FlowerTrials 2024 – Chapter 4

FlowerTrials, the annual open days for the global bedding plant industry, was back in bloom from 11-14 June 2024, attracting…

FlowerTrials 2024 – Chapter 2

FlowerTrials, the annual open days for the global bedding plant industry, was back in bloom from 11-14 June 2024, attracting…

FlowerTrials 2024 – Chapter 3

FlowerTrials, the annual open days for the global bedding plant industry, was back in bloom from 11-14 June 2024, attracting…

VGB‘s conference has an impact

The Dutch Association of Wholesalers in Floricultural Products (VGB) hosted a conference to share the latest practices in sustainable horticulture…

Stolze acquires Elektravon Tuinbouw

Dutch-based horticultural engineering company Stolze Installatietechniek has acquired all activities of Elektravon Tuinbouw. The acquisition marks an important step in…

Plant Profile: Astrantia (Masterwort)

Astrantia is one of several umbellifers (see also Eryngium) with ornamental bracts, a feature that offers significant added value in…

Midwinter Plant Fair 2024 Review

Royal FloraHoland’s Midwinter Plant Fair, held between 10 and 11 January 2024, featured nearly a hundred plant exhibitors spread across…

Introducing the new-look Anthura

In 2020, Anthura won the AIPH International Grower of the Year Award. A lot has changed since then. FCI interviews…

On to a flourishing future

Hilverdaflorist became an AIPH Affiliate Member during the 75th AIPH Annual Congress in September 2023. Bart Sneek, Commercial Director of…

Selecta one with premiere at IPM

  Selecta One, Stuttgart’s well-known breeding and young plant company, is presenting a world premiere at IPM Essen 2024. The…

Ten Questions: Greenn

GREENN is an enterprise created by Maaike Koop that offers horticultural companies tailor-made support to help them get the most…

Are you ready for Trade Fair Aalsmeer?

Anticipation is building as green professionals line up to join the 24th Trade Fair Aalsmeer. Bringing ‘the world’s largest selection…

State of the pot carnation

Thanks to innovative Dianthus breeding and marketing, one of Europe’s oldest cultivated ornamentals has staged a comeback as the newest…

Keukenhof announces new CEO

The world’s largest spring garden, Keukenhof, has appointed Sandra Bechtolt as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective 1 October 2023.…

Lush lilies in the limelight

The Dutch lily industry ran its 11th open house in the second week of June when it opened its doors…

wooden background concept earth piled circle dish texture landing center seeds as flower petals spring horizontal
Are we preparing for a peat-free future?

The International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) will be debating sustainable growing media solutions and industry readiness in a panel…

Improving the modern cut Hydrangea

Industry veteran, and former FCI publisher, Jaap Kras provides valuable insights into the genus of Hydrangea, its origins, and the…

New CEO of the Viscon Group takes the reins

Viscon Group, a provider of horticultural automation solutions has appointed third-generation Charlotte Langerak-Visser as the company’s new CEO. Langerak-Visser succeeds…

Delphy opens cannabis research centre

Delphy, the Dutch knowledge-sharing organisation and service provider for horticulturalists worldwide, in association with a group of horticultural suppliers, has…

Voshol joins GreenV group

Voshol, a supplier of advanced climate control systems (heating, isolation and electrical engineering) for the global greenhouse horticulture industry, will…

Modiform opens Naaldwijk office

Dutch-based horticulture packaging and plastic manufacturer Modiform has opened a new office at the World Horti Center (WHC) in Naaldwijk…

Tulip time in the Netherlands

The Dutch cut tulip season kicked off on National Tulip Day, Saturday, 21 January. This year marked the first time…

Peony continues its rise to prominence

The peony market remains buoyant despite the challenges of climate change, an ever-increasing regulatory burden and diminishing crop protection and…

New look for Van der Ende Group

Van der Ende Group is introducing a new logo. The story behind this change exemplifies this family company ethos –…

Barbiecore and biophilia

Barbiecore and biophilia are two very different trends – both work hard to grab consumers’ attention with our products. The…

The Green Masters of CSR

Reflecting on Dutch Flower Group’s sustainability aims, the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) manager, Raimon Loman and chief marketing officer/chief…

