Fci july august 2014 by Kisan Forum Pvt. Ltd.

Br oughtt oy ouby Webs i t ef orf ar mi ngc ommuni t y

Visit us at Cultivate’14, booth 1653, 13-15 July

• Spores • Tissue Culture • Rapidly growing assortment

ellen@vitroplus.nl +31 111 468 088 www.vitroplus.nl

Floraculture International encourages the pursuit of joint activities in areas of mutual interest with national and international societies, companies and organisations. Agreements have been reached between Floraculture International and leading growers and trade associations in 24 countries. This unique partnership includes a complimentary copy for each member of the registered associations. Floraculture International is proud to announce the cooperation with the following associations.

Partners of FloraCulture International

For more FCI partners see page 32.

Turk覺sh FONT HARR襤NGTON

KwaZulu Natal Flower Grower's Association

Table of Contents

July/August 2014 Volume 24 Number 7/8

The rise of the Kenyan consumer

Kenyans do not only grow flowers for markets in Europe. More and more people buy flowers for decorating their own homes and parties. by Frans van den Houdt

Kenya-based Bloomingdale is a new rose farm which harvested its first premium quality roses in January this year. by Ron van der Ploeg

Touring horticultural businesses in China’s Fujian province On the first and the third day of the International Symposium on the Genus Lilium and Narcissus mini Symposium (April 1-3), excursions were organised to local institutes, narcissus fields and horticultural companies. by Cor Conijn and Linda Conijn

Mild winter gives Niederrhein produce an early start

Looking back at the past year, Ruud Knorr, CEO of Veiling Rhein-Maas is proud of the auction’s performance even though 2013 has been exceptionally difficult. by Ron van der Ploeg

UFG reports clear shift toward negotiated prices

United Flower Growers, located in Burnaby near Vancouver is the largest and oldest Dutch style flower auction operating in North America. Commenting on last year’s sales, UFG’s CEO, Bob Pringle said there has been a clear shift toward to negotiated prices

FCI’s international partnerships World News International Events Advertising Index

GreenTech debut doesn’t disappoint

Show organiser RAI Amsterdam and its partners exceeded expectations with their inaugural GreenTech show, which was held in Amsterdam from June 10-12.

by Ron van der Ploeg

New Orleans hosts IFE 2014

The International Floriculture Expo, an industry-wide event that brings buyers and sellers together and serves all segments of the floriculture market, took place June 10-13, 2014 at the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, LA.

Columns 4 14 24 33

August 27-30

by Ron van der Ploeg

by William Armellini

Departments

PlantariumGuide FloraCulture

2014

A Blooming(dale) good debut

From the editor Dutch Comfort Miami Happy Gardening

07 09 16 29

As Plantarium 2014 draws closer, this supplement keeps you up to date with the latest show news. It features innovative new products from exhibitors as well as exhibitor listings and a floor plan. Plantarium is officially the longest established nursery stock trade fair in the world with over 17,000 visitors including breeders, growers, garden retailers, wholesalers, seed suppliers, plug producers, florists, landscapers and garden designers. Now in its 32nd year, the ‘Connect’-themed Plantarium show once again promises to be a truly international affair. Over 300 exhibitors from fifteen countries are registered to date!

The event is held at the International Trade Centre Boskoop-Hazerswoude from 27-30 August and will host 20 model gardens of every type that will display ‘surprising plant combinations’. Designed by Dutch landscape architect Niek Roozen, the miniature gardens will provide inspiration, information and enjoyment for all attendees. The Plantarium Experience Centre provides access to Plantarium’s novelty showcase. The sales events of GASA Germany, Floralis, SAP Holland and GreenTeam Holland BV will offer buyers from across Europe the possibility to source and order from a choice of sample batches of plant material.

The 2014 Plantarium show will be opened by JanWillem Breukink on Wednesday 27 August 2014. Breukink is a board member of INCOTEC®, a company known throughout the global seed industry specialising in the market introduction of new technologies across the world. Breukink is also chairman of the board of Seed Valley, a cluster of businesses in the Province of Noord-Holland between Enkhuizen and Warmenhuizen that specialise in the improvement, production and selling of high-quality seeds and botanic basic material. This is how Plantarium makes the connection to the very first link in the supply: the starting material. For more details visit www.plantarium.nl

As Plantarium 2014 draws closer, this supplement keeps you up to date with the latest show news. It features innovative new products from exhibitors as well as exhibitor listings and a floor plan.

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

27 - 30 August 2014 Boskoop/Holland Register your visit via the Internet and save yourself time at the entrance.

WWW.PLANTARIUM.NL

FloraCulture International 85x124 mm.indd 1

11-6-2014 9:13:05

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Publisher is not liable International magazine, P.O.Box 82, 1850 ABAllHeiloo, theNetherlands. © Quality, innovation, sustainability and logistics are words that 2009 FloraCulture International magazine. rights No portion of editorial may by Ron van for advertisements using illegally obtained images. Sendreserved. address changes to FloraCulture FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly.Worldwide distribution. der Ploeg be in anyInternational form without written permission of the publisher. Publisher is not may liable © reproducedmagazine, often appear in our editorial. Th is isand a compliment you, the International P.O.Box 82, 1850 AB theNetherlands. 2009 FloraCulture magazine. AllHeiloo, rights reserved. No portion of editorial FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly.Worldwide distribution. Quality, innovation, sustainability logistics aretowords that for advertisements using illegally obtained images. Sendof address changes Publisher to FloraCulture © be reproduced in any form without written permission theofpublisher. is not liable fl oriculture industry; the interviewees and contributors remain 2009 FloraCulture International magazine. All rights reserved. No portion editorial may often appear in our editorial. Th is is a compliment to you, the International magazine, P .O.Box 82, 1850 AB Heiloo, theNetherlands. advertisements using illegally obtained images. changes FloraCulture Quality,on innovation, and“what logistics areTh words that FloraCulture International B.V.Send address focused cansustainability be”interviewees rather than isn’t”. e cut flower e reproduced inforany form without written permission of the publisher. Publisher is not to liable floriculture“what industry; the and contributors remain International magazine, 82, 1850 AB Heiloo, theNetherlands. often appear in ourbut editorial. 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T 33 32 75 756 (81)22 33Setagaya-ku,Tokyo 32 27 933 are another institution that have a long history in Afriflora grows EMS 2-22-8 Matsubara, 156-0043, Japan T (81) (27)Inc., 22 4857058 FF(27) 4857415 California Trials, which, like the auctions, Japan: (callems@world.odn.ne.jp) PolicarEiji Yoshikawa Beytes a well-penned article bringing toPeter life the South Africa: Cilla Lowen (cilla@floracultureinternational.com) Eiji Eyal certifiedPack Fairtrade roses and employs around 8,700 East Africa: Gray (gray@africaonline.co.ke) presenting innovative ideas and products. T (81) 33 32David 75 756 F (81) 33 32156-0043, 27 933 Japan are another institution that havequality a long history inpeople in Ethiopia, EMS Inc., 2-22-8 Matsubara, Setagaya-ku,Tokyo Anabel Evans, Editor California Trials, which, like the auctions, Yoshikawa Policar T (27) 22 4857058 F (27) 22 4857415 FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly. 80% of whom arethat women. The company provides housing for its workers, Eiji 33 32 75South Cilla Lowen (cilla@floracultureinternational.com) East (gray@africaonline.co.ke) presenting innovative ideas and quality products. T (81) 756Africa: FAfrica: (81)David 33 32 Gray 27 933 are another institution have a long history in Worldwide distribution. ©2009 FloraCulture International magazine. Anabel Evans, Editor Yoshikawa All rights No portion of editorial may be reproduced in any as well as healthcare facilities, primary schools and crèches, social and T (27) 22(gray@africaonline.co.ke) 4857058 F reserved. (27) 22 4857415 FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly. South Africa: Cilla Lowen (cilla@fl oracultureinternational.com) East Africa: David Gray presenting innovative ideas and quality products. Eiji form without written permission of the publisher. Publisher is not Worldwide distribution. ©2009 FloraCulture International magazine. activities. Evans, Editor T (27) 4857058 F reserved. (27) 4857415 liable for22 advertisements using22 illegally obtained images. may Sendbe address changes to sporting Anabel Yoshikawa South Africa: Cilla Lowen (cilla@fl oracultureinternational.com) All rights No portion of editorial reproduced in any FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly. Eiji FloraCulture International magazine, P .O.Box 82,1850 AB Heiloo, the Netherlands. form without written permission of the publisher. Publisher is not Anabel Evans, Editor Worldwide distribution. ©2009 FloraCulture International magazine. T (27) 22 4857058 F (27) 22 4857415 Yoshikawa liable for advertisements using illegally obtained images. Send address changes to Cilla Lowen Eiji FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly. All rights reserved. No portion of editorial may be reproduced in any FloraCulture International magazine, P.O.Box 82,1850 AB Heiloo, the Netherlands. Worldwide distribution. ©2009 FloraCulture International magazine. oshikawa form without written permission of the publisher. Publisher is notAnabel Evans, Editor International isispublished monthly. FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) published monthly. All rights(ISSN1051-9076) reserved. No portion of editorial may reproduced in any liable for advertisements using illegally obtained images. Sendbe address changes to Cilla Lowen FloraCulture Worldwide distribution. ©2009 FloraCulture International magazine.

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Worldwide distribution. ©2014 FloraCulture International magazine. form without written permission of theAB publisher. is not FloraCulture International magazine, P.O.Box 82,1850 Heiloo, Publisher the Netherlands. All rights No ofofillegally editorial may in any All rights reserved. Noportion portion editorialobtained maybe bereproduced reproduced liable forreserved. advertisements using images. Send address changes to form without written permission of theP.O.Box publisher. Publisher not the Netherlands. inFloraCulture any form without written permission of the 82,1850 publisher. International magazine, AB is Heiloo, liable for advertisements illegally obtained images.obtained Send address changes to Publisher is not liable for using advertisements using illegally images. Cilla Lowen FloraCulture International P.O.Box 82,1850magazine, AB Heiloo, the Netherlands. Send address changes tomagazine, FloraCulture International Postal address: Postbus 6001554_06_Colofon.indd 6 1081, 1430 BB Aalsmeer, the Netherlands. illa Lowen

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Ron van der Ploeg, editor ron@floracultureinternational.com

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27-04-2009 13:08:58

Africa Kenyans do not only grow flowers for markets in Europe. More and more people buy flowers for decorating their own homes and parties. “The middle class in the country is growing, people have more money to spend, so they also spend it on luxury items like flowers,” said Jane Ngige, Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Flower Council (KFC). “A great development for a country that wants to be an internationally reputed flower nation.”

