modern interior, they have an outstanding vase life and nowadays you
will find every luxury bouquet has
an anthurium.” In recent years the
number of anthuriums sold through
the Dutch auctions has reached over
80 million stems. As the company
name evokes, Flowercity names its
new anthuriums after well known
cities in the world: ‘Chicago’ and
‘Monaco’ are the promising new cut
varieties.
Joining these two varieties at the
Keukenhof will be a wide assortment of small to large flowered
types from a large number of Dutch
exhibitors. Names that caught the
eyes of the VKC Permanent Judging Committee last year included
the small flowered ‘Nexia’ from
Fleuranthu (eventual Award winner
in the small flower category) and
‘Black Love’ from Nursery Evanty.
From among the large flowered
types ‘Akapan’ from Gebaro/fa.
Baard v.d. Burg, ‘Tropic Night’
from Nursery Da-bro and ‘Spice’
from Nursery Ammalutico competed closely against the first placed
white cultivar, ‘Jupiter’, which was
presented by Koos v.d. Knaap & Zn.
Pots also of
super quality
The pot anthurium is similarly a
product that has attracted more
attention in recent years. The family
company, RijnPlant, is specialized
in the research and development,
breeding, production and sales of
Anthurium, Bougainvillea and
Calathea. The company currently
has 3 ha of young plant production,
14 ha of finished plants, its own
laboratory for R&D, and more than
400 commercial varieties, which
are protected worldwide, and a subsidiary company in China. Product
innovations is a key focus and while
its origins lie in the development of
the pot anthurium market, the cut
anthurium category is today seen as
an increasingly important market.
Rijnplant has participated at the
Keukenhof Anthurim Show for
many years and sees it as important
event in the year to exhibit their
newest varieties to trade visitors
and raise the enthusiasm among
consumers for both their pot- and
cut anthuriums. The reactions
received after the event in recent
years also confirm that with a very
international audience attracted to
the Keukenhof, their goal to achieve
a higher degree of name recognition
in the market is achieved. |||
Floral Dispatch B.V
Established in 1992,
Floral Dispatch B.V.
is a medium sized
company ranking
among Keukenhof’s
preferred suppliers.
Since 2002. Floral
Dispatch occupies
a stand in the
Keukenhof gardens
outside while the
company also
participates in the
indoor Tulip Show
Best in bulbs
H
alfway between Hillegom
and Lisse the company
found in 2009 a great
location for storage and well-oiled
logistic activities. Brand new
and well equipped premises of
5.000m2 are available for warehousing and cross docking against
competitive prices.
Deliveries are dispatched from
here all over the European continent, both in trucks and in reefer
containers with destination the
Middle-east, the USA, Japan and
China.
Waiting time prior to (un) loading
for suppliers and export deliveries
are very short thanks to the availability of no less then 10 loading
docks.
Floral Dispatch B.V. is broker/
exporter of;
• Flower bulbs for traders in prepacks or in bulk
• Rosebushes for traders in prepacks or in bulk
• Flower bulbs programmed for
forcing by growers
• Ornamental plants for outdoor
& indoor
• Pre-packing for mail-orders and
web-shops
|||
Many growers produce using environmentally friendly
methods but pot Anthurium grower Stolk Plants gives the
environment a truly high priority . Stolk Plants was one of
the first growers which products meet the standards for
MPS-GAP, MPS Socially Qualified, Milieukeur and FFP
accreditation.
Stolk Plants grow the most exclusive varieties in the very
best quality and are able to offer continuity of supply.
Moreover their mode of operation and flexibility allow
them to fulfil the wishes of retail chains
chains.
Stolk Plants
Hoeksekade 111A
2661 JL Bergschenhoek
www.stolkplants.nl
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Limonium
Strongly supported
by Dutch breeder
HilverdaKooij, the
Dutch Limonium
industry will run
a high impact
Limonium Show
from April 15 to 20,
2010 at Keukenhof.
In recent years
the Limonium has
evolved from an
unnoticed filler in
dusty, faded, dried
arrangements to a
real eye catcher in
flower bouquets.
