Our flower growers: they’ve been working so hard for years to harvest to most beautiful seasonal flowers especially for us. Without them we wouldn’t have flowers! For many of them, these times are rough. Needless to say, we want to know how they’re doing. So that’s why for the comings weeks we’ll put a spotlight on our growers. Kicking off with roses grower Loek.
Tell us about the company
Van Den Berg Roses is a family company that have been growing roses since 1975. Normally, they harvest about 1.5 million roses per week, all year round. These roses are all hand-cut so they can flourish optimally.
How are you doing?
Loek: “We’ve kept a positive attitude, but the massive spread of COVID-19 has been a big change for us. The first week, in particular, was a rollercoaster ride as you don’t know what to expect as a company. But we’ve put our backs into it and immediately came up with a new plan to be able to stay afloat. Because the demand for flowers from independent florists has decreased exponentially, we now produce fewer roses. This way they become more scarce and we prevent throwing out excess harvested roses. Moreover, we want to deliver the highest quality of roses at all times, now and always. Luckily, it’s getting better. For example, here in the Netherlands, we have the Flower Boost Challenge, a great initiative where large companies directly purchase flowers from us for their staff. Flowers are important, especially now. Let’s all look at it from the bright side!”
Are you still harvesting roses or are the fields empty now?
“At the moment, 25% of our area is empty. We harvest 4 acres less than usual, we’ve changed our crops and can now offer a wider range of roses. In three months time, we can harvest again. Very beautiful ones, in thirteen different bright colours, among those also the “miss piggy” - a bright pink one!
Why should we all specifically have roses in a vase in our home (office)?
“Roses in a vase will give you hope and enjoyment. They just speak to you! They’re a tough breed of flowers - ours have a long lifespan in your vase.”
What’s a little known fact about roses?
“To lengthen the lifespan of your roses in a vase, it’s best to remove all the leaves from the stem. This way all the energy goes to the bud instead of the leaves. What also helps, is to diagonally cut a bit of the stem every few days.”