The rise of the Kenyan consumer K

enya’s consumer culture is on the rise. Fancy shopping malls, restaurants, clothing and shoe stores are not only frequented mainly by expats and tourists, but by a large number of young and well to do Kenyans as well. Between 2003 and 2011, Kenya's private domestic consumption accounted for 78 per cent of economic growth. Well in line with Kenya's ambitious Vision 2030, a long term government plan to achieve the country's middle-income status in another 15 year-time.

No statistics

How big the local market for flowers exactly is and how fast it is growing, isn't clear since there are no statistics available. KFC believes that about 5 percent of the locally produced flowers end up in local shops and stalls. The expectation is that this will double or even triple in the coming years. To get a more accurate picture the American aid organization USAID is planning to conduct a survey soon.

Many local customers

by Frans van den Houdt

Ezra Muhoho (38) sells flowers at Valley Arcade Shopping Centre, a middle income estate not far from the city centre. Although the majority of his customers are still white people, the number of Kenyans buying roses, summer flowers and fillers is increasing. A bunch sells for 200 shillings (about 2 euros). “With Valentine’s Day, Christmas and Easter we get quite many local customers, but even during the rest of the year Kenyans have started buying flowers, especially women.” Muhoho is a member of Monrovia Flower Growers, a group of about 50 vendors that purchase their flowers jointly, share ideas of how to increase their market share and

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

invest in farms. “I've been selling flowers for the last 15 years, but since we work together business has really flourished.”

Campaign

In 2007, KFC launched an initiative to boost local flower consumption called Soko la Maua (Swahili for flower market). “The campaign is starting to pay off,” said Ngige, “local demand for flowers is growing steadily. Throughout the year, with a peak during Valentine’s Day, when we organise special fairs. Flowers also appear in many government offices and other public places.” Although the latter development might be short lived, since the

government is scaling back their expenditure considerably on 'luxury' goods like flowers, newspapers and beverages in offices, the taste of many Kenyans for flowers will only intensify, people in the industry foresee. Weddings, funerals, birthdays, special commemorations and other private and public celebrations are often brightened up with roses and colourful bouquets. To strengthen business links between growers and florists Soko la Maua has targeted about 120 vendors and 300 farmers through the Flower Vendors Association. Business skills of vendors were enhanced through special trainings and a special code of practise was

Dutch Comfort

by Jaap N. Kras

A historic rejection For the first time in FloraHolland’s over 100 years of history, a proposal from its Board of Directors was rejected by the Annual General Members’ Meeting on June 5th. A massive 60% of the grower members voted against the proposal.

formulated for farmers. This way KFC wants to create employment and wealth for small-scale growers, since the Kenyan market is their main and often only outlet.

Every day sales

Ngige disagreed with the perception that flowers sold locally are of less quality than the ones for export. “Florists nowadays demand first quality. Well, flower stalls in shopping malls and hotels might stock more expensive flowers and have better facilities for storage than street vendors, but the latter will only buy supplies they can sell in a day.” Besides the flowers from small farms, some produce from big export companies also ends up in the streets of Nairobi. Mainly produce that doesn't qualify for foreign markets. “But that doesn't mean the quality is not good,” said a grower in Thika who prefers not to be named. “The stems might not be completely straight or too short, or the flowers are too mature for export, that's all.” Demand is steadily rising. “Five years ago we sold only once a week, now every day.”

A bit of a headache

Some reputed companies like Finlays Flowers Ltd and Isinya Flowers say they concentrate as much as possible on their clients abroad and hardly get involved with the Kenyan market. A spokesperson for Finlays however admits that sometimes flowers that don't qualify for export are sold to local middlemen. “Demand is higher than some years ago. The best evidence that the local market is doing very well, is the increasing number of small holders.” But local sales can also create a bit of a headache, admitted the Thika farmer. “Flowers are bought directly from the farm by consumers and middlemen and paid with cash, to avoid VAT and income tax, which means that everyone tries to get a share, from the pickers and the sorters to the watchman at the gate. It's quite stressful to keep an eye on all these non-official activities.” |||

A non-profit organisation, the auction always budgets its income and expenses very tightly, just enough to cover the costs and add a small extra profit to its own capital. Its members pay 1% of their turnover annually and an additional liquidity contribution to strengthen the cooperative’s capital and to cover negative operating expenses. To bolster the auction’s liability position, the members provide a liability loan. In normal years, the 1% liquidity contribution is not used and the money is transferred to the interest bearing members’ loans account and made payable after 8 years. FloraHolland reported disappointing financial results for 2013. The dramatic collapse of the floral wholesalers Ciccolella and Florimex caused an incidental loss of around €10 million. Meanwhile, an increasing number of grower members sold their flowers and plants directly to their customers rather than bringing them under the auction clock. Although these members continue to use the auction’s credit facilities, direct (mediation) sales bring in less money than clock sales. This is because the auction system, organisational structure, halls, services and logistics were built and designed for clock sales. In today’s interconnected era, both growers and buyers have different needs, spurring the auction to change its business structure and to make the company leaner with fewer personnel. The unions and social laws force the auction to invest an enormous amount of money in reducing personnel number and restructuring. This is an ongoing process. FloraHolland’s Board of Directors proposed to pay 50% of the losses, (€7,4 million) out of the auction’s reserves (own capital) and the other 50% (€7,4 million) out of the 2013 liquidity levy. This means for the members that unlike previous years, the levy covers only 50% and there is also €7,4 million added to the members loan account. For the members, the loan to the auction is part of their capital, indeed often ceded to their bank as security for their own loans. So although the proposal to hold €7,4 million is not a cash payment for the members, it does influence their financial position. In line with the FloraHolland bylaws, a new Annual General Members’ Meeting will be held on July 10th . Here, FloraHolland will propose to use not 0.5% but 0.25% of the liquidity contribution collected in 2013 to cover part of the loss. The remaining net loss will be charged to the general reserve. When compared to alternative solutions – an increase in contribution or service costs - the proposal to credit half of the contribution levy was by far the best. Some say that in a vote, the voters are always right. This is not necessarily true in this case. Only 294 or 5% of the members attended the AGM. The majority of these 294 members were probably unmotivated and poorly committed to the case. Generally speaking, one can say that the “no”-voters are some of the bigger members because this 5% represented 14,5% of the total voting right of the members. I am afraid that the total loss for 2013 has to be taken out of the cooperative reserves, but by doing so, the cooperative will be put in a bad financial position. And this is something the mermbers will have to pay for, sooner or later. That’s why the initial proposal was so good.

Jaap N. Kras jaap@floracultureinternational.com

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

Africa

Kenya-based Bloomingdale is a new rose farm which harvested its first premium quality roses in January this year. Auctioned off by FloraHolland in the Netherlands, the first batches of Bloomingdale roses made a blooming good debut.

by Ron van der Ploeg

A Blooming(dale) good debut I

deally located at an altitude of 2.450 metres in Kenya’s Timau region, not far from the equator and on the slopes of Mt. Kenya, the rose farm’s commitment to quality is supported by strict quality control procedures for each stage of production from start to ship.

Bloomingdale ships the roses to BSI in the Netherlands where they are auctioned off to wholesalers and export companies who distribute and sell them worldwide. So far, Bloomingdale’s first major harvest yielded around 150,000 stems per week. Considering the expansion of greenhouses being underway, BSI’s company owner and managing director, Mr. Rinus Bouwman predicts an annual output of 33 to 34 million stems per year which will be sold all year round through the auction in Aalsmeer.

Strong rose brand

Founded in 2013, Bloomingdale Roses is a subsidiary of the Kenyanbased Bobmil Group and covers an area of 30ha with plastic greenhouses with adjacent packing area, cold storage facilities, canteen and offices. Through hard work, passion and determination Bloomingdale Roses aspires to differentiate themselves in the marketplace and grow to

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

become one of the strongest international rose brands. According to Rinus Bouman, the company’s strength lies in their commitment to quality and attention to detail. Their current range consists of boldly-coloured Tea hybrids such as ‘Wink’, ‘Athena’, ‘Madam Red’, ‘Eliza’, ‘Asante’, ‘Sundance’, ‘Nicoletta’, Mariyo’, ‘Belle Rose’ and ‘Goodtimes’, while additional varieties are expected to enter the rose market soon.

High end roses

Featuring sturdy stems, strong colours and an average bloom size of 7 to 8 centimetres in diameter, Bloomingdale aims at the high end of the market. Speaking about market, Bloomingdale hosted a great and memorable launch party (including a Dutch herring stall, drinks and other party food) and at Aalsmeer-based Hoven & de Mooij to introduce their new business and products. Held in the run up period to

The packing area includes cold storage facilities, canteen and offices.

Rose sorting machine.

Bloomingdale roses’ official debut at the Dutch auction clocks on Monday January 27th 2014, the event offered buyers from the leading Dutch floral wholesale companies the opportunity to learn all the ins and outs of the Bloomendale farm and its exciting new products. To mark the occasion Bloomingdale’s company owner, Mr Bunty Shah flew in from Kenya to meet and greet his customers.

Quality

Mr. Shah stressed that the company’s commitment to quality will shape its future success. Harvested

at the right stage, flower stems are immediately put in a clean bucket containing flower food solution. In a cool area flowers are graded, bunched and packed. Bloomingdale provides temperaturecontrolled shipping from its in-house cold storage facilities in Timau to the giant coolers at the cargo centre of Nairobi’s international airport. Bunty Shah: “Therefore, all our roses have a really good shelf life -at least 14 days guaranteed - and are typical in respect of their quality, specification and look. All delicate blooms with stem lengths ranging from 50 to 90 cm are

carefully packed to ensure every single rose is protected for delivery. Particularly interesting is Bloomingdale’s dedication to sustainability with the MPS A certification process being underway.”

Vital link

Located at the flower auction in Aalsmeer, BSI forms a vital link in the supply chain as it handles floral consignments of global suppliers in temperature controlled environment. “After a long haul flight flowers are immediately unpacked from their shipping boxes and prepared for the auction and wholesale customers,” explained

Bouwman. He added, “BSI, which this year celebrates 22 years in business, is particularly proud of having forced collaborative partnerships with many flower farms and has been involved in Bloomingdale Roses from the very beginning.” ||| The website of Bloomingdale Roses is still under construction but will soon be available. www.bloomingdaleroses.com

Bloomingdale’s predicted annual output is 33 to 34 million stems per year to be sold all year round through the Dutch auction system.

