A look into the world of storing, preparing flower bulbs

There are rules for the proper storage of flower bulbs. Joost Bakker of Van Zanten Flowerbulbs knows this like no other. 16 years ago he arrived at Royal Van Zanten and over the course of time he started to focus on the storage and preparation of flower bulbs. He is now responsible for millions of flower bulbs every year.

His responsibility starts with the storage of flower bulbs in the cold stores. From entry to departure. Joost: “Although these cold rooms are computer controlled, it is and remains very human work, a ‘hands-on’ process that I have developed over the years.” But how does it work in practice? A look into the world of: storage and preparation of flower bulbs. Let’s start with the summer bulbs (tulips, hyacinths, muscari and more).

Joost in one of the cold stores of Van Zanten Flowerbuls in the Netherlands

Physical rounds

Twice a day, seven days a week, Joost and his colleagues take physical rounds through each cold store. In addition to checking and recording temperature and humidity, controls also take place on acid (ethylene) in the air. Ethylene in the air means that there are acidic or contaminated bulbs in the cell. As soon as this is detected, the batch of bulbs is immediately put into quarantine.

External factors

In the above checks, external factors are also taken into account. For example, outside wind, temperature and air humidity influence the climate inside the cold store. These external factors can be positively influenced by the control on the cold store. Joost: “Some growers are afraid of a certain humidity in the cold stores. With summer bulbs such as tulips, this is not something you need to be afraid of.”

Air

What should not be forgotten is: fresh air. Fresh air is very important in the cold stores, this is controlled via valves. Joost: “Too much fresh air in the cells causes the bulbs to dry out. If there is too little fresh air, too much ethylene can form in the cold stores, which means that ethylene damage can occur. All in all, regulating fresh air through the existing valves is very secure.”

Development stage

Different temperatures are used in the storage of tulip bulbs. Before the bulb development starts, the bulbs have to be stored at a constant warm temperature. When setting the correct temperature, the development stage of the sphere must always be determined first. We speak of a stage: I, II, P1, A1, A2 and G. Joost: “Because only with this information can you determine the correct temperature and duration in the cold store.”

“The starting point with storing and preparing flower bulbs is of course always to get the quality at a level and to keep them of excellent quality. My challenge, my passion,” Joost concludes.

For more information:
Royal Van Zanten
Lavendelweg 15, Rijsenhout
P.O. Box 265, 1430 AG Aalsmeer
The Netherlands
Tel: +31(0)297 38 70 00
www.royalvanzanten.com