Feiko Sonneveld, from Quality Celosia, is no stranger to FloraPodium. A few years ago we highlighted the Celosia Act "Verda". This year he has a completely new variety in his range that he is very enthusiastic about. High time to revisit this passionate grower and get acquainted with the Celosia cristata 'Reprise'.

Crop with a future

Feiko is the youngest of a family with four children. His father died when he was only twelve, after which one of his brothers took over the nursery from their father. After working with his brother for a number of years, Feiko started his own business in 1989. At first he grew Asters and Chrysanthemums. A few years later, Celosia Plumosa was added, after which the love for this crop has only grown. In 2006 Feiko fully specialized in Celosia. “This flower is amazingly beautiful, the cultivation is fun, challenging and there is still a lot of future in this flower,” he says radiantly!

Celosia Reprise

The Celosia Reprise is currently available in three colors; "Reprise Pink", "Reprise Orange" and "Reprise Velvet". Feiko is very enthusiastic about this new variety. Celosia is a real beauty and really falls into the exclusive segment. The colors are very striking and the comb is very decorative in bouquets and arrangements. The Reprise is characterized by its beautiful dark green leaves. The flower is compact and significantly stronger than the current Cristata species. The Reprise has far fewer seed houses on the flower. This makes breeding more difficult, but this also makes the flower much less susceptible to fungus and this also benefits the shelf life. “This variety really comes close to a vandal-proof flower”, Feiko says with a laugh. This makes it more fun for florists to work with this fantastic flower. Not only in compact bouquets; the sky is the limit with the Reprise!

Masterclass teachers 

The Aeres in Velp is part of a comprehensive school that specializes in vocational education. Every year, a fun masterclass is organized for all Aeres teachers and since this year also the Nordwin “Flower” teachers. Due to the arrival of Corona, this had to be done differently this year. The Aeres was looking for a partner who could provide a fun, inspiring online masterclass for these teachers and FloraPodium enthusiastically accepted the challenge! Together with international flower arranger Nicky Markslag, we put together a challenging masterclass! Our goal, in addition to the challenge for the teachers, to use this project to connect as many parties in the sector as possible. One of these parties was Feiko's nursery. The Celosia "Reprise" became the spotlight product for the teachers, providing an online look behind the scenes and sending them some beautiful Celosias in the mystery box to work with.

Leaf is important

Feiko gave a few very important tips! Most people remove all the leaves from the Celosia, so that the comb comes out the best. This is understandable, but it greatly weakens the flower! The leaves function as the lungs for the flower. It is better to leave some leaves on the stem; that is really much better for the shelf life.

The Celosias are real wet necks! Keep a close eye on the water, the vase is empty faster than you think! The flowers are already pre-treated with chlorine tablets at Feiko. It is also important to give the flowers a bactericide killer in the vase. A bag of flower food or a drop of bleach will suffice.

In contrast to many other flowers, relatively little is known about Celosia cultivation. It is a cultivation that is actually still very new and that makes it so fun and challenging for Feiko. He is still learning every day! Together with breeder Evanthia, Feiko is looking for new and better varieties. The Celosia is a flower that has a very sensitive reputation. In his view, the good quality of Reprise really is a big step forward within the Celosia crop.

Seed, cutting, flower

Breeder Evanthia breeds the Celosias and produces the seed. The seed is first grown into cuttings of about six centimeters. These tiny plants then go to Feiko, who then immediately places them in the soil. The planting of the cuttings is all done by hand; the cuttings are fragile and can be damaged quickly.

The flowers can be harvested after eight to ten weeks, depending on the season in which the flower is growing. As soon as the crop has been cut, the top layer of the soil is steamed. This steaming kills the thrips pupae that live in the ground and the seed that has fallen from the flowers.

Celosia is very sensitive to trips and aphids. In the first week, after planting the crop, Feiko has to use a little bit of chemical control as a preventive measure. Then he switches to biological control. This is also called integrated crop protection. The Reprise seems to have made a huge step in this area as well. This species appears to be much less sensitive to pests, there is clearly much less trips in this crop. Chemical control may no longer be necessary in the future and biological control alone will suffice.

Parasitic wasps and mites

Feiko is very enthusiastic about the biological control system that the Koppert company has developed. The tubes with parasitic wasps are scattered throughout the greenhouse, they ensure that the lice do not get a chance in the crop.

The mites are "released" in the greenhouse in a different way. Koppert has developed a wonderful system, tailor-made for every grower. This "organic cart" has been adapted to Feiko's greenhouses. Large fans are attached to this cart, which then blow the other biological control through the greenhouse, so that it spreads over the crop. In the past, everything had to be spread manually, which is now a thing of the past with the advent of this system.

Future

Feiko says that the Celosia is a crop with distinctive character, but also a crop that he still needs to learn a lot about. It's a challenge and you have to have a lot of guts to try new things. Next year Feiko is going to try lighting with different lamps. In this way he hopes to extend his season, allowing florists to work longer with this fantastic flower!

FloraPodium, 16 November 2020