Remarkable
achievements in
breeding have lead
to Wings varieties
with impressive
combs on sturdy
stems and a
sparkling Diamond
series with masses
of tiny, papery
flowers providing
volume, colour and
texture to bouquets.
A small but beautiful crop
T
he facts first. In nature
Limonium is a perennial
that grows along coastal
areas and in salt marshes. It is a
member of the Plumbago family
and comprises around 150 species,
several widely grown for cutting
and for dried flowers.
True blue
“In professional greenhouse
production you’ll find Limonium
sinuatum, more commonly known
as Statice. Statice has large flowers
in panicles of 3 to 5 wingedbranches. They come in blue, lavender, rose, red, salmon, yellow, or
white. In Limonium sinuatum, our
Wings series are definitely the best
seller at the Dutch flower auctions,
while out of the fifteen varieties of
Limonium sinensis, featuring tiny
flowers in multi-branched clusters,
sold at the Dutch auctions fourteen belong to our Diamond series.
Next to Limonium sinuatum and
sinensis the professional grower
produces also perennial types like
‘Maine Blue’ and botanic altaica
varieties”, unveils Arthur Koekkoek, sales manager Hilverda
Kooij about the wide assortment
of Limonium.
When asked about the Limonium’s
attractiveness, Koekkoek mentions
that the Limonium is one of the
few flowers having a true blue
colour. “For years researchers are
looking for a blue rose or a blue
Dianthus, while the most beautiful
blue is already available in Limonium. Breeding breakthroughs
have improved the intrinsic quality
with strong flowers located in the
upper part of the stems and resistant to botrytis, the most feared
disease in greenhouse production.”
Strongly supported
In the Netherlands up to fifty
growers cover an area of 15 ha with
some large, specialised Limonium
growers like Van Paassen and Van
Klink and a majority of growers
producing Limonium as a side crop.
With 50 to 60% of the growers
participating, the Keukenhof Limonium Show is strongly supported
by the industry including the
three leading Limonium breeders.
HilverdaKooij, Royal Van Zanten
and J. van Egmond. Clasine Feith,
marketing and communication
manager from HilverdaKooij, says
that the show provides the stimulus
for growth in the Limonium sector.
“We offer a helping hand to participants, coordinating the transport of
the flowers to Keukenhof.”
A Dutch affair
Clasine Feith and Arthur Koekkoek
24
The Keukenhof Show is a real
Dutch affair. This may not come as
a surprise knowing that of the 27
million Limonium sinuatum stems
sold at the Dutch auctions in 2008,
17 million were supplied by Dutch
growers. In Limonium sinensis,
Dutch growers accounted for 3 million supplied stems of the in total
4.6 million stems. In 2008 alone,
49 million of Limonium stems were
marketed via the Dutch auction
clocks, generating a turnover of
€9 million. |||
Perennial
Perennial
popularity is on
the rise as new
varieties, different
presentations and
inventive marketing
continue to inspire
consumers. At the
Keukenhof, from
April 16 to May 16
2010, the Perennial
Show will be held
in the Willem
Alexander Pavilion.
by Anabel Evans
Perennial
popularity
T
he flowering times of perennials typically range from
April through to August
and provide growers with an entire
summer of sales opportunities. They
first started to become commercially
available in the early 1980s but
nearly three decades later, today’s
perennials market is almost unrecognizable. Several thousand varieties have been developed to satisfy
every need. There are plants for sun,
plants for shade, plants for wet, dry,
hot or cold. Breeders have created
THE PRODUCT INNOVATORS
varieties that are tougher, fastergrowing, heavier flowering and with
colours that Mother Nature hadn’t
thought of. Many varieties are
bred specifically for qualities that
facilitate efficient distribution and
better impulse sale. And whereas
the selection in the early days didn’t
go far beyond a handful of peonies,
daylilies, hostas and rudbeckias
with the sales season over by the
end of May, when growers realized
they could supply retailers with pot
grown plants the whole thing really
began to take off.
