The Horti Fair is the biggest international trade fair for technology, innovation and inspiration in horticulture and is taking place in the Amsterdam RAI on 1 to 4 November inclusive. On display at the Horti Fair’s Interpolis House of Quality are the cut flowers and pot plants entered by growers in this competition. Each entry is inspected by the Permanent Judging Committee or VKC. The first-place winners among all the cut flowers and pot plants are then eligible to become an overall winner and be presented with an Interpolis Quality Cup. The winner of the Quality Cup for cut flowers receives marketing support from Hilverda-De Boer and the winner of the Quality Cup for pot plants receives marketing support from Javado Plant and Noviflora.
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| Bernard Koeckhoven, manager at Interpolis, announced the winners of the Interpolis Quality Cup yesterday at the Interpolis House of Quality. The winner for cut flowers was Royal van Zanten from Rijsenhout and the winner for pot plants was Sion BV. |
‘We are proud of the quality displayed by Dutch horticulture’, says Bernard Koeckhoven of Interpolis. ‘The Interpolis House of Quality is the ultimate showcase – the iconic location where growers confirm the superlative standard of their cultivation performances. By organising the Interpolis House of Quality and having the VKC inspect the entries, we are pleased to be supporting improvements in quality in this sector.’
Winners of the Interpolis Quality Cup 2011: Royal van Zanten (Rijsenhout, The Netherlands) for cut flowers and Sion B.V. (De Lier, The Netherlands) for pot plants.
De Wilgenlei B.V., located in Bleiswijk, The Netherlands, is known at the Horti Fair for its entries featuring Ficus lyrata – entries that have won the company prizes in previous years. The three large plants contained in a large ornamental pot turned the ‘old’ Ficus into a trendy plant that could be used for several purposes with excellent results. The beautiful compact, stocky plants were perfectly matched in colour, and the three pots supplied were identical.
The name of Tesselaar Freesia CV in Heerhugowaard, The Netherlands is inseparably linked with quality. And they managed to pull it out of the hat again this time by having their Freesia ‘Purple Rain’ nominated in the cut flowers category. A freesia with outstanding uniformity, large double florets, a nice raceme length, a handsome sturdy upright stem, and uniformity displayed in all its flowers.
KP Holland in Naaldwijk, The Netherlands, has proven for years that it belongs to the leading Kalanchoe breeding companies. Their title contender wasKalanchoe blossfeldiana ‘Rosalina Don Nando’. The jury assessed this entry as a bold display of Kalanchoe with a sturdy habit. All the flowers displayed the perfect stage of maturity. The result was a very uniform entry that made it a real winner.
Attempts have long been made to have this product on display but the Horti Fair is just a little early for most shrubs used for forcing. This year, Wed. Jac. Hansen Kzn & Zn from Aalsmeer entered their Syringa vulgaris ‘Dark Koster’. We could definitely call this an exceptional cultivation achievement, especially for this time of year. For lilacs, the length of the flower clusters is important, and these were perfectly filled out and displayed excellent colour. The large florets and the uniformity of the entry as a whole made this entry worthy of nomination.
The Bromeliads were very strongly represented. Geling & Zn. from Rijsenhout, The Netherlands entered its Aechmea ‘Mohican’. This aechmea displayed a uniform maturity in both its inflorescence and leaf colour. The deep pink inflorescence projected nicely above the rosette cup. A striking feature was the beautiful broad green leaves below the inflorescence. Being uniform and exhibiting no physical damage, this aechmea was also nominated.
The Horti Fair is international, and this also means that its entries are increasingly coming from other countries. A good example is C.I. Colibri Flowers SA from Bogotá, Colombia that was nominated for its entry of a spray carnation, ‘Negrita’. This deep purple cultivar displayed a very heavy quality, and its stage of maturity was perfect as well. A clever piece of work to produce such superior quality: this stage of maturity in a carnation of this colour without any physical damage and variation in colour.
Rex begonias are products that appeal to our imaginations. And the large specimens entered by M. Koppe B.V. in Ermelo, The Netherlands, were of a very high calibre. What made this company’s Begonia ‘Beleaf Morning Dew’ so striking was its excellent foliage colour, particularly the characteristic foliage pattern. The compact uniform plants displayed no physical damage and were of excellent exhibition quality.
VOF LJ Noordam from Woubrugge, The Netherlands, entered its Celosia argentea ‘Turbo Lilac Rose’. Its fabulous combs showed an exceptionally heavy yet uniform quality. The colour of all the stems was highly uniform as well. Also very worthy of mention were the remarkably beautiful and undamaged leaves beneath the combs. Celosia argentea ‘Turbo Lilac Rose’: justifiably a unique plant breeding achievement.
For the large-flowering Phalaenopsis grown as a pot plant, Sion B.V. in De Lier, The Netherlands, excelled with its orange-red cultivar listed under number 2338. The flower quality in both colour and shape was perfect, and the shape and colour of the leaves were an ideal match for the flower. Displaying two large flowering spikes and a good height with respect to habit, this nomination was entirely justified. The jury concluded that of all the pot plants nominated, this phalaenopsis should be selected the best pot plant of Horti Fair 2011.
Among the breeders of spray chrysanthemums, Dekker Breeding BV from Hensbroek, The Netherlands, stood out with its fairly new mum. This white chrysanthemum had an exceptionally beautiful and unique green centre. ‘Zidane’ was nominated because of the uniformity of all its flowers, its heavy branching habit, and the sturdiness of its stem.
As a product, the Bouvardia is no longer that familiar, yet here is a flower of unbelievable beauty. The cultivar nominated, Bouvardia ‘Royal Daphne Fresco’, had been submitted by Royal van Zanten, a breeding company in Rijsenhout, The Netherlands. Each of the stems of this purple bouvardia exhibited the correct stage of maturity, the heavy flower heads displayed the right volume, and even the lateral branches contributed to an attractive habit. Its fabulous quality made this entry a real eye-catcher and a splendid example for promoting the product. The jury was unanimous in its opinion that this entry should be declared the very best cut flower of Horti Fair 2011.
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