Bulb planting time at Keukenhof

Autumn is the time for planting spring-blooming flower bulbs. The gardeners at the most beautiful spring garden in the world…

The great creators of Chrysanthemums

Creating a commercial Chrysanthemum variety is complex and multifaceted, incorporating the standard requirements of a cut flower – eye appeal…

Summer showcase at Floriade

ALMERE, Netherlands:  Summer flower grower Paul Vernooij and Team The Greenhouse have been named the supreme winners of Floriade’s seventh…

Efficiency at height

WESTLAND, Netherlands: Metazet FormFlex Worldwide, a manufacturer and supplier of a variety of metal products for the horticultural secto, such…

German-Dutch-American Pelargonium power

HENDRIK-IDO-AMBACHT, Netherlands: The iconic Pelargonium Toscana brand, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, is among one of the most successful…

Floriade: the Expo will go on

On the evening of Thursday, 30 June, I watched a live stream of Almere’s Municipal Council meeting. High on its…

R-evolution of the cultivation floor

Innovation by ErfGoed will see producers of soil-grown cut flowers able to reap the benefits of crop uniformity, close environmental…

Limonium sinense filler flowers
Thrilling Fillers

From adding colour, volume, texture and whimsey in mixed bouquets to raising customer satisfaction, from spurring ‘(r)etail sales’ to fitting…

GREENTECH 2022

The fifth edition of the AIPH-approved horticultural technology show GreenTech welcomed 10,890  attendees from 121 countries; an attendence decrease of…

Takii renews Van Gogh Museum partnership

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands: Seed breeder Takii is continuing its marketing and business development campaign with the Amsterdam-based Van Gogh Museum for…

High risks and low-profit margins (2)

In this second of a two-part column from FloraCulture International magazine, industry veteran Jaap Kras discusses how vertical integration will…

Plant Labels at Floriade Expo 2022
Message received: loud and clear

The AIPH-approved World Horticultural Expo, Floriade 2022, delivers important messages about the power of plants for the survival of the…

High risks and low-profit margins (1)

In this two-episode column from FloraCulture International magazine, industry veteran Jaap Kras questions if vertical integration will reshape our industry…

RHP joins FSI2025 

WESTLAND, Netherlands: RHP, the Dutch certification scheme for substrates and raw materials has joined the Floriculture Sustainability Initiative (FSI2025), the most…

Flowers speak when words fail

In the days leading up to the opening of its famous spring gardens on 24 March, Keukenhof releases this picture…

True blue this spring

In garden centres across Europe, Senetti® is currently bringing a burst of colour to spring in the colour of blue.…

Aablo joins forces with OZ-Hami

KUDELSTAART, Netherlands: Aalsmeer-based plants and flowers export company Aablo Export B.V. (Aablo) has joined forces with OZ-Hami, a Dutch Flower…

Thatchtec changes name into Soilwise

WAGENINGEN, Netherlands: Wageningen-based company Thatchtec has changed its name into Soilwise. The name change follows the road towards biobased soil…

Barendsen to join Dutch Flower Group

AALSMEER, Netherlands: Flower exporter Barendsen will join OZ-Hami, part of Dutch Flower Group (DFG), effective 1 January 2022. Barendsen has…

From tree trash to treasure?

NISPEN, Netherlands: Since 2018, Dutch based bay laurel grower Gova, has diversified by collecting bay leaves from pruned branches to…

Van der Ende Group joins AVAG

WESTLAND, Netherlands: Dutch based sector body AVAG has further increased its representation of the Netherlands’ glasshouse construction and equipment sector with…

Exceeding expectations online

Being honest online to customers is just as important as face-to-face trade It was my first time shopping plants online,…

It’s full steam ahead for Fleuroselect

After the tumultuous year 2020 caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Fleuroselect cancelled its 50th-anniversary convention in the Netherlands. Now, in…

Stand-in ‘FlowerTrials’

FCI magazine gladly accepted the invitation to attend their Open House event, which, pandemic or not, was filled to the…

Paying homage to the auction clock

In the run-up to Mother’s Day, Royal FloraHolland reported a record week turnover of over 170 million euros. This achievement…