At the Keukenhof Perennial Show
in 2009 the perennial plants assortment definitely didn’t disappoint
the visitors with a product showcase
including numerous crops such
as Astilbe, Ajuga reptans, Dicentra, Dodecatheon, Dryopteris,
Euphorbia, Geranium, Glechoma,
Heuchera, Hosta, Scabiosa, Sempervivum, Phlox etc.. Jan Hein de
Boer from the Dutch Association
of Perennial Growers (Vereniging
van Vasteplantenkwekers) says,
“In 2010, our annual invitation to
grower members to once again participate in the Keukenhof Perennial
Show has led to nearly 40 growers,
from all regions of the Netherlands,
indicating their interest.” De Boer
explains further that during the
final stages of the Show organization all the participating growers
are given the option to take part
in the VKC Permanent Judging
Committee competition, which
involves nine different categories
including a New Plants section. All
the individual winners go forward
to compete for the top prize – The
Keukenhof Perennial Plant 2010.
In 2009 the winner was the bedding and patio plant Dryopteris
‘Prolifica’ (photograph) from Mart
Kleyn in Lisserbroek. |||
Exclusive Cut-Hydrangea
www.Hydraflower.com
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Freesia
Sweet Freesia flower
scent will fill the
rooms, while longstemmed flowers
with soft blue, virgin
white, vivid red and
cheery yellow will
catch the Keukenhof
visitor’s eye at the
Freesia Show, taking
place between
March 19 to 23,
2010. According
to Jaap Elenbaas
from Dutch Freesia
breeder Van den
Bos Flowerbulbs,
the Annual Freesia
Show at Keukenhof
is an absolute must
for all peers from
the Freesia industry,
who will be treated
to a showcase of the
best Freesias in the
world.
Jaap Elenbaas from Van den Bos Flowerbulbs
The most beautiful
Freesias in the world
T
raditionally, the Keukenhof opens its gates in Mid
March. Following a hard
winter it sometimes happens that in
its first week most of the park is still
dormant with only some scattered
snowdrops and daffodils blooming. No worries for Jaap Elenbaas,
one of the driving forces behind
Keukenhof’s scented seller: the
Freesia Show. “In the weekend following the official opening I always
take a quick trip to Lisse to drop in
at the Freesia Show. If you earned
€100 for each person who puts his
nose in a Freesia flower then you
will soon be rich. I reckon that this
is the best timing for the show with
best quality Freesias. At this time of
year the weather is not too cold and
not too hot. In the greenhouses the
growers are still lighting their crops,
enjoying some calm days just before
the April and May peak sales
season starts.”
A miniature festival
The Keukenhof Freesia Show isn’t
just an ordinary flower show, it’s
practically a miniature festival
showcasing both proven varieties
and the latest breeding break-
26
throughs in single flowered and
double flowered Freesia.
The product quality and production yields have improved significantly. ’Ambassador’ (single white),
‘Dukaat’ (single yellow), ‘Delta
River’ (single blue), ‘Volante’
(double white), ‘Blue Moon’ (single
blue), ‘Gold River’ (single yellow),
‘Yvonne’ (double yellow), ‘Argenta’
(single white) and ‘Honeymoon’
(double pink) rank among the
Freesia Top 10 of which four are
bred by Van den Bos Flowerbulbs.
“Our ‘Dukaat’ and ‘Argenta’ are
golden oldies which are still going strong. ‘Dukaat’ and ‘Gold
River’ are long-stemmed varieties
with their side-stem standing in
perfect harmony with the main
stem, allowing a quick harvest and
handling of the flowers.. Much
progress is made in the field of
lighting with 4,000 to 8,000 lux
and mist-type irrigation with a
fog system allowing a much better
product quality.”
trends. This year speakers include
area manager Floor Schamp from
the Flower Council of Holland who
will inform attendees about the
business opportunities for Freesia
in Russia.
Optimism
Freesia clichés
Commenting on some Freesia
clichés, Elenbaas condemns the
idea that red varieties are more vulnerable for pests and diseases. “It’s
simple, signs of viruses are more
clearer in red varieties than in white
or yellow specimens. Red varieties
have a strong market position. In
peak sales seasons you’ll see a quicker price drop for pink varieties than
red ones. The most fragrant Freesia?
