Behind the scenes at a German Amaryllis grower
Armin Pass and his Amaryllis
The "Arctic Nymph" variety
Armin Pass has been running his Amaryllis nursery in Germany since 1974, where he’s specialized in mini Amaryllis. In his four greenhouses, he grows 14 different Amaryllis varieties. We met him in a sea of thousands of Amaryllis stems and got to know his farm a bit better.
His parents started cultivating Amaryllis in this same nursery: “This is what we know, this is what we have done for over 40 years;” That is Armin Pass’ answer to the question of why he has chosen this career.
The Amaryllis is the best-selling cut flower at Christmas. So it is currently high season for grower Pass, who also grows a few hydrangeas in addition to the Amaryllis. “What do you do the rest of the year?” Florismart asked him. “Vacation!” he answers with a big grin and wink. The Amaryllis is available in all colours, but the red variety is the most popular one for Christmas.
The "Rapido" variety
The Amaryllis bulbs are cleaned regularly in a large water bath at 42.5 degrees Celsius. At this temperature, protein coagulates, so that any possible insects die, even if they are in the middle of the bulb. If the Amaryllis is well maintained then they can grow really old. Some bulbs have accompanied Armin Pass for over 40 years.
Amaryllis bulbs
Armin also breeds his own variety: the Lilliput Amaryllis. The Lilliput has a dark red, velvety blossom. The production took 8 long years, but the effort has paid off. Because of the unique, dark red colour, it is very popular, especially during Christmas.
Pass' own variety: the Lilliput Amaryllis
The Lilliput after 5 days
For more information:
Florismart
Tel: +442033184820
contact@florismart.com
www.florismart.com