Signify partners with Hortipar

EINDHOVEN, Netherlands: Signify (Euronext: LIGHT), the world leader in lighting, partners with LED grow lights supplier Hortipar from the Netherlands,…

GROEN-Direkt announces its Autumn Fair

HAZERSWOUDE/BOSKOOP, Netherlands: GROEN-Direkt, organiser of one of Europe’s largest trolley fairs, today announced its Autumn Fair which will take place…

FlowerTrials® cancels 2021 edition

VOORHOUT, Netherlands: While the mood was still cautiously optimistic a few weeks ago, the ongoing and unstable situation in regard…

Varb and GrootGroenPlus to join forces again

ZUNDERT, Netherlands: This year, the world’s premier amenity plant show, GrootGroenPlus, and the not-for-profit foundation Varb, an online marketplace for trees,…

Dutch Flower Foundation names new Chair

DE KWAKEL, Netherlands: The Dutch Flower Foundation today announced that it has appointed Marcel Zandvliet, Marketing and Sustainability chief (CMO/CSO)…

The green connection

How time flies, and so much has happened in 2020. Twelve months ago, I dedicated this column to the digital…

Dennis van der Lubbe
Fill the Distance with Beauty

In responding to the coronavirus crisis, Flower Council of Holland, the marketing arm of the Dutch floricultural sector, developed an…

Anthura vies for King Willem I Award

BLEISWIJK, Netherlands: Anthurium and Phalaenopsis breeder and propagator Anthura, winner of the 2019 AIPH International Grower of the Year Award,…

Preparing for the new reality

One of Royal FloraHolland’s key investment targets is the digitalisation of all transactions by the end of 2020. With Floriday,…

AVAG joins World Horti Center

WESTLAND, Netherlands: AVAG, the Dutch glasshouse construction and equipment sector body has partnered with World Horti Center, the international hub for…

GreenTech opts for a dual format

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands: Trade show organiser RAI Amsterdam has informed exhibitors that its trade show GreenTech will take place using a…

Superplant and OZ Planten join forces

AALSMEER, Netherlands: Aalsmeer-based wholesale supplier of indoor and outdoor plants Superplant B.V. and OZ Planten, a member of Dutch Flower…

GreenTech Amsterdam reschedules

AMSTERDAM,  Netherlands: GreenTech Amsterdam, hosted by RAI Amsterdam, has been rescheduled because of Coronavirus. The three-day event, originally scheduled 8-10…

Staying cutting edge in business

Marc Driessen last spoke to FCI when he was setting up his own business for Beekenkamp’s offshore cutting production in…

Pelargonium perfection

HOEK VAN HOLLAND, Netherlands: In his new greenhouse complex, Perry van de Haak sat down with FCI to share his…

Marcel Pennnings joins Holex Flower

Dutch based Holex Flower, a leading importer and exporter of fresh cut flowers, is delighted to announce that Marcel Pennings…

Dutch Flower Awards Winners 2019

AALSMEER, Netherlands: The Dutch Flower Group (DFG) hosted its annual Dutch Flower Awards ceremony at the FloraHolland Trade Fair on…

Flower Trials

This year’s FlowerTrials® took place June 11-14, 2019 in the Westland and Aalsmeer regions in the Netherlands and the Rheinland…

Full house for Trade Fair Aalsmeer

AALSMEER, Netherlands: Anticipation is building as industry professionals from the Netherlands, and around the world, line up to join the…

Corn Bak: breeding the exceptional

Amid market volatility, globalisation, a product portfolio that is particularly vulnerable to IP infringement and a regulatory burden that is…

Counting down to 37th Plantarium

BOSKOOP, Netherlands: There is only one day to go until Boskoop’s International Trade Centre will host the 37th edition of Plantarium.…

ISO Bulb Planting Machine

GAMEREN, Netherlands: At this year’s GreenTech show, ISO Group, the company that took the young plant business by storm with…

GreenTech reports 20% increase in attendees

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands:  The fourth edition of the horticultural technology trade show GreenTech, welcomed 12,489 attendees from 114 countries; an attendance…

Koppert Partners with Canadian Ecoation

BERKEL EN RODENRIJS, Netherlands: Koppert Biological Systems in the Netherlands and the Canadian based Ecoation signed a cooperation agreement on…