That’s indeed the yellow one. And
what about leaf necrosis and white
varieties like ‘Orléans’? Healthy
plant material is high on Van den
Bos’ agenda. Every 2 to 3 years we
set up new virus-free mother stock
including a minimum of 50,000
corms with zero tolerance for the
Freesia Ophio Virus and the Freesia
Mosaic Virus.”
The Keukenhof Freesia Show has
had a stable audience for years,
gathering growers, the four remaining breeding companies (Van den
Bos, Pennings, Hofland and Van
Zanten), buyers and researchers.
The Freesia Award Ceremony
evening usually attracts around 150
freesia professionals who are treated
to key speakers on economics,
design and business management to
keep attendees apprised of the latest
The show reflects optimism for
Dutch Freesia growers despite
difficult times. “There are currently around 90 Freesia growers,
accounting for a Freesia hectarage
that has decreased from 470 ha in
1988 to 175 ha in 2010. But we
shouldn’t forget to mention the
enormous progress in production:
Back in 1988 growers used to grow
one single crop, while nowadays
they produce two crops per year.
Some growers grow two crops
per year with an average annual
production of 400 stems per square
metre. In 2009, the Dutch flower
auctions have marketed 309 million Freesia stems of which the
majority are Holland grown. The
Freesia production in Morocco
and Ethiopia is an estimated 11 ha.
Could one imagine a more spectacular flower than Freesia, unfolding slowly its colourful and fragrant
blooms day by day? In Freesia
there is more to discover than the
old fashioned, short varieties at
Granny’s dresser. Today’s Freesias
feature extremely long- stemmed,
18 grammes Freesia Maximaal
varieties and trendy stripped
varieties like Giraffe. Van den Bos
Flowerbulbs is doing its utmost to
showcase its latest variety ‘Yellow
Passion’, with a revolutionary mix
of velvet yellow flowers and a fresh,
bright scent of lemon.” |||
27
Postbus 15
Dijkweg 115
2675 ZG Honselersdijk
Nederland
T: +31(0)174 612121
F: +31(0)174 612122
E: [email protected]
W: www.vandenbos.nl
One of the Leaders in the Flower bulb
industry for more than 50 Years.
Export over 60 Countries in
lilies, freesia, zantedeschia
Own Breeding program
Location Situated in the heart of the Westland
USA West, USA
A East, Canada,
Chilli, C
China, Australia
Bulb Producttion
n in Chilli
www.vandenbos.nl
Six van den Bos
Companies over sea
Lisianthus
With an estimated
80% of Dutch
Lisianthus growers
participating,
Keukenhof’s
Lisianthus Show is
strongly supported
by the sector.
According to
show coordinator
José van Egmond
the Keukenhof
Lisianthus Show
has emerged as
a powerful way
to promote the
relatively unknown
Lisianthus to
a large and
international
audience.
A powerful way to
promote Lisianthus
W
hile a long hot summer
is lying before us, José
van Egmond is thrilled
about the upcoming Lisianthus
Show. “Perfect time, perfect place”,
says the 30 year-old Van Egmond.
“Though Lisianthus is nowadays
produced year round, the flower is
still considered as a true summer
flower. Showcasing in May with its
José van Egmond who is working for
the family-owned company J. van
Egmond & Zonen.
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25-02-2010 14:27:44
normally mild temperatures means
enhanced product quality and extra
holidays and thus extra Keukenhof
visitors.”
An extensive array of
Lisianthus
The 100 m2 Lisianthus Show
features the best Lisianthus growers
the Netherlands has to offer. Alongside an extensive array of Lisianthus
flowers coming in all sizes, shapes
and colours, the Keukenhof Lisianthus Flower Show is a celebration of
nature and style and great colours.