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

Lilies On the first and the third day of the International Symposium on the Genus Lilium and Narcissus mini Symposium (April 1-3), excursions were organised to local institutes, narcissus fields and horticultural companies. The local government offered conference goers a behindthe-scenes look at the Zhangzhou Merchants Development Zone, the Double Happiness Island and the SinoEurope Agricultural Development Centre (SEADC).

by Cor Conijn and Linda Conijn

Touring horticultural businesses in China’s Fujian province

Model of the Double Happiness Island.

Growing lilies and narcissus the Chinese way

Flower design of carved Narcissus tazetta var. chinensis

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

The lily symposium was held in the Fujian province where growers have been cultivating the ‘Chinese Sacred Lily’ (Narcissus tazetta var. chinensis) for many years. This is a small, fragrant Narcissus that arrived in China more than 1000 years ago via the Silk Route and/or via Persian/Arab sea trade routes. In China a horticultural tradition developed as the flowers became associated with lunar New Year celebrations. At the Narcissus Mini Symposium, florists showed about one hundred beautiful Chinese carved narcissus.

Zhangzhou Merchants Development Zone The Zhangzhou Merchants Development Zone is a forest of construction cranes. The first, recently completed building projects include university buildings, the SEADC Institute, a housing project and a golf course. A new building at the edges of the Zone hosts a model of the Double Happiness Island, which occupies pride of place in the Zhangzhou Merchants Development Zone; a prestigious project that must be ready by 2022. |||

SEADC Founded in 2011, the Sino-Europe Agricultural Development Centre is a joint venture between Wageningen University & Research Centre (WUR), the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) and the Sino-Europe Technological Promotion Centre (SETPC). The SEADC focuses on production, testing and breeding of ornamental and vegetable crops, extraction of effective ingredients and other related modern agricultural technology, that will contribute to the horticulture and agriculture of Fujian Province. The SEADC institute inZhangzhou city encompasses an area with offices, a laboratory, conference rooms and greenhouses for production of, for example, lilies and Amaryllis. |||

Flower shows and horticultural companies

Entrance Zhangzhou flower expo.

Chinese florist working on Narcissus Flower design.

Narcissus fields Farm tours included a visit to Narcissus fields at the foot of the Yanshan Mountains. The fields are facing sunshine in the morning and shade in the afternoon and are therefore highly suited for growing Narcissus. The land is fertile and there is good availability of water. The soil is heavy with a pH 5.5 -5.7. The production of Zhangzhou Narcissus covers an area of 4200 mu (approximately 280 ha) and is a 500 year old tradition. Flowers are sold to other districts and countries such as Europe, USA, Japan, S.A. Asian countries, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Growers are growing two types: single-flowered species dubbed the jinzhanyintai (golden cup and silver light stand) commonly known as cup-shaped Narcissus and semidouble flowered varieties named tulinglong,(jade exquisite), which are also known as shutter Narcissus. Following the growing season, the large bulbs are harvested, sorted, cut, washed, lined with wet cotton and put on water to grow. Then the bulbs are stored for growing and blooming. When the bulbs are blooming, the Chinese florists turn the flowers into true works of art. ||| Narcissus fields at the foot of the Yanshan Mountains.

Phalaenopsis growing in a brand new greenhouse.

Conference attendees visited the Zhangzhou Flower Expo Garden in Makou, a Floriade-style horticultural exhibition which opened in November 2011. It hosts beautiful gardens and greenhouses featuring state-of- the-art technology. In the restaurant only products from the garden were served. A large Phalaenopsis production centre near Zhanghzhou was recently built by Taiwanese investors. The greenhouses are new and temperature-controlled. Inside the greenhouses you can find a plastic tunnel, large ventilators in the wall and sun screens on the outside. The Yangji Horticulture co. Ltd. grows medicinal Dendrobium plants from meristem culture, in pots, in greenhouses and outside in the garden, where cultivation pots hang in trees. There was a large compartment with a lot of pots containing Dendrobium cuttings. Visitors can walk around the garden and the greenhouses where cuttings are grown following their potting phase. |||

Dendrobium in cultivating baskets.

Lily production in China Lily bulb farming and flower forcing in China are found predominantly in four regions and 7 provinces; Yunnan, Liaoning, Jiangsu, Guangdong, Gansu, Fujian and Zhejiang. All together, they produce flowers and bulbs for ornamental, food or medicine use. Data about lily bulbs and flower production in China is not reliable. Industry experts talk of 60 million bulbs and 600 million stems in 2012. China imports more than 200 million bulbs from The Netherlands and the southern hemisphere (lecture D. Mu 2014). The Chinese lily growers just re-use the bulbs for one or two years, or sometimes even three or four years in some regions. Over the past 15 years, the production of lily bulbs and flowers has increased rapidly. Northern and southern China have a completely different climate and grow lilies in different ways. In southern China the lily production is year round and soil bound, using plastic or unheated greenhouses. In contrast, lily growers in northern China use solar-energy-saving greenhouses. The greenhouses have a thick wall on one side to keep the greenhouse during cold nights. On the other side, most often the south side, the half-rounded glass construction can be covered by mats.

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

World News Ecuador/The Netherlands

Giant rose blooms delighted garden visitors Sumptuous and dazzlingly colourful displays of Ecuador roses delighted visitors at Amsterdamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual Open Garden Days, which were held from June 20 to 22. Over 8,000 visitors flocked to the threeday event with more than 25 palaces and museums in the centre of Amsterdam open their gardens to the public. The roses were displayed in a wide variety of colours and shapes. Ecuador grows more than 300 varieties of roses, which are known especially by length of the stems (sometimes more than 1 meter), and the size of the bloom (probably the largest in the world), and the bright and beautiful colours of their petals. These roses are grown on the Andes Mountains at 3,000 meters high, which is part of the secret of the beauty. This industry in Ecuador generates more than 120.000 jobs. In 2012, Ecuador exported for a total amount of 766

million USD dollarsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; worth of fresh cut flowers. The Institute for Export Promotion of Ecuador, PROECUADOR, with its Commercial Office in Rotterdam, Netherlands, coordinated the shipment from the Ecuadorian farms Naranjo

Roses, Floreloy, Valdesol and Joygardens which donated these flowers. Pictured are Ecuadorian roses exhibited at the different venues (Photo credits: National Geographic and GEO photographer Cris Toala Olivares). |||

by William Armellini

Miami

Fishing for customers The Netherlands Florensis show attracts record visitors A hand-written sign greeted over 1,500 guests to "Camp Fleuropa". This camp-themed party was probably one of the most exciting events which were held on the occasion of the 10th Flower Trials which were held from June 10-13. Florensis, an ornamental grower and producer/ distribution operation of seedlings from seeds and cuttings, based in Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht, the Netherlands, is delighted with the visitor numbers. In addition to the beautiful Spring weather this highest visitor number ever, is the result of a growing popularity of Florensis with Europeans. With help of some fun ideas such as camping tents, caravans, motor homes, BBQs and a French Jeu de Boules ball game, Florensis had coloured its summer garden with seasonal bedding plants, perennials and grasses. The Florensis show featured many interesting new introductions and side by side product comparisons. Raised from cuttings, Calibrachoa CabaretTM of Florensis is a true rising star on stage. Cabaret stands out with its highly uniform flowering and unique garden performance. The wide colour range and the new Cabaret MixMasters programme provide a splendid performance in terms of cultivation, sales and application. Brand new on the stage and already very popular is the talented Calibrachoa Can-Can Rosies! With its own Toscano line, Florensis offers one of the strongest ranges of Pelargonium. The Toscana series is well-known for its uniform growth habit and includes varieties which are perfect for growers, garden retailers and gardeners alike. Geraniums old-fashioned? Toscana provides a young lifestyle sensation! Florensis introduced 5 new varieties in the Toscana family: Senna, Josina, Regina, Hanna and Renske. Some other products that were highlighted in stunning presentations were Viva®, GO!Tunia, Verbena Venturi®, Begonia Bonaparte and the brand new colour Cha Ching in the Petunia Mystical® series. More information can be found on www.florensis.com and www.toscanapelargonium.com. |||

After reading lots and lots of debates about whether wire services like FTD and Teleflora are good for the industry or not, it occurred to me that it compares well to fishing. Basically, it comes down to who has the customers/fishes’ attention, or not. In the past, let's say 10 + or more years ago, the ‘fish’ were in a very big pond and were very hard to find. If you were local then the ‘fish’ more or less found you because they saw your sign and knew that is where to get flowers. Your customers were limited to those you could identify and service and if you needed to send flowers for one of these customers you needed a service like FTD to make it happen. This all worked fairly well for everyone for a long time, the wire services had the connections and the infrastructure to make it work. What they really had was a growing list of customers all over the county. Then the internet comes along and the game changes. Now anyone with some flower sourcing knowledge, a few bucks and a friend who knows how to build a webpage, can be a national wholesaler. Armed with a toolbox full of new technology, the fishermen can bait their hooks and start fishing for customers. Remember how fishing is traditionally done? You get in your boat with all your gear, including a few baloney sandwiches and head out to some place where you hope there are fish to catch. You see some boats in one area and assume that there must be fish there. You pull up, bait your hooks and there you have it, you are fishing. Not necessarily catching, but fishing. Fast forward again and now fishing is a whole new game. You have your GPS to bring you to the exact location where you caught fish before, drop down your GoPro camera and see what's available. No fish? Move on. Order Gatherers (OGs) are doing the same thing using technology to fish for the customers than having UPS or FedEx be their GPS to get the product to the customer that they caught. Scammers on the internet use a similar method of fishing called "phishing" and it works in similar ways. They bait their hooks with pretty girls in suggestive circumstances or unbelievable situations that tempt you to click on. (Admit it, we have all done it!) OGs bait their hooks with beautiful arrangements and great intro prices. So it is all about the customer and how to attract, find and service them. The wire services used to have the advantage because they had the networks, but now the internet Order Gatherers have their own wires and smaller pack sizes to get an order to the right home or business. In all of this, the local florist fights for their piece of the pie. They are being asked by more and more OGs to fill their orders and more and more are saying no thanks. Remember to wear your sunscreen, Miami is hot!

William Armellini. Editor Flowersandcents.com Williee@williee.com

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

World News United Kingdom Buoyant atmosphere as UK National Plant Show comes to a close The fifth annual UK National Plant Show, held in late June, attracted over a hundred exhibitors, almost three quarters of them commercial nurseries. The product range extended from Christmas trees, roses, shrubs and fruit trees to pot plants for the home. The dominant categories, though, were bedding and patio plants and herbaceous perennials, mainly for sale in the spring and early summer months. Visitors from the retail sector are vitally important to the success of the two-day event. When this year’s attendance is analysed they are expected to account for over forty per cent of the footfall, as in previous years.

