Major mistake
According to Schroll, the major mistake made by the hydrangea breeders is the fact that they supplied the same varieties to all interested growers, over the last few years. Consequently, as many growers supply the same hydrangea varieties, they can only be competitive by offering their plants for a lower price than their competitor. "As the focus is on low prices, the quality of the products will suffer, which will result in a unsatisfied customer. So, in the end, nobody will be happy or earn money," he says.
Carsten and Søren Schroll.
Own Breeding program
In a market where most growers produce the same hydrangea varieties, Schroll wanted to create their own identity and therefore started their own breeding programme in 2007. In 2013 they brought their first new varieties to the market. "Currently these varieties are being supplied to exclusive partners in the hydrangea market, including ourselves," he says. Schroll is using this strategy to keep up the high quality and enable grower-partners to earn more money. "If growers do not have the same products as their neighbours, they will stand out and therefore do not have to compete on price only. This enables the market to develop in a more quality oriented direction again," says Schroll.
Deep purple on the left. Other varieties in the Music Collection on the right.
3 Double award winner
Their strategy paid off; the varieties of Schroll Flowers hydrangeas are standing out and the quality of their products is being recognized by various parties. Over the last two years, Schroll flowers won three Gold medals for one of their varieties, called Deep purple. This variety is especially bred for, as the name already suggests, its deep purple color. This variety is also part of the Music Collection, which is a concept developed together with De Jong Plant from Holland that consists of seven varieties which also won several awards. This week, for example, De Jong Plant received the Press prize for concepts for this Music Collection at the Plantarium in the Netherlands.Schroll flowers
Schroll flowers was established in 1998. The current hydrangea varieties consist of more than 10 varieties. The breeding takes place in Denmark and the production to young, half finished and finished plants in Denmark and Portugal. "We started producing the hydrangeas in Denmark, but due to the high production costs, we moved a part of our production to Portugal. At the moment, the total acreage of open field and greenhouse in Denmark is around 15ha and in Portugal around 20ha," he says.Click here to see the entire collection of Schroll flower.
For more information
Schroll Flowers
Soren Schroll
Email: soren@schroll-flowers.dk
www.schroll-flowers.dk