It is a must to see for the floral
enthusiast. “Cultivars are divided
in single and double flowering
Lisianthus”, explains José about the
Lisianthus assortment, “In the early
days of commercial greenhouse
production of Lisianthus, the flowers were unknown to the public and
sensitive to wilting, but ever since
the Lisianthus industry has gone
through much change. Intensive
breeding has led to varieties with
strong stems, excellent vase life and
25-02-2010 14:29:16
good branching: Improved varieties
which can easily compete with
roses. A range of colours is available
with white being a typical best
seller. Pink, yellow, green and bi
colours pink/ white and blue/white
are also available. Single-flowering
Lisianthus have an attractive poppylike shape, however there appears
to be a consumer preference for
double-flowering varieties.”
Lisianthus producers
In the Netherlands the commercial
greenhouse production of year
round Lisianthus covers an area
of 25 ha, to which must be added
another 30 ha of seasonal production. “But seasonal production is
decreasing rapidly”, says José, “From
March to September another 50
million plants are grown in Mediterranean countries like France,
Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain.
Some Lisianthus is also produced in
Poland. Traditionally Israel ranks
as one of the most important Lisianthus producers with specialized,
large scale nurseries being the latest
trend”, says José van Egmond who
is working for the family-owned
company J van Egmond & Zonen
which produces more than 100 million of young plants for Lisianthus
growers in the Netherlands and
abroad. “Our company is located in
Rijnsburg, the Netherlands. Since
2003 the young plants are selected
one week before delivery. We have
designed a special machine, the
Selecto-mat. Every single plant is
filmed by a camera and based on
length and leaf area, each plant will
be put in one of our three selections.
The advantages of selected plants
are faster planting, even growth,
shorter harvest period, faster
grading, even branches, less waste,
shorter growing period - altogether
only benefits.” |||
Royal Van Zanten
goes Keukenhof
Chrysanthemum
Alstroemeria
March 25 - 30
Oranje Nassau
Paviljoen
April 29 - May 5
Oranje Nassau
Paviljoen
Show
Show
Lily
Show
May 6 - 16
Willem Alexander
Paviljoen
See you at the Keukenhof
For more information have a look at www.royalvanzanten.com or call +31 (0)297 38 70 00
Roses
Roses throughout the chain
If you want to see the richest
possible display of rosy red
hues, you must not miss the
special rose show that will
be held in the Oranje Nassau
Pavilion from 1 to 6 April. It
includes all the latest varieties.
I
n 2010 an additional element will be
added to the judgement process during the
Rose show. The basic assumption is that
the A1 roses shown are of trade quality. There
were calls for this during the VKC’s annual
meeting in 2009. Judging will proceed on
the basis of three arrangements/steps/vases
containing of 80 roses (total 2x20 and 1x40).
Judging will take place based on three levels
within the chain, namely: auction supply (in
a sleeve), arrangement and traditional. The
VBW (Association of Floristry Retailers) will
participate in the inspection process. This
season will be the first time they are going to
cooperate on this.
We will be working with a set-up in which
the participant’s three vases are arranged in a
row behind each other on a base that slopes
upwards. This is also the case for the roses
that are shown as auction specimens. “Roses
throughout the chain” is the theme of this
special show. This theme will be communicated to the consumer using a flower stand
and by way of demonstrations in the ONP.
Heleen Valstar is responsible for the design
and the creative content.
During the trade evening on Thursday 1
April presentations will be held from the
perspective of the different components of
the chain. Interesting debates will also be
conducted in a ‘House of Commons’- type
setting.
The organising committee of the Rose
evening includes the following partners from
the different components of the trade chain:
Keukenhof, VGB (Floristry wholesalers),
FloraHolland (auctions), LTO Groeiservice
(growers), Plantum NL (breeders) and VKC.
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Carnation
Carnation grower
Martin Zwinkels
along with
former carnation
colleagues Rien
van Dam and Han
Wijnands consider
the Keukenhof
Carnation Show as
one of the best ways
of promotion.
Every year they are
highly successful in
terms of bringing
together 99% of
the Dutch carnation
growers and a large
consumer audience
from all over the
world. With an
estimated 100,000
international visitors
over ten days, the
Keukenhof Carnation
Show is likely to
give carnation sales
a boost worldwide.
An absolute
must see
S
eeing the Keukenhof visitor
‘oohing’ and ‘aahing’ at the
gorgeous array of colours and
scents that are available in carnation, former carnation grower Rien
van Dam understands them perfectly. “Carnations are contagious.