A shop window for British growers The show is located in a very central position in the UK, 40km east of the country’s second largest conurbation, centred on the city of Birmingham. Organised by the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA), it was conceived as a shop window for British growers. As a trade show, it is unique in the UK in excluding exhibitors based in other countries who supply finished, ready-for-sale plants. An important minority of the exhibitors were specialist young plant suppliers to growers. The show organisers have always recognised that these exhibitors operate in an international market that should have little or no place for nationalistic restrictions. Syngenta FloriPro Services and Florensis, for example, both supply growers in the UK with young plants produced mostly in the Netherlands. British young plant suppliers displayed many varieties bred in other European countries, with German breeders Duemmen, Selecta Klemm and Elsner PAC well to the fore. Sun-

The best herbaceous perennial was the Trollius Dancing Flame from Fairweather’s Nursery, and this was judged the best introduction overall.

The award for Best Plant Display went to Lovania Nurseries for their inspirational display of alpines.

tory varieties are very well established on the UK market, and possibly the most colourful stand of all, Channel Island Plants, featured many of them, from the Surfinia petunias to recent introductions such as the dianthus Suntory Pink and Lofos Compact White.

For the shrubs and climbers category, it was again a breeder in Japan, Ryoji Irie, who emerged triumphant, with the hydrangea Miss Saori. Entered into the competition by Javado UK, this variety is also the Royal Horticultural Society’s Chelsea Show plant of the year 2014. In the house plants category, it was a Phalaenopsis variety, Japanese Cascade, sourced from Opti-flor in The Netherlands, that was the top choice of the judging panel. The best herbaceous perennial was the Trollius Dancing Flame, and this was judged the best introduction overall. The breeder here was British, Fairweather’s Nursery.

New Plant Awards This year saw a record number of entries – almost 120 – in the Show’s New Plant Awards competition. The introductions, all put forward by exhibitors, were drawn from breeders around the world. The top award for plants grown as annuals went to SunPatiens Electric Orange, bred by Sakata.

A very encouraging start

Brisk activity on the show floor.

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

Chris Campbell of Javado UK with award-winning introduction hydrangea 'Miss Saori'.

The great majority of UK growers of garden ornamentals have enjoyed a very encouraging start to 2014, thanks to prolonged good weather conditions in the critical spring period. By the end of May, UK garden retail sales were up by 21% over 2013, while the 2012 season was very poor indeed. Exhibitors shared in the buoyant attitude of visitors, and their very high rate of return year after year seems set to continue. They are strongly encouraged by the responses to questionnaires of visitors in past years, showing that over three quarters claim to make or directly influence buying decisions. |||

2014

PlantariumGuide FloraCulture August 27-30

Plantarium is the ideal platform to showcase your latest innovations if you’re involved in the ornamental horticulture and gardening industry. This year’s show will host over 50 entries to the new plant awards and several new plants will be highlighted on the new plant’s stand near the entrance. These pages are a run-down of Plantarium’s most distinctive novelties. It’s not exhaustive - there’s a lot more to discover at Plantarium - but it gives you an idea of the show’s wideranging appeal. Here are some of our favourites.

Latest breeding breakthroughs at the 2014 Plantarium

by Ron van der Ploeg

Parahebe catarractae ‘Avalanche’ This mat-forming semi-evergreen to evergreen sub-shrub makes an excellent ‘front of the border’ plant, with delicate sprays of white flowers throughout summer. It features toothed, narrowly ovate, dark green leaves and racemes of saucer-shaped, white flowers in summer. According to NZ breeder Stephen Burton of Annton Nursery, Cambridge and Van Vliet New Plants BV from Stroe, the Netherlands the plant is fairly hardy in the Netherlands. ‘Avalanche’ is also suited for patio pot and is PBR protected. |||

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

Buddleja davidii ‘Podaras 9’ (FLUTTERBY PINK) Buddleja davidii ‘Podaras 9’ (FLUTTERBY PINK) is a fantastic new introduction. This denselybranched sterile hybrid is a creation of Peter Podaras from Cornell University in the USA. It is patented in the USA and has Plant Breeders' Rights in Europe. Young species feature a columnar shape. The drooping branches are smothered with large pink flowers, while the leaves are dark green. FLUTTERBY PINK continues to bloom until the first frost and is certified sterile so it will not self-seed around the garden. It can be used both as a containerised accent on the terrace or as a garden plant. Van Vliet New Plants BV have been marketing this PBR protected plant since 2013 and were also responsible for submitting it to Plantarium. |||

2014

PlantariumGuide Rhodoxis ‘HIL200802’ (FAIRYTALE) Rhodohypoxis ‘HIL200802’ (FAIRYTALE) makes a striking plant for a balcony or patio with its pinkish-red leaves with yellowish centres. The plant flowers continuously from May to October and is resistant to disease. FAIRYTALE thrives well in full sun, is winter hardy down to -5°C and reaches a height of around 25cm and a width of 25cm. Philip van Hilst of Kaatsheuvel developed this PBR protected plant. Remon Bakhuijzen (Hazerswoude dorp), Gebr Alkemade (Lisse) and Philip van Hilst (Kaatsheuvel) will introduce the plant at Plantarium 2014. The plant was submitted for the judging of novelties by Plantipp of IJsselstein. |||

Dianella revoluta ‘Allyn Citation’ (COOLVISTA) Dianella revoluta ‘Allyn Citation’ (COOLVISTA) is a quick-growing grass with plenty of creeping shoots and is ideal for a patio or balcony. With grey-blue leaves giving it a striking appearance, the plant reaches some 60cm in height with a spread of around 30cm. The plant is winter hardy down to -5°C . Bred by Noel & Charles Jupp of Australia, the plant was first shown at IMP 2014 by Amigra Grasses & More of Honselersdijk and was submitted for the judging of novelties at Plantarium by Plantipp of IJsselstein. PBR protected. |||

Berberis thunbergii ‘Lutin Rouge’

Viburnum plicatum ‘JWW 5’ (KILIMANJARO SUNRISE)

Berberis thunbergii ‘Lutin Rouge’ is compact in growth habit (height 40cm and width 15cm).

Viburnum plicatum ‘JWW 5’ (KILIMANJARO SUNRISE) has pale pink flowers that are followed by colourful berries and autumn foliage.

The leaves appear intensely red in full sun but fresh green in shade. The plant is winter hardy down to -30°C . It was obtained by Pépinières Jean-Pierre Hennebelle of France. About Plants (Zundert) and Vromans Kwekerijen (Biest-Houtakker) are introducing ‘Lutin Rouge’ at Plantarium 2014. The plant was submitted for the judging of novelties by Plantipp of IJsselstein. PBR protected. |||

The plant has an excellent vertical growth habit, allowing it to be easily trained into a pyramid shape. Jan Willem Wezelenburg from Hazerswoude discovered this shrub as a seedling and it was named in 2013. Plants are exclusively obtainable from Van Son & Koot (NL), van der Peijl Tuinplanten (NL), Willy de Nolf (BE), Heinje Baumschulen (GER) and Szmit (PL). Van Vliet New Plants BV from Stroe is responsible for the shrub’s entry at Plantarium. PBR protected. |||

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

Plantarium 2014

223 A TOUCH OF GREEN GARDEN WEBSHOP 152 AB-CULTIVARS BV 91 ABOUT PLANTS ZUNDERT BV 160 ADDENDA®, TELERSVERENIGING 116 AFRICAN ROOTS 37 ALKEMADE BV, GEBR. 205 ALLURE TUINPLANTEN BV 207 AMIGRA BV 172 ANDRE BRIANT JEUNES PLANTS 134 ANTENS-DOMEN BV 190 ANTHONISSEN, KERSTBOMENKWEKERIJ 221 ANTHURA BV 177 ARENDS PATERSWOLDE, KWEKERIJ 125 ARMADA 027/047 ASRA PLANT BVBA 68 B&B PLANT BV 21 BAAS HOVENIERS BV, ERNST 175 BARTELS STEK 69 BAUMANN & SÖHNE GBR, W. 135 BERGS BV, STEKBEDRIJF 62 BIESPLANKEN/NLW GROEP, KWEKERIJ DE 192 BIO TREE LTD 124 BLOEMENDAAL VOF, BOOMKWEKERIJ 003/272 BLOEMENKAMPEN BV, KWEKERIJ DE 230 BLOM BOOMKWEKERIJEN BV, DICK 201 BOGREEN OUTDOOR PLANTS BV 228 BONTEKOE, VOF SALIXKWEKERIJ 312 BOOMKAMP BOOMKWEKERIJEN BV, JAN 70 BOONEN VAN DER HEIJDEN BV 75 BOS EN HOOGENBOOM 32 BOUMAN TUINPLANTEN BV, ARIE 46 BRAAM BV, HENK 232 BRAND BOOMKWEKERIJEN BV, MARCEL 30 BRAND KWEKERIJ, RAMON 151 BREEDERPLANTS VOF 217 BREMMER BOOMKWEKERIJEN VOF 130 BRUNS PFLANZEN EXPORT GMBH & CO.KG 7 BUITENBUITEN 195 BULL, BOOMKWEKERIJ 78 BURG, PLANTENKWEKERIJ ANDRE VAN DER 242 BUTTERFLY GARDEN 303 BUURTE KWEKERIJEN, DE 54 CAMMERAAT VOF, J.G. 76 CAPTEIN & ZN., P.W. 166 CLEMATIS CONTAINER NURSERY 149 CNB NEW PLANTS™ 67 COENDERS KWEKERIJEN BV, FRANK 306-310 COMFORT PLANT GROUP 158 CRESCO DE KWAKEL VOF 174 CULTIVARIS NORTH AMERICA LLC 236 DANZIGER "DAN" FLOWER FARM

