Jaap-Jan Uittenbogaard
This was explained by the director of the family company, Jaap-Jan Uittenbogaard, who recently welcomed a group of Dutch youths in the horticultural industry to their Noordwijkerhout location. Traditionally, this group visits the winner of the Horticultural Entrepreneurs Prize, and Uittenbogaard was their host. With great pride and enthusiasm, he presented the company, which since 2010 has been purveyor to the royal household and has proven itself in all aspects of the bulb sector: breeding, cultivation and forcing, and (wholesale) trade.
An attentive public
Remarkable
In the field of breeding, a lot is happening. The better informed professionals in the bulb business, and especially in the tulip business, will be familiar with the story of Remarkable. A handful of companies set up this breeding company in 1996, with the aim of developing the 'tulip 2.0'. Or rather, the creation of a new and exclusive assortment of tulips, with flowers that distinguish themselves in resistance, forcing properties, colors and leaf position. It is exciting that this assortment will be on the market now and in the coming years. "We have invested many years in it," says Uittenbogaard. "It takes at least 15 to 20 years before you can present a new variety. Only after five years, you can actually see a flower for the first time, and also: of the thousands of crossings that you make, there are only a handful that are selected. But now we are finally ready and the market can prepare for an assortment of exciting newcomers."
Guided tour
Landscaping
Uittenbogaard also talks compellingly about the trade activities. Only a small percentage of all bulbs that pass through JUB are also forced by them, the majority goes to retail, to other forcers and growers, and to what is called 'small' and 'large' landscaping. Small means: gardens and flower beds. Large relates to municipalities, roadsides, nature parks. Everything that concerns mechanical planting, an activity that was added 25 years ago.
Here the orders are picked for the landscaping segment. What you see here is the last bit: almost everything is already gone.
"How we started with that is a funny story. Schiphol approached us: can’t you make strips along the runway, so that tourists land between the tulips? Very nice of course, but for us mainly the beginning of what we call 'large landscaping'. We developed a machine that lifts the grass mat, places bulbs under it and pushes the grass mat down again. This way you can plant thousands of bulbs in no time at all, with hardly any visible damage to the mat."
The same as above, but in the adjacent space and for the retail segment.
This was very beneficial for JUB, just consider: did you ever notice that a roadside can bloom continuously for months? "In consultation with the customer, we plant mixtures, which sometimes may consist of five kinds of flowers. An early bloomer, a late bloomer, an allium in between, maybe something else. This means color all the time, and besides, if you take care of it, it will come back the next year and following years.” This made the young growers from the Westland wonder whether JUB would not be willing to consider mixing in some chrysanthemums as well.
In the bins on the right the bulbs, which will be planted right away.
Future
Last but not least, Uittenbogaard looks to the future. "I think, in some respects, the tulip sector is expanding. Many things are happening in the field of innovation, the market is versatile, greening is hot and also the bulb-growing region emanates power. Actually, consumers do not have significant negative associations with bulbs. But there are also challenges. Expertise disappears over the years and its availability is limited. There is no specific bulb education anymore. There are also concerns about phytosanitary requirements and market access: a complex game of sometimes opposing interests, which you also see in the cooperation between producers and trade. And with all that, we must ensure that quality is maintained."
The last shipments are awaiting departure. Once gone, the tubes go down, and forcing will be done here.
As a pioneer in the field of sustainability, with 110 years of experience gained, a fifth generation in the starting blocks and not to forget Remarkable, the company radiates pride and self-confidence.
The bulbs are planted by hand, after which a layer of sand is placed over it and they’re put in the cold storage. They will be transferred for forcing soon.
For more information:
JUB Holland
Robijnslaan 43
2211TG Noordwijkerhout
Robijnslaan 43
2211TG Noordwijkerhout
Netherlands