Once they get into your blood
you won’t fancy any other flowers.
I am now in my twelfth year as
co-organizer of the show, which
gets more gorgeous every year. In
today’s greenhouses there is an
abundance of light, allowing the
Dutch carnation grower to grow a
strong, colourful and early crop.”
His counterpart in the carnation
business, Martin Zwinkels, who
operates a 1,3 ha carnation nursery
in Honselersdijk, the Netherlands,
adds, “The show runs from May
7 to 16 and right at that time of
year we can ensure the best quality
flowers. The event opens its doors
just before Mother’s Day, a busy
time for the carnation industry as a
whole, but still the show is an absolutely must-see. I reckon the timing
of the show is perfect. We surely
welcome every sales boost
for the period after the
Mother’s Day peak sales
season.“
Little Tom Thumb
Dianthus
‘Star Trendy
Tessino’
32
In the Netherlands the production
and supply of Dutch carnations
have suffered a long-standing
decline at the auctions. Way back
in 1997 the supply of domestic
standard carnations at the Dutch
auction clocks was 183 million
stems per annum. By 2009 sales
had dropped to less than 50 million
stems. The decline in production
is even more dramatic. In 1990
professional greenhouse production
of standard carnations covered an
area of 250 ha by 2010 only 23 ha
Martin Zwinkels (left) and Rien van Dam.
are left. “Amid the world carnation production, we are just a Little
Tom Thumb defying the giant.
Nevertheless, the Dutch carnation industry is leading in product
innovation. Dutch breeders have
played a key role in the introduction of the trendy green colour,
which is recognized to have given
carnation sales a big boost. One
good example of a recent breeding
breakthrough would be Dianthus
‘Star Trendy Tessino’. This twotoned, star-shaped spray carnation
is, how shall I put it, a really sweet
little thing.”
Zwinkels really regrets that the
carnation doesn’t easily inspire
other growers. “We could good
use a few young and enthusiastic
colleagues”, he says, “maybe it has
to with the history of Dutch carnation growing which hasn’t been
always that bright. In Westland,
nearly everyones grandfather produced carnations and remembers
the bad stories of fusarium. What
bothers me is the prejudice that
carnation growing is not profitable
enough. I agree that it is a labour
intensive with production periods,
but still it is a profitable business.
In 2000, I took over my father’s
business. Since then I have made
good money out of these beautiful
flowers.” |||
New at Keukenhof
Fashion Exhibition
Gonewiththewind
The fashion exhibition Gone with the wind (18
March to 16 May 2010) in the Juliana pavilion at
Keukenhof focuses on the creative ideas of the
Dutch fashion world.
Theorganisationofthisexhibitionisinthehandsofthe
Zuiderzeemuseum,whereitwasfirstondisplayin2009.
GonewiththeWindexhibitsaselectionoftraditionalcostumesandcontemporaryfashionsfromthe
Zuiderzeemuseumcollection.DozensofDutchfashion
andjewellerydesignersandphotographerswereinspiredbythecharacteristicDutchregionalcostumes.
Examplesinclude:a'kraplap'[traditionalstarched
shouldercovering]ascontemporaryaccessoryand
aninterpretationoftheStaphorststipplingtechnique.
OutfitsbyFranciscovanBenthum,Alexandervan
Slobbe,Spijkers&SpijkersandViktor&Rolfarealso
ondisplay.Alsopartoftheexhibitionisajewellery
designbyTedNoten,wherethetraditionalUrkmen's
earringblendswiththestreetcultureoftoday.Fashion
designerJanTaminiaucreatedabridalgownand
matchingsuitfortheexhibition.
Artandculturehaveplayedanimportantpartat
Keukenhoffromdayone.Thefloralsplendourformsa
magnificentdecorforthefashionexhibitionGonewith
theWind.KeukenhofistheshowcaseoftheDutch
horticulturalindustry,withtheemphasisonflowering
bulbs.TheexhibitionsandeventsintheparkinterrelateahostofDutchitemsinthefieldofcultureandthe
arts.Unexpectedapproacheshighlightvariousaspects
ofcontemporaryandclassicdesignsalike.|||
New at Keukenhof
the Discovery Tour
Explore the park using modern
audio and visual communication aids. See and hear all about
the history of Keukenhof.