GreenTech reports 20% increase in attendees

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands:  The fourth edition of the horticultural technology trade show GreenTech, welcomed 12,489 attendees from 114 countries; an attendance…

GreenTech expands into Mexico

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands:  The world’s premier horticultural technology show GreenTech has announced it will expand its international network by opening a…

Cupid strikes Keukenhof visitors

LISSE, Netherlands: Tapping into the power of love, Danziger, collaborating with Florensis, Imperial Plants and Bongartz, planted a spectacular, heart-shaped…

Insight and tips for peony success

Industry growth remains strong despite the challenges of climate change, storage, irrigation and diminishing herbicide options. On Wednesday December 19,…

Delphy expands into Africa

Delphy, the Dutch knowledge sharing organisation and service provider for cultivators around the world (formerly known as DLV) has confirmed…

Easier to recycle pots NOW available

WAALWIJK, The Netherlands: RECOVER is the very latest innovation from Desch; an addition to the standard recycled products in the…

2018 FlowerTrials®

This year’s FlowerTrials® took place June 12-15 in the Westland and Aalsmeer regions in the Netherlands and the Rheinland Westfalen…

Peony Progress

The peony is on the way up in the international cut flower trade. 70 million stems were sold in the…

Jungle Talks

NAALDWIJK, the Netherlands: On Thursday 11th October, Jungle Talks and the University of Professional Education, InHolland Delft, are holding a…

Plantarium

BOSKOOP, Netherlands: The results of Plantarium 2018 are clear: the road taken is a good one and has given us…

Codema develops purpose-built water carts

BERGSCHENKHOEK, the Netherlands: Cut flower companies with multiple production locations often choose to have the sorting and processing take place…

Plantarium 2018

BOSKOOP, the Netherlands: ‘Let’s make the world greener together.’ It was under this motto that, from 22 to 24 August,…

Codema

The worldwide need for efficient and high-quality horticulture solutions is growing rapidly. Codema Systems Group foresees major opportunities for the…

Plantarium Winners Revealed

BOSKOOP, Netherlands: Buddleja davidii ‘SMNBDBT’ (ROCKETSTAR INDIGO), submitted by Valkplant BV from Boskoop, has been selected as the Best in…

Plantarium 2018

BOSKOOP, the Netherlands: Plantarium 2018 is in the starting blocks. The floor plan has been finalised and the outlines of…

Plantarium

BOSKOOP, the Netherlands: Traditionally,  at the end of august it is Plantarium time, the leading international tree nursery trade fair.…

Rijnsburg Flower Parade

RIJNSBURG, the Netherlands: Huge crowds who will watch over 250,000 flowers on floats and cars. Dancing and singing actors on…

Vitroplus launches new fern

BURGH-HAAMSTEDE, The Netherlands: Vitroplus, a renowned Dutch breeder and propagator of ferns today announced the introduction of its new fern…

Lily League

POELDIJK, The Netherlands: Well before the auction clock at 11 am, Gerard Vermeulen, lily specialist and auctioneer at Royal FloraHolland,…

Sex helps selling Chrysanthemums

In its own right the picture was iconic. A girl bathing in a Chrysanthemum covered bath. It wasn’t interesting because…

What is new and hot in cut flowers?

AALSMEER, Netherlands: At the Royal FloraHolland Trade Fair Aalsmeer and IFTF Vijfhuizen thousands of people will come to see what’s…

Dümmen Orange about globalisation

Global breeder Dümmen Orange is the world’s largest grower of cuttings, producing over 1.5 billion cuttings per year (4,000 varieties)…

Better to love nature

“Investing in a green environment is an investment for yourself and your health. Man is part of nature. Nature helps…

Business environment
Business environment

The success of any company largely depends on its business environment. Let me give one simple example. A 17-year old,…

Hooked on Lily Looks

In 2006, Dutch pot lily grower Wetering Pot Lilium teamed up with breeder Mak Breeding to create pot lilies with…

KAVB: almost 150 years active

Flowerbulbs promotion dating back almost 150 years is a main activity of the Royal General Bulb Growers’ Association (KAVB). The…