This week the Christmas Rose is in the spotlight of the FloraPodium. The botanical name of this fine flower is the Hellebore Niger. When this beautiful plant starts to blossom, she reminds us that the winter, and with it the festive Christmas Season, is coming. The Hellebore is well known as a plant, but as a cut flower it has not been on the market for very long. This cultivation is new, not everything is known yet, which makes cultivation difficult. We went to pot plant nursery Van der Does to learn more about the Hellebore Niger 'WinterFashion', which they grow as a cut flower.

 

Origin

The Hellebore Niger originates from calcareous areas such as the Alps and Apennines. In the Netherlands the Hellebore flowers in the garden from January to April. The supply however starts a little earlier. For this reason, it is a well-known flower during the Christmas period, because it is one of the few plants that is already flowering, when most plants are still at rest.

 

In the spotlight

Pot plant nursery Van der Does not only grow pot plants. They have found an enormous challenge in growing cut cyclamen and cut Hellebore. These two niche products offer an enrichment for the florists’ Christmas assortment. This year they experienced some problems with the cut cyclamen because of the summer, so there is little supply. They hope to be able to offer more again next year.

The cut Hellebore is also a very challenging cultivation. Van der Does has several varieties, but most of them are still in a test phase. Van der Does currently only produces one species for production; the 'WinterFashion'. They started this cultivation four years ago. WinterFashion is also the most striking, because of its bright white color. This beautiful flower has a shelf life of about 4 weeks. During cultivation, depending on the temperature, it loses its stamens, but that does  not affect the shelf life. The cooler the flowers are, the slower they color through to green. The greener the flower, the harder it becomes. These hard green flowers still have a significant decorative value in floral art.

 

Care

Place stems in fresh, cold water without using pre-treatment agents. Regularly check whether there is enough water in the vase. It is very important that the Hellebore is always in the water. If the bottom of the stems turn black, then cut them again at an angle and refresh the water.

Hellebore has not been cultivated and traded as a cut flower for very long. This also means that not a lot is known about the cultivation and that there is still a lot to be discovered about this product. Plants are now also being bred for the cultivation of cut flowers. It takes years to test and select suitable varieties. The most important thing is to grow long stems, while pot plants are kept compact.

 

Niche cultivation

The goal of nursery van der Does is to serve the higher segment of the market with special niche products. For this reason they also grow cut Cyclamen. Together with the Hellebore they are the perfect products for the Christmastime. Both Hellebore and Cyclamen are traditional products that have been available in our assortment for years, but not as cut flowers!

 

New varieties

In addition to the cultivation of 'WinterFashion', there are still a number of beautiful varieties under development, but these will need a few more years to become marketable; that always takes a long time. These new varieties are the color pink and have beautiful large flowers.

 

Screen cloth

During our visit the screen was pulled over the greenhouse. Therefore It was very dark in the greenhouse (unfortunately this did slightly affect the picture quality). This way they try to influence the day-night length and thus the Hellebore’s flowering. They want them to bloom around Christmas as much as possible and in this way they can expedite the flowering period.

It also affects the length of the stem. The longer the stem, the better the price. For a Hellebore only a few more centimeters can bring a much better price. If the flower is a few centimeters longer, it can easily  bring a euro more. Naturally a grower would want to ensure that the stem is as long and thick as possible.

 

Discovery trip

"You are now four years on; do you now know everything you want to know about this cultivation?" We wondered. "Unfortunately, not," explains Henri. "We think we know how to do it now, but it is a surprise every year. But we love the challenge. "

 

Root damage

The Hellebore is now grown on a piece of land of 2000 square meters. The remaining 2.3 hectares are used for other potted plants and cut Hellebores. This summer the root temperature was too high due to the extreme heat we had in the Netherlands, which caused many plants to suffer a lot of damage. The special thing about the Hellebore is that this damage has no influence on the flower itself. Even though the plants foliage might be damaged, there will still be plenty of useful flowers growing on the plant. Henri thinks that perhaps this is the most special thing about this beautiful product.

In March, the plants grow a lot of leaves. In June the first buds are former underground. From then on, these buds develop further and as soon as the temperature drops below 10 degrees Celsius, the buds shoot up and you can enjoy the Christmas Rose.

 

FloraPodium, 12 December 2018