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

315 DECKER-JACOBS BV, KWEKERIJEN 013/128 DECORUM COMPANY 313 DENIS-PLANTS BVBA 198 DOOL, VAN DEN 287 ELSTGEEST YOUNGPLANTS 171 EMPATEC KWEKERIJEN 117 ERGON KWEKERIJ 60 EUROTREE HORST BV 203 EXCELLENT BOOMKWEKERIJEN BV 010/015 FLORALIS BOSKOOP BV 150 FLORENSIS BV 311 FLORIST HOLLAND BV 45 FOREVER & EVER 225 FRIJNS EN ZN. BV, JOS 148 FRUITHOF 142 FUSIONCOLORS BV 28 GARDEN VISIONS 018/049 GASA GERMANY GMBH 277 GERDES, ARNO 126 GOOTJES-ALLPLANT BV 197 GOVA BV 42 GP PLANTS 016 /072 GREEN TEAM HOLLAND BV 57 GREEN WORKS INTERNATIONAL BV 100-110 GREENPORT REGIO BOSKOOP, STICHTING 162 GRIFFIOEN WASSENAAR BV 278 HEMMJE MANFRED GMBH 274 HENNINGSEN AS 155 HERITAGE GREENHOUSE PRODUCTS USA 189 HEYEVELD NV 59 HILVERDAKOOIJ BV 294a HOCHBERG EXPORT ORNAMENTAL PLANTS LTD 178 HOEKERT BV, BOOMKWEKERIJ 171 HOGENDOORN WIJK EN AALBURG BV 74 HOOFTMAN BOOMKWEKERIJ, V.C. 153 HOOGENRAAD BV, HANDELSKWEKERIJ G. 234 HOOGEVEEN PLANTS BV 43 HORTIMEX HOLLAND BV 289 HOUBEN BVBA, P. 81 HULST TUINPLANTEN BV 179 HUYSMANS BV, KWEKERIJ 122 HYDRANGEA BREEDERS ASSOCIATION BV 144 ID'FLOR BVBA 281 ILEX SELECT™ 200 ISLANDPLANT BV 180 ITEA, BOOMKWEKERIJ 229 JONG PLANT BV, DE 173 JONG TUINPLANTEN VOF, DE 141 JONKERS ELSHOUT BV, GEBR. 233 KEMPEN BV, F.N. 6 KEMPERS HOVENIERS 273 KOEKOEK BV, KWEKERIJ DE

209 KOEMANS, BOOMKWEKERIJ CEES 55 KOLSTER BV 203 KONINGSTUIN, BOOMKWEKERIJ 181 KORTENHORST, BOOMKWEKERIJ 167 KÜHNE JUNGPFLANZEN 64 LAKEI BOOMKWEKERIJEN 120 LANARI ALDO FLORICOLTURA DI LANARI GABRIELE 23 LEE, HOV.BEDRIJF VAN DER 94 LEHEI GMBH 208 LEYBAERT BVBA 77 LINT BOOMKWEKERIJ, LÉON VAN

2014

PlantariumGuide

316 RIEL SIERPLANTENKWEKERIJ BV, VAN 51 RIJNBEEK & ZN. BV SAM® 231 RIJNBEEK BOOMKWEKERIJEN BV, B.D. 8 RIVIUS TUINONTWERP EN ADVIESBURO 61 ROOBEEK KWEKERIJ, WAA 314 ROOS BV, BOOMKWEKERIJ RONALD 36 ROSES FOREVER ApS 136 RÖTJES YOUNG PLANTS BV 147 SALM, GEBR. VAN DER 014/161 SAP HOLLAND BV 123 SAPHO 279 SATERPLANT GMBH 168 SCHIE BV, SJAAK VAN 63 SCHOLTE, KWEKERIJ 183 SCHOLTEN BV, BOOMKWEKERIJ JEROEN 93 SEUREN ROZENKWEKERIJEN BV, GEBR. 33 SNEPVANGERS TUINPLANTEN BV 227 SON & KOOT BV, VAN 80 SPECIAL PLANT ZUNDERT BV 202 SPECIALE, TELERSGROEP 1 SPEK HOVENIERSBEDRIJF, M. VAN DER 58 SPEK ROZEN BV, JAN 156 STARRE BV, VAN DER 283 STOLWIJK & CO. BV, G.C. 157 STOLWIJK & ZN BOOMKWEKERIJEN BV, JOH.

095 -099 OPHEUSDEN EN OMG./TCO, VER.BOMEN EN PL.BEURS

112 LUBERA AG 79 MATHOT PERNETTYA KWEKERIJ CV, M. 133 MEKO HULSEBOSCH 024/146 MOERINGS BV WATERPLANTENKWEKERIJ, R. 194 MULDERS SIERTEELT VOF 92 MULDERS VOF 127 MVB PLANTS WORLDWIDE 31 NOLINA KWEKERIJEN BV 176 NORTHPLANTS 204 NUNEN BV, BOOMKWEKERIJ A. VAN 199 OLSTHOORN HOEK VAN HOLLAND BV

282 OPLOO TUINPLANTEN, VAN 284 /286 OPRINS PLANT NV 38 OUDEWEG WEST, KWEKERIJ 275 OUDIJK, BOOMKWEKERIJ AREND 169 OUT VOF, BOOMKWEKERIJ 53 PANNEBAKKER PLANTS BV 285 PEIJL TUINPLANTEN, VAN DER 9 PETERS HOVENIERSBEDRIJF 318 PKM GARTNERIET A/S 292 PLANT ESTATE BV 191 PLANTEMO 35 PLANTIPP BV 56 PLANTPORT BOSKOOP KWEEKSMAKELIJK BV 252 POPPELAARS KERSTBOMEN 182 POTTERS, BOOMKWEKERIJ 31 POULSEN ROSER A/S 317 PUUR AROMA 210 RADEMAKER, GEBR. 132 RAVESTEIN EN ZN. BV, W.J.

0 13 /129 STRAATHOF BV, J. 50 STRENG & ZN POTCULTURES, FA J.A. 39 STRENG VOF/MR BLUEBERRY, RUUD 262-267 STUDIECLUB REGIO BOSKOOP 253 TESI FRANCO & STEFANO S.S. 143 TESSELAAR PLANTS, ANTHONY 40 TOL BV, F. EN K. VAN 131 VALKPLANT BV 34 VELUWEPLANT BV / LEEN KONIJN 26 VERBAKEL GROENSERVICE 66 VERGELDT & BOUTEN BOOMKWEKERS BV 290 VERWAAL BV, BOOMKWEKERIJ C. 65 VINK BEUGEN BV, BOOMKWEKERIJ 137 VITRO WESTLAND BV 41 VITROCOM HOLLAND BV 52 VITROFLORA GRUPA PRODUCENTÓW SP. Z O.O 196 VLIET NEW PLANTS BV, VAN 165 VOLMARY GMBH 73 VOS BV, BOOMKWEKERIJ LENDERT DE 271 VROMANS KWEKERIJEN BV 184 W&L GROENSERVICE 280 WARNKEN BAUMSCHULEN, HARRY 270 WELLANTCOLLEGE (AFD. MBO) 240 WETERING POTLILIUM BV 154 WEZELENBURG HANDELSKWEKERIJ BV, T. 211 WILGENBROEK, HET 4 WILLEMSTEIN HOVENIERS 185 WOUTERS, KWEKERIJ 48 ZOEST BV, J. VAN 46 ZONNEBLOEM JONGE PLANTEN BV, DE

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

Auctions Looking back at the past year, Ruud Knorr, CEO of Veiling Rhein-Maas is proud of the auction’s performance even though 2013 has been exceptionally difficult.

Auction room in Herongen.

Mild winter gives Niederrhein produce an early start

eiling Rhein-Maas located in Herongen, Germany is the country’s sole flower auction. Commenting on last year’s sales, Ruud Knorr said that the auction’s turnover in 2013 was € 316 million, down 0.8% from last year. Cut flower stem and potted plant volumes were up by 2% and 8.2% respectively. Cut flowers and potted plants accounted for 74.4% and 25.6% of all sales. Speaking of potted plants, January, February and March 2014 represented a good start to the year with a 22.2% increase in median price, while average prices for cut flowers remained behind (down 8.3%).

Market outlook

by Ron van der Ploeg

On the whole, the weather in Germany held out over February and March, with large parts of the country basking in record-breaking spring sunshine. This meant that

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

garden centres and flower shops saw a record influx of shoppers. “Garden centre sales were ahead of 2013 levels. This is good news for the garden retail industry, which had a slow start last year due to the cold weather. At grower’s level, potted plant producers are performing reasonably well, while cut flower companies have lower energy costs, but have achieved slightly lower prices over the last couple of weeks.” The mild winter has given Niederrhein produce an early start. “Winter and early spring temperatures helped speed up crop maturity. Some varieties are 2 weeks earlier than normal. Overall, however, we don’t see major changes in supply.”

‘Member’ turnover growing

Providing a complete range of cut flowers and pot plants is key for

Veiling Rhein-Maas. “We try to bring demand and supply together by being in direct contact with our customers and growers. We are present at different trade exhibitions and work closely together with our parent companies Landgard and FloraHolland. Moreover, Veiling Rhein-Maas hosts its annual Grower’s Meetings to connect buyers and growers of all types of flowers and plants from the Euregio, also dubbed Europe’s second largest horticultural heartland.” A joint venture company between FloraHolland and Landgard, Veiling Rhein-Maas doesn’t have any members. “Our main goal, however, is to serve members of our parent companies in the best possible way. The percentage of member turnover as part of the total turnover is growing.” In a fast changing world traditional ways of communication seem to

concluded that his organisation will continue to focus on keeping the clock running, to get the best possible results for the growers and strengthen its wholesale customers by offering them a both broad and deep assortment on a daily basis. Key issues in the long term business plan are operational excellence, a balanced supply and demand, creation of revenue before costs and convincing the younger generation to buy flowers and plants. |||

be out, while online is in. Veiling Rhein-Maas responds in an effective way. “The turnover of our KOA remote buying system increased from 13% in 2011 to 23 % in 2013. We are currently involved in an e-commerce project that has to fulfil future customer needs.“

Somewhat more conservative

The traditional Dutch wholesalers are also struggling with never ending price discussions with their final (wholesalers and florists) customers. How is the situation in Herongen? “The buyers at the Veiling RheinMaas marketplace are somewhat

more conservative and are in direct contact with the regional and German market. One of our targets is to bring growers and customers together in order to achieve mutual understanding and strengthen wholesale.” While in Holland the future of the auction clock is under heavy debate, the recently retooled auction clocks in Herongen (now featuring giant LED displays to include product photos, company logos and corporate information), continue to be stronger than ever. “The auction clock should be protected against abuse from market players who only use it to dump overproduction or poor quality products. Meanwhile, there are plenty of situations in which growers utilise the clock in a proper way by supplying consistent quality and quantity. In the end, direct sales will benefit from a healthy clock. If the right measures are taken against clock abuse , the auction clock will give us a very good indication about supply and demand and therefore the current state of the market. Veiling RheinMaas asks growers to participate in the online Jahresanliefermeldung, - an annual pot plant supply prognosis which greatly enhances the auction’s reliability in terms of balanced supplies.”