Enjoytheparkandeverythingit
hastooffertothefullwiththe
KeukenhofDiscoveryTour.Access
toawiderangeofinformation,
whereverandwheneveryouwish,
asyouwalkroundthepark.Practicalinformationaboutthevarious
sectionsofthepark,suchasthe
pavilionsandrestaurants,thechildren’splayground,themillandthe
boattripspastthebulbfields,but
alsolotsofbackgroundinformation.TheKeukenhoflandscape
architecttalkingabouthisgarden
designs,forexample,oroneofthe
gardenersaboutthemaintenance
andupkeepofthepark.Youwill
alsolearnallaboutthebulbgrowingindustry,thebulb-growing
areaintheNetherlandsandthe
Netherlandsascountryofflowers,
aboutthehistoryofKeukenhof
chateau,andthethemeofthe
year,whichthisyearis'FromRussiawithLove'.
TheKeukenhofDiscoveryTour
includessoundrecordings,photos,
videosandinterviews,lastingas
longasanhourinall.
DiscoverKeukenhofthenewway.
TheKeukenhofDiscoveryTour
bringsmillionsofbloomingflowers
andplants....waterfeatures.....
inspirationalgardenstolifemore
thaneverbefore!|||
33
Chrysanthemum
The Keukenhof
Chrysanthemum
Show helps to give
the Chrysanthemum
a new image
amongst national
and international
visitors. New,
striking, fashionable
and funky varieties
will put aside any
prejudices the
consumers may
have towards
these beautiful and
versatile flowers.
Keukenhof Show unveils
the wonders of the
Chrysanthemum world
C
hrysanthemum, boring
or old fashioned? Don’t
ask Rick Minck, product
manager of Dutch Chrysanthemum breeder Fides, because he is
understandably spooked by antichrysanthemum clichés, explaining that the old fashioned image
of mums has been improved in
recent years, really since 2006. The
promotional activities organized
by the Flower Council of Holland
under the theme JustChrys (now
prolonged for another 3 years) is
said to have been a key factor in
renewing the market’s interest in
the Chrysanthemum.
Enormous diversity
This may not come as a surprise as
mums are such wonderful flowers,
with enormous diversity in colour
and form. “In fact, there are over
6,000 varieties of mums, and you
may think that several of them
commonly found in florists are
actually totally different flowers,
they are so different in looks. Last
year JustChrys, which represents
the four leading Chrysanthemum
breeders Fides, Deliflor, Dekker
and Royal Van Zanten, participated
in the Margriet Women’s Fair.
Some of our varieties on display
were not even recognized as a
Chrysanthemum. Here we showed
the two-toned spray variety ‘Raisa’
and ‘Dance’ with its spoon shaped
petals, being both a genuine asset to
the Fides assortment.”
The Keukenhof Chrysanthemum
Show will provide an update of
the latest Chrysanthemum varieties, which are classified by how
they look. “The different types of
chrysanthemums are named after
the shape of the flower itself. Those
types of flowers are single or double
flowered decorative having long,
tightly overlapping petals. Daisy
mums have one single row of petals
around the bud of the flower, while
pompoms are small globe shaped
flowers with tightly packed petals.
Anemone mums feature one row
of single flat petals that has a raised
centre of tiny florets. Spoon mums
have the look of a daisy, but the
petals are flat with the tips having a
spoon-like appearance. Last but not
least come the spider types. There
are also a number of exciting combinations possible with aforementioned mums”, says Minck giving
us a mini-lecture of the wonders of
the Chrysanthemum world.