UFG reports clear shift toward negotiated prices United Flower Growers, located in Burnaby near Vancouver is the largest and oldest Dutch style flower auction operating in North America. Commenting on last year’s sales, UFG’s CEO, Bob Pringle said there has been a clear shift toward to negotiated prices “Our auction sales in 2012 were $32.9 million and dropped to $30.9million in 2013. This is an overall drop of 6.2%. However, our Greenhouse and Direct sales rose from $13.4million to $15.6million – an increase of 16.7%.” Overall, UFG sales are slightly up year over year. “Growers are shifting more and more to negotiated prices (Greenhouse and Direct) that either we or the grower arrange. We also started virtual (from the Greenhouse) auctions last year with approximately $1.4million in sales and expect this to grow in 2014. We also recently purchased one of our larger wholesale customers and provide “less than bucket” purchasing options for buyers.” When answering our questions this April, Bob concluded, “So far, we are having a very good spring in Vancouver and we are tracking higher than last year.” |||

Future growth Managing director Veiling Rhein-Maas, Mr. Ruud Knorr.

When asked about the auction’s vision for future growth, Knorr

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

International Events July 2014 8 to 13. United Kingdom RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show. www.rhs.org.uk 12 to 15. United States Cultivate! www.cultivate14.org 13 to 18. Italy VIII International Symposium on Chemical and Non-Chemical Soil and Substrate Disinfestation, Torino, Italy. www.sd2014.org 20-22. Brazil 23rd edition of Enflor, trade exhibition for florists and landscapers in Holambra. www.enflor.com.br 22 to 24. United Kingdom Prepare for historic Norfolk, English gardens and extensive trials of ornamental flowers and vegetables. The 45th Annual Fleuroselect Convention hosted by Floranova will take place from 22-24 July 2014 in Norwich, U.K. www.fleuroselect.com 27-30 United States Florists for Change and Retail Local Florists present Technology & Profit Summit, held in the beautiful World Market Center in Las Vegas. www.reallocalflorists.com 28 July to 1 August. United States 32nd Perennial Plant Symposium at the Hilton Netherland Hotel, Cincinnati, Ohio. www.perennialplant.org 30 to 31. United States Penn Atlantic Nursery Trade Show, PANTS14 at the Pennsylvania Convention Centre. www.pantshow.com July to October 2014. China The Quingdao International Horticultural Exhibition at Baiguoshan Forest Park in Quingdao, China. exhibition@qingdaoexpo2014.org www.qingdaoexpo2014.org http://en.qingdaoexpo2014.org August 2014 4-8. Finland 9th SER Europe Conference and Peatland Restoration Sessions Oulu, Finland. www.ser.org

10 to15. Ireland The International Garden Centre Association's 2014 congress will take place in Ireland. Attendees will visit some of Ireland's most beautiful and innovative garden centres, historic and stately gardens, historical sites and some of the best tourist destinations. www.igccireland2014.com 10 to 15. Switzerland 2014 Congress of the International Hardy Plants Union (ISU). www.isu-perennials.org 13 to 16. United States The Society of American Florists (SAF) Marco Island 2014, SAF’s 130th Annual Convention, Aug. 13-16 in Marco Island, Florida. www.safnow.org/annualconvention 14 to 16. Finland LEPAA, the three-day event set to be held in the Hämeenlinna area, ranks among one of the oldest horticultural trade shows in Europe. www.lepaa.fi 17 to 22. Australia XXIX International Horticultural Congress: IHC2014 in Brisbane, Australia. www.ihc2014.org 18-21. Russia International Conference "Problems of Studying and Use of Siberian Peat Resources" Tomsk, Russia. www.sibniit.tomsknet.ru 19 to 21. United States The Independent Garden Center Show at the Navy Pier in Chicago. www.igcshow.com 21 to 23. United States Farwest Show at the Oregon Convention Centre and organised by the Oregon Association of Nurseries. info@oan.org www.farwestshow.com 25 to 29. Latvia The first International Peat Technology Symposium, which is set to take place in Riga, Latvia from 25-29 August, 2014. riga@peat2014.lv www.peat2014.lv 27. Belgium Florall, one-day trade show at the Flanders Expo Gent, Hall 2 & 4, Maaltekouter 1, 9051 Ghent. www.florall.be

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

27 to 30. The Netherlands Plantarium, international trade fair for nursery stock at the international trade centre Boskoop-Hazerswoude. info@plantarium.nl www.plantarium.nl 28 to 30. Russia Flowers IPM Moscow is jointly organised by Messen Essen GmbH and the MVCVVC and will take place from August 28-30, 2014 at the newly built wing of the All-Russian Exhibition Centre (AREC) in Moscow, Russia. T +49 201 7244 232 anna.grannass@messe-essen.de www.flowers-ipm.com 28 to 30. Poland 22nd edition of Green is Life trade exhibition. A nursery stock and gardening-focused show. This year pot plants and cut flowers will make their debut in Warsaw. agnieszka.zukowska@zszp.pl www.greenislife.pl September 2014 8 to 11. China AIPH Annual Congress in Qingdao, China. www.aiph.org 10 to 12. Italy Flormart at the PadovaFiere exhibition centre. www.flormart.it 14 to 16. United Kingdom Garden Leisure Exhibition at the NEC, Birmingham T +44 (0) 207 728 4627. gleemarketing@i2ieventsgroup.com www.gleebirmingham.com 16 to 19. Russia Garden Tool. The specialised trade fair in Russia for producers and suppliers of tools, techniques and equipment for ground-maintenance of gardens and parks. www.gardentool.ru 17 to 19. Russia FlowersExpo at the Crocus Expo in Moscow. T +7 495 221 1251 cell phone (8) 915 185 7903 mail@flowers-expo.ru www.flowers-expo.ru 19 to 21. Hungary Hosted by the Flora Hungaria Wholesale Flower Market in the city of Szigetszentmiklós, near Budapest, the 7.000m2 Hortus Hungaricus is Hungary’s most important annual horticultural trade exhibition. info@hortushungaris.hu www.hortushungaricus.hu 19 to 21. China Modern Agri 2014 at the Shanghai World Expo. modernagri@hnzmedia.com www.modernagri.cn

23 to 26. Argentina Horticultural Congress Argentina in Mendoza. www.asaho.org.ar 24-26. Germany German Peat Society (DGMT), Utilisation of Peatlands for Tourism and Environmental Education in Bad Wurzach, Germany. www.dgmtev.de October 2014 1 to 3. Spain Iberflora, United in Green. T +34 963 861 389 iberflora@feriavalencia.com www.feriavalencia.com/ iberflora 1 to 3. The Netherlands The 23rd edition of the Dutch amenity plant show in Zundert. www.grootgroenplus.nl 1 to 4. Ecuador Florecuador/Agriflor 2014 www.hpp.nl 3-5. Italy The 6th edition of Italy’s top home and garden show Orticolario at Villa Erba in Cernobbio. www.orticolario.it 3-5. Kenya FoodAgro Kenya at Nairobi’s KICC. www.expogr.com 15 to 17. Japan IFEX, 11th international flower expo at Tokyo’s Makuhari Messe. T + 81 3 3349 8519 ifex-eng@reedexpo.co.jp www.ifex.jp/en 17-19. United States PMA Fresh Summit. Convention and Expo. www.freshsummit.com 23-25. Italy SUN, Italy’s leading trade show when it comes to outdoor power equipment, products for lawns, landscapes, gardens, outdoor leisure, hardscapes and light contruction, will be held at the RiminiFiera convention centre in Rimini, Northern Italy. www.sungiosun.it 30 October to 2 November. United States 2014 Independent Plant Breeders Conference at the Amway Grand Plaza, Grand Rapids, MI. For further details please visit www.hrt.msu.edu/IPBC-2014

World News

Kenya Iftex show in full bloom Three years after its colourful launch in Nairobi, IFTEX is arguably heading to become one of the leading flower trade exhibitions. This year, the event has marked a new record by attracting 3,231 buyers from 54 different countries. Now in its third year, the Iftex show is a relatively new trade show, meaning that lay out and visitor profile are in constant evolution. "The show develops at a dazzling speed. It has a fresh face at every turn, there is no telling where it is heading but what is clear, is its phenomenal growth towards a world class trade exhibition", said show organiser Jasper van Dijk from HPP. The 3-day event, which was held from June 4-6 at Nairobi’s Oshwal Centre, attracted over 3,200 international visitors, from 54 countries across the globe,

including commercial growers, floral wholesalers and retailers. The show also set new records for exhibit space with 187 exhibitors showcasing the latest breeding breakthroughs in fresh cut flowers. ”This a truly a great achievement and perfectly in line with our mission of bringing the world to source flowers in the country where they are grown,” said Van Dijk. Supervised by industry veteran and former VKC judge, Gerard de Wagt, the world’s top growers and breeders battled it out to win the coveted Iftex Best in Show

Awards. Select Breeding was presented with the Iftex Platinum Award for its ‘SunQueen’, while Uhuru Flowers was crowned Best Grower for its Rosa ‘Maritim’. IFTEX has given the Kenya flower industry a different face with renewed worldwide attention especially from flower buyers who travelled to Nairobi last month to seek and speak in Kenya with their suppliers. The internationalisation of the fair has lead the event to grow into a top Kenya flower brand event, strengthening the country’s posi-

tion as a leader in global markets while enhancing the image of Kenya as the home from where 40% of the flowers sold in Europe originate. "IFTEX came at the right time for the Kenya flower industry, since it is now in the process of market consolidation and retention by positioning its flowers as responsibly grown and that picture can only be seen at a show in the country itself", said Jane Ngige CEO of the Kenya Flower Council. |||

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

Show coverage Show organiser RAI Amsterdam and its partners exceeded expectations with their inaugural GreenTech show, which was held in Amsterdam from June 10-12. The event filled three halls of the RAI convention centre and offered the ideal platform for nearly 300 exhibitors to showcase the latest horticulture technology from roofing frameworks for greenhouse structures and transplanters to sorting machines and LED top lighting and everything in between.

Opening of the 2014 GreenTech show.

GreenTech debut doesn’t disappoint S

by Ron van der Ploeg

ure, the challenges facing many greenhouse growers this year are severe but they are battling a volatile market with new approaches and a new, bi-annual glasshouse technology event: GreenTech. RAI Amsterdam deserves credit for its sheer determination to reawaken the now defunct Horti Fair. In order to avoid the 2012 Horti Fair debacle of a half empty show floor, exhibitors had been offered bigger and more prominent spaces. It allowed them to increase and enhance their displays; the

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

large and elaborate exhibits and a red (energy), green (bio-based) and blue (water) carpet covering the aisles of the trade show were clearly appreciated by the 8,153 visitors.

Attendance

One could argue that attendance was lower than at Horti Fair, but the visitors who attended in this down economy were there with a specific purpose and mission. There was a steady traffic to the stands every day, with an especially strong contingent coming from

emerging horticultural powerhouses such as the Middle East and Asia. Attendees’ interest was high and their quality and buying authority was stronger than ever. And let’s not adopt a glass half-empty, but a glass half-full mentality. Smaller and quieter is not always worse. No traffic, no queues and a relaxed atmosphere; elements which are so often underestimated when organising a trade show. Moreover, as an exhibitor you couldn’t get lost in the crowds making leads easier to come by.

Hoogendoorn launches next generation iSii process computer Hoogendoorn presented its next generation iSii process computer, delivering the same user-friendly experience as the first generation iSii, yet with a new, cleaner software interface, new features and high durable hardware. These product modifications extend product life span, increase user-friendliness and provide growers peace of mind.

On receiving the award from Dijkhuizen, Technokas’ director, Peter Zwinkels (center) commented, “This is a great honour for me to receive this award from the industry, and on behalf of everyone at Technokas.

Technokas takes a grip on the GreenTech Awards

The new iSii features a new clean user interface that is characterised by its simple configuration, allowing growers to define and display their graphs, summaries and settings according to their own preferences. The new software even includes multiple visualizations that show the current cultivation conditions at a glance and allows settings to be changed easily. This flexibility makes Hoogendoorn systems unique. |||

Future hopes and expectations

However, some exhibitors felt that the show was somewhat too small for today’s global market due to the absence of a number of major industry players. Meanwhile, all exhibitors had one thing in common; they all shared the desire that in future GreenTech will occupy pride of place among the leading horticultural trade shows in the world, uniting vegetables, flowers and technology under one single roof. Now that the Schreurs com-

Peter Zwinkels of Technokas was given the honour of being asked twice onto stage during the opening ceremony of the inaugural edition of the GreenTech show when the Innovation Awards were handed out. Over the last months, members of the horticultural media gathered as a specialist jury to vote in the categories of equipment and production. Six products from each category were put through to the final. The GreenTech Innovation Awards are awarded for excellence in the scientific research, development or innovative application of horticultural practices that have improved, or have the potential to improve, the productivity and sustainable use of natural resources. “We were surprised by the large number of entries and the high quality,” said the jury chairman Aalt Dijkhuizen, former president of Wageningen UR, “It was especially nice to see that there were many solutions with technology and technological innovations that (could) substantially increase the productivity of crops while reducing the carbon footprint. This is exactly what we need to meet the growing demand for food, without increasing the burden on nature, environment and climate.” The jury was unanimous in its decision to award the GreenTech Innovation Award in the category Equipment to ID Kas by Techokas from De Lier, while Futagrow by Metazet/FormFlex took home the award in the Production category for its Futagrow glasshouse crop rotation system. The ID Kas®, the brainchild of hothouse builder Technokas from De Lier, was also crowned Overall Winner. On receiving the award from Dijkhuizen, Technokas’ director, Peter Zwinkels commented, “It is a great honour for me to receive this award from the industry, and, on behalf of everyone at Technokas, I say thank you.” The GreenTech Innovation Award is not only recognition of Technokas’ own research; it also recognises the importance of creating synergy as the ID Kas at Gebr. Duijvestein Tomatoes from Pijnacker is a great example of collaborative design and construction, involving Boal Systems for the roofing framework and glass manufacturer Scheuten Glas from Venlo, the Netherlands. Dubbed ‘the next generation of greenhouse construction’, the ID Kas features twin panes with Anti-Reflective (AR) glass and is believed to bring energy savings of up to 50 per cent while also increasing productivity. ||| >>>

pany has been courageous enough to exhibit as the sole flower breeder, there is hope. There is even more reason to be optimistic as GreenTech Amsterdam is linked with the internationally recognised Flower Trials taking place concurrently during its show dates. Starting out with a handful of breeding companies in the Aalsmeer and Westland regions in 2003, the Flower Trials have since developed into Europe’s largest and most popular event for the bedding plant industry. |||

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

Show coverage Toasting time at Philips stand Philips and US based GreenTech Agro (GTA) signed a letter of intent at the GreenTech show to formalise their cooperation in the field of urban farming, utilising the “Growtainer™” container developed by GTA. Their intent is to cooperate in further development and marketing of the Growtainer™ containers and Growracks™ fitted with Philips LED lighting. One of the driving forces behind the Growtainer is industry-veteran Glenn Behrman, who earned a reputation as a first class foliage distributor in the Northeast of the United States. During his 40 + years in horticulture, he has seen many technological advances and spotted the opportunity to turn those advances into a new way of producing eco-friendly food. “Nowadays it is all about food safety, freshness and reduced food miles, people want to know where their food is coming from, and in some cases, consumers support sustainable production methods of their food,” said Behrman. The Growtainer™ is a highly engineered modular and mobile vertical production environment in a 20’ or 40’ shipping container that has been modified to provide an optimum controlled environment for growing a wide range of crops in all environments and climates. This allows for a significantly higher yield in a shorter time than conventional production methods. The Growtainers™ will be equipped with the most advanced low energy consumption LED lighting from Philips. In addition, they make use of a water conserving hydroponic system, crop specific vertical shelving, a state of the art HVAC and Environmental system, including a CO2 enriched atmosphere, all controlled by an advanced PC based system, The Growtroller™. With a Growtainer™, fresh vegetables can be grown almost anywhere. Pictured left to right: Reinier Donkersloot, Business Developer Philips City Farming, Gus van der Feltz, Global Director Philips City Farming, Glenn Behrman, Founder & President at GreenTech Agro LLC, Udo van Slooten, General Manager Philips Horticulture LED Solutions and Roel Janssen, Project Implementation Manager Philips City Farming. |||

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

Launch event at GreenTech for new horticultural business consortium GreenTech was delighted to be the venue for the launch of a very special new organisation, the Cooperation in Controlled Growing. The new business consortium was created through the co-operation of three individual companies, including producers of grading machines and specialist suppliers of rail systems in greenhouse growing, automation solutions and greenhouses, who all share the common goal of creating synergy while serving the global market. They include: Berg Hortimotive, Flier Systems and Bosman-Van Zaal. Over the past few months, the management of each of these companies met several times and identified a set of shared core values. The global attention to the problems in the area of food security and food safety has prompted the companies to shift focus. They remain active in the existing sectors but the focus of the collaboration will be on connecting people and horticultural organisations to develop and manage production facilities. |||

New transplanter from Visser Horti Systems Visser Horti Systems, a leading provider of automation solutions for the horticultural industry and now part of the Viscon group of companies, presented their new Pic-O-Mat Greenline transplanter that transplants larger batches at revolutionary speed. The Pic-O—Mat Greenline represents the next generation of transplanters incorporating high-resolution position feedback and servo control for high accuracy and speed. When switching to smaller batches no mechanical adjustments are necessary. The machine has a bold and fresh design and is in line with Visser Horti Systems’ new look. The Pic-O-Mat Greenline is a medium-sized transplanter designed for growers dealing with a wide range of trays and transplanting programmes. The operator can introduce almost every combination on the touchscreen monitor. This compact machine is designed to fit practically any production environment. The Pic-O-Mat Greenline transplanter is equipped with servo-driven Visser grippers, combining flexibility with high capacity. This enables the user to switch product using a single finger on the touchscreen monitor. The well-known Visser grippers guarantee a perfect planting result. |||

World News Happy Gardening by Anthony Tesselaar

The Netherlands

The power of the POP You keep your eye on popular culture. You choose to sip your morning coffee at a café rather than at home (in your slippers) not just because it helps you start your day, but it also gives you the chance to watch what’s going on in the world.

ROOOZ celebrates the rose’s past present and future

The historical garden Aalsmeer, a garden which provides an excellent overview of the development of Aalsmeer from 1600 until now, was delighted to be the venue for the launch of a very special new rose event: ROOOZ. The new five-day miniature rose festival has been created through the co-operation of three individual rose growers from the Netherlands including Bert Middelkoop (Zuurbier International), Jan Ruhe (Vegpro Group) and Donald Hermes (Rosaplaza/AQ Roses), who all share the common goal of becoming increasingly involved at all levels of the supply chain. The Historical Garden Aalsmeer was the best venue ROOOZ could have possibly chosen as it hosts an impressive collection of historic roses which perfectly matched with a sumptuous display of over 300 new rose varieties from the world’s leading rose breeders. Celebrating the rose’s past, presence and future, ROOOZ also hosted also the Most Promising Rose competition with industry professionals voting for ‘SnowFox+’ (Lex+) and ‘Tiara’ (Spek Roses) in respectively the large headed and medium headed categories. The public, who flocked to ROOOZ in their hundreds, crowned ’3D’ (NIRP) and ‘Confidential’ (Preesman) as respectively the most promising large headed rose and most promising rose with a medium head. ‘Lovely Jubilee’ from Interplant was presented with the ROOOZ Award in recognition of its excellent keeping qualities, supply chain performance and large consumer appeal. The newly appointed director of FloraHolland, Mr. Lucas Vos, carried out the official opening, which was attended by the cream of the Dutch floral wholesale business. In his speech, Vos looked back at his first 100 days in office. Referring to ROOOZ’ involvement at all levels within the supply chain, Vos called for narrowing the gap between the white collar and blue collar workers, which currently exists in his own organisation. Vos also voiced his concern about the lack of interaction between growers and wholesalers. The next edition of ROOOZ will take place from June 17- 21, 2015. |||

You subscribe to a handful of carefully selected internet sites that feed you snippets of information or images for the same reason to keep up with what people are thinking and, most importantly, liking. Yes! You make every effort to keep your finger on the pulse of humanity’s happy, carefree swings in preference, also known as fashions or trend. Because you know how important this activity is for anyone doing business. You do all this and more. Well - don’t you? If you don’t, may I suggest very, very strongly that you should. And before you start waving your hands claiming that pop culture is the realm of the young and hip, can I please point out that I don’t suggest that you need to join in on every trend. You don’t need to suddenly dress like them, listen to their music, eat at their restaurants or even post pictures of your meal on a social media site. Doing this isn’t even possible, as there are too many tribes out there with their own world of preferences. No, I’m suggesting you simply make an active point to observe what's going on in general. It’s not hard to do once you’ve built it into your routine. And it’s fun. Take a look at the images above. I snapped all three. This is something I do routinely as my way of observing trends when I’m travelling. I shoot from the hip. I shoot everything that makes me pause, and when I get home and shuffle through my image library, the trends literally leap up at me. The couch I snapped in the home wears section of a department store because (at the time) I’d never seen anything like it. A week or so later, I spotted these unusually colourful men’s boots. And when I wandered past this florist selling live plants in a major city a few days later, I was struck by the similarity in the colours deliberately collected together. This trip was by no means a recent one, but that’s not the point. My images captured what was then an emerging trend – one that I made very good use of in the marketing months that followed. Of course you might say, that your working day has nothing to do with trends. You could be right, but in my experience everything is connected to some degree, and being aware of a trend can only be an advantage. Fore-knowledge should be fed into decision making processes – from market directions to capital improvements and technological advances. If you stop and think, it’s easier to make a case for being trend or development aware, than not. So listen to what interests people each day. Look at colour. Learn about new ‘gismos’ when they cross your path and be actively open to what’s out there.