A special trial corner
Minck is now in his third year as
co-organizer of the Keukenhof
show. “I do this job on behalf of
breeding company Fides. We send
all our customers a direct mail announcing the event, followed by a
34
reminder three weeks later. Participating growers have two options:
either one of our sales representatives come to pick up the flowers or
the flowers are sent to Keukenhof
by regular auction transport. An
estimated 20 of the in total 150
Dutch Chrysanthemum growers
participate in the VKC Flower Trial
with the winners being awarded
with a cake for the entire personnel. Some growers put an awful lot
of effort into preparing the flowers
by setting up a special corner with
more widely spaced varieties 12
weeks before the show. Overall, the
marking, selecting and harvesting
of the flowers requires time and patience especially because the grower
has to enter the densely planted
crop by crossing heating pipes. Up
to 90% of the show space is filled
with entries from the breeding
companies.”
The importance
of branding
Participation in the Keukenhof
show fits perfectly with the Fides’
“pull” selling strategy, a strategy
that requires high spending on
advertising and consumer promotion to build up consumer demand
for a product. One good example
would be ‘Bacardi’, defeating its
competitor ‘Reagan’ thanks to an
impressive promotion campaign.
“The four leading varieties ‘Arctic
Queen’, ‘Euro’, ‘Zembla’ and ‘Baltica’ are currently competing in the
global brand economy”, outlines
Minck, “Brands can help our business stand out in the crowd. The
Keukenhof Chrysanthemum Show
attracts up to 20,000 to 30,000
visitors in one week. That’s why we
consider exhibiting at the world’s
Chrysanthemum ‘Raisa’
Rick Minck product manager of Dutch
Chrysanthemum breeder Fides.
most famous Spring Garden is so
important.”
In a time with so much economic
uncertainly, some extra Chrysanthemum promotion can give sales
a much-needed boost to revenues
in a difficult economy. “These are
tough times for Chrysanthemum
growers, currently covering an
area of around 450 to 500 ha with
greenhouse production. Prices
are down since more than a year.
Considering that only 4 to 5%
of Dutch mums are sold on the
domestic market, one can imagine
how the sector is depending on
the economic situation in export
markets. The UK is struggling with
a weak British pound, resulting in
a 20% reduction in UK imports.
Also, the Russian Rouble has
weakened a lot. In the meantime
one of the Netherlands leading
flower wholesalers withdrew from
the auction clock, now sourcing its
mums directly from all parts of the
world and provoking more sluggish
sales at the clock.”
Blooms instead of gloom
and doom
In the meantime Minck refuses
to believe in gloom and doom
trusting on the resilience and the
dynamism of the Dutch chrysanthemum sector. “Production methods are constantly under scrutiny.
In the past, some tests were carried
out with a mobile system for the
production of mums on water.
Despite the up to 90% use of space
and the somewhat higher production, the cost of such systems are
still to high. The sector prefers
consolidation and focuses on risk
spreading strategies by growing
different and specialty varieties
instead of large monocultures. The
sector also carefully listens to its
customers, the wholesale buyers.
One good example for an efficient
exchange of ideas is our new orange
santini ‘Harley’ which perfectly
matches with other orange flowers
in bouquets, a long time request
from the trade.
The same trade is purchasing
increasingly smaller volumes as
production figures reach all time
highs. The modern greenhouse
structures offer improved light
transmission, allowing the grower
to better steer his crop. Stem weight
is going constantly up and the array
of colours and shapes grows wider
and wider. You get so much more
out of Chrysanthemums than most
people think. One of the best ways
to convince yourself is to attend the
upcoming Keukenhof event, showing off the diversity of the mum.
The Keukenhof Chrysanthemum
Show is an amazing floral display
created by some of the Netherlands
finest floral arrangers. The display
will be breathtaking featuring over
100 varieties of Chrysanthemums
and over 75,000 blooms.” |||
35
FIDES
COMPLETE
COLLECTION
G E T I N S P I R ED BY OU R
C H RYSA N TH EMUMS
LO OK AT OU R B RAN D N EW W E B S I TE W W W. F I D E S. N L
Fides B.V.
P.O. Box 26, 2678 zg De Lier, The Netherlands
t. +31(0)174 53 01 00
f. +31(0)174 53 01 10
[email protected]
www.fides.nl

A world of industry ideas at the Keukenhof

Transcription

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