Anthony Tesselaar hails from Anthony Tesselaar International, an international project management company dealing in plants, horticultural research & development and strategic water management. www.tesselaar.com / ATesselaar@tesselaar.com

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

United States The International Floriculture Expo, an industry-wide event that brings buyers and sellers together and serves all segments of the floriculture market, took place June 10-13, 2014 at the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, LA.

New Orleans hosts International Floral Expo 2014 A

by William Armellini

s you entered the main hall it was obvious that this was a flower show as most humans were shivering from the cold in the building. Being a veteran of many a floral show I was prepared with an extra layer of clothing... and I was still cold. Gotta keep the flowers cold! The Big Easy was a good choice Once inside I was greeted by the warm embrace of old friends and lots of flowers in many very impressive displays. This show had been held in Miami for the last several years, where it was well attended, but it was time for a change and I think the Big Easy was a good choice. However, noticeably absent from these shows are some of the biggest players in the mass market namely The Queens Flowers, Falcon Farms, Natures Flowers and Passion Growers. These giants prefer to spend their marketing funds on local private shows specifically for their main accounts. As a result some of

Calla bouquets.

the largest buyers were absent as well. (Walmart, Kroger) These mass market shows historically have a low body count when it comes to buyers. The halls are never full except for the vendors themselves. What you do see are small pod of buyers diligently flowing their leader from booth to booth. The main buyer is often surrounded by their underlings, much like a male deer surrounded by its protective females. Vendors patiently wait for their anticipated pod to arrive and hope that they arrive when they are not talking to other potential clients. If you are a small buyer expect to be politely kicked out of a booth if the Roundy's buyers are heading in your direction.

All worth the effort Summer cut flowers at Ballâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s.

www.FloraCulture.eu | July/August 2014

Like all of these shows it only takes one or two good contacts to make

it all worth the effort and cost. And true to form in my informal polling about 50% said the show was good and the other 50% said it was not. Many vendors asked me if I thought it was worth attending and while they have to make that call, I have always said a buyer might notice that your company is not represented even if they do not stop at your booth. This show offers quite a variety of vendors from fresh cuts to balloons and from Christmas trees to preservatives. Many asked me if I saw anything new. Orchids are no longer new but they are certainly the largest new product line. There were many Asian growers showing them and nearly all of the Phalaenopsis variety. Over the last few shows, I have also seen many booth showing succulents. Both potted and stems for bouquet work. Love the look of them and each time I

see them on display they get more and more exotic.

IFE truly lived up to its Fresh ideas in Bloom tagline.

Jardines De Los Andes

I did get some interesting news from Jardines De Los Andes. This well-respected Colombian grower has historically been the source behind Gardens America for wholesale and Natures Flowers for the mass market. However Gardens America now also serves the mass market and things are changing fast. It appears that Natures flowers has decided to go their own way and as a result Jardines is now supplying the mass markets via new vendors like Gems, World Class and others.

From my perspective this is a great move for Jardines as the market moves from just selling flowers to marketing floral concepts. These new outlets are leading the way with new concepts and fresh eyes. It will be interesting to see how this plays out over time.

Colour

The best word to describe the show would be ‘colour’.

If I had to use one word to describe the show it would be ‘colour’. The art of dying, painting and airbrushing flowers has taken on grand proportions based on what was being shown. My experience has always been that customers either loved these or hated them strongly. However, the

vendors are getting much better at making tinted flowers look realistic, if that is possible or even desirable. Certainly popular right now with themed World Cup Soccer colours. Finally this show like many is co-locating with United Fresh Produce show in Chicago in an attempt to bring more buyers and sellers together. Since many of the key players in Produce happen to also be the decision makers for floral this co-location idea makes sense. Mark your calendars for June 9 through 11-2015 at McCormick Place. ||| * William "Williee" Armellini is editor of www.flowersandcents.com

California pavilion.

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCulture.eu

Floraculture International encourages the pursuit of joint activities in areas of mutual interest with national and international societies, companies and organizations. Agreements have been reached between Floraculture International and leading growers and trade associations in 24 countries. This unique partnership includes a complimentary copy for each member of the registered associations. Floraculture International is proud to announce the cooperation with the following associations.

Partners of FloraCulture International

For more FCI partners see page 4.

T DE N CEN

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FloraHolland Trade Fair Guide

After it’s resounding success last year and in the run up to the FloraHolland Trade Fair Aalsmeer 2014 (November 5th-7th), Dutch flower auction FloraHolland and the leading international B2B magazine for worldwide floriculture, FloraCulture International are pleased to announce the 2nd edition of the Guide to FloraHolland Trade Fair Aalsmeer. The Guide to FloraHolland Trade Fair Aalsmeer will be distributed in print and online to over 104,000 readers, as well as at the show, which has become one of Europe’s most important horticultural trade shows. The editorial staff of FloraCulture International will ensure that this special trade show supplement will be developed with the same dedication and professionalism as seen in the monthly magazine, which has its readership all over the world. Contact Flora Culture International and book now!

2014

HELP WANTED

| angie@floracultureinternational.com | hedd@floracultureinternational.com

Advertising Index Company

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Danziger “Dan” Flower Farm...................................2................................... www.danziger.co.il Erich Baumeister GmbH...........................................14...................... www.erichbaueister.com FCI FlowersExpoSURE..............................................34...www.floracultureinternational.com FCI Guide to Robotic..................................................35...www.floracultureinternational.com FloraHolland.................................................................36...........................www.floraholland.com Florall........................................................................ INSERT......................................www.florall.be Florasearch Inc...........................................................33............................www.florasearch.com Floricultura B.V.............................................................6..............................www.floricultura.com

Company

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Flowers & Cents..........................................................14................... www.flowersandcents.org HPP Exhibitions............................................................3.......................www.hppexhibitions.com Market Services.........................................................14...........................www.intracen.org/mns Plantarium.....................................................................6................................... www.plantarium.nl Stal & Plast...................................................................33..................................www.staal-plast.dk Takii .................................................................................6.......................................... www.takii.co.jp Thierry Richez..............................................................33....................................................................... Vitroplus.........................................................................3........................................www.vitroplus.nl

July/August 2014 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

e r u t l u C a r o l F FL W W W.

ORACU

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Russia Edition to make its debut in Moscow

Russiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading international horticultural trade show, FlowersExpo, event organiser GreenExpo and FloraCulture International have teamed up to develop the FlowersExpoSURE magazine. FlowersExpoSURE showcases the very best worldwide floriculture has to offer with editorials including interviews with the show management, an overview of the show, tips to find specific products, many interesting company profiles, a floor plan and exhibitor listings. FlowersExpoSURE will be distributed predominantly to industry professionals and offers an unique opportunity to promote your company and your product. Contact our sales team and book now! angie@floracultureinternational.com hedd@floracultureinternational.com

FloraCulture The business magazine for worldwide floriculture

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Robot growers are the future of horticulture In its November issue FloraCulture International will produce a supplement themed on HORTICULTURAL ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION. “We want our readers to be informed on the widest possible range of new horticultural technologies, from new applications of robotics and sensor technology to the next generation sorting solutions in cut flowers and revolutionary propagation and liner systems,” said editor Ron van der Ploeg. The theme issue will showcase the very best of the world’s leading technical companies. Editorial includes a comprehensive overview of innovations, tips to find specific products and many interesting company profiles.

The ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION supplement will be distributed in print and online to over 104,000 readers. The editorial staff of FloraCulture International will ensure that this special supplement will be developed with the same dedication and professionalism as seen in the monthly magazine, which in circulated in 142 countries.

For more information contact the FCI TEAM Jaap N. Kras jaap@floracultureinternational.com +31 (0) 653 241 121 Hedd Alwyn Hughes hedd@floracultureinternational.com +31 (0) 622 165 220 Angie Duffree angie@floracultureinternational.com +31 (0)297 769 095

The theme issue offers an unique opportunity to promote your company and your product.

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Tunnel Films

Net House Structures

25 & 40 mesh Anti-Insect net HDPE Tape Nets

Tunnels

0.22mm-0.24mm thick yarn

Colored Shade Nets

Grow Bags

Customized Structures

5 year UV guarantee

Mulch Films

Planter Bags

Coir / Cocopeat

Green House Accessories

501- Harmony, 65, Ranade Road, Dadar (West), Mumbai - 400 028. INDIA. 022-24441989 09820099679 info@jjoverseas.com www.jjoverseas.com

World’s No. 1 Drip Irrigation Company

SMART SOLUTIONS SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

ONE SMART STEP IN IRRIGATION HISTORY. ONE GIANT LEAP TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE. Netafim is proud to be the global drip irrigation pioneer and leader. Following the initial attempts at developing drip technology in the 1960s, Netafim went to establish the world’s first drip irrigation production facility. Since then, We have grown to become the leading supplier of smart drip and micro irrigation solutions, revolutionizing agriculture across the globe. We salute the world’s farmers and are committed to continuously providing them with innovative practices which promote efficiency and sustainability.

NETAFIM GROW MORE WITH LESS

Aries Dripper

Disc Filter

Ventury

Dripnet PC

Gyronet

Correct Design l Best Installation l Drip set Operation Training l After Sales Service l Agronomical Guidance

Netafim Irrigation India Pvt. Ltd. Office No. 1&2, C-1 Bldg, Saudamini Complex, Kothrud, Pune - 38 PH: 020 25286080 FAX: 020 25281337 Jalgaon: 9545457756/59 Aurangabad: 0240 2060450 Amaravati: 9545457767/48 Indore: 0731 4066236 Raipur: 0771 4013684

FloraHolland Trade Fair Aalsmeer: 5 to 7 November 2014 The place to be!

For three days, this international trade fair will be the place where traders and producers of ornamental plants and flowers can meet each other and do business. • • • • • •

More than 650 suppliers will be displaying a wide range of cut flowers and plants 50 leading breeders of flowers and plants will be presenting innovative new products The latest trends, concepts and plenty of inspiration in The Village Many new products in all product categories Nominations for the Glazen Tulp award 2015

Opening hours Wednesday 5 November Thursday 6 November Friday 7 November

9:00am to 6:00pm 9:00am to 5:00pm 9:00am to 2:00pm

Make sure you don’t miss out! Register your visit at www.floraholland.com/tradefair.

floraholland.com