Red is an important color in cut roses and therefore when new or improved varieties enter the market interest is high. This also counts for the new red rose variety of Kordes Roses. It was introduced in 2018 and is now really being picked up in the market. After trialing it for some years at a Dutch nursery, now more will start producing it and it is also planted in Russia, Ukraine, and Italy. "The combination of the traditional bloom and color with the experience of saving light and crop protection products is catching the interest of many growers", Göran Basjes of Kordes Roses tells us.
Göran Basjes and Wilhelm-Alexander Kordes of Kordes roses at the IPM Essen 2020 where they showcased Con Amore for the third time.
After many 
years of breeding and trialing, Kordes Roses put the new variety named Con Amore on the market in 2018. Dutch rose grower Van der Hulst started to grow this variety since the very beginning and recently decided to expand the acreage of this rose variety. "When growing it, he quickly noticed that the variety performs well under a lower light intensity than most other red rose varieties on the market." Also other growers seem to notice it. "The growers that are now growing Con Amore grow it under 7,000 to 10,000 lux, instead of 15,000 lux which most red varieties require."
On top of that, Basjes adds that the use of crop protection products decreased as well. "Growers do not need weekly spraying against Mildew."
Besides the standard characteristics of this flower, which is a large head size, a dark velvet color with dark green foliage, a vase life of 14 days and stem length of 60 to 80 cm, the cultivation characteristics are making it a very interesting variety to grow.
Con Amore in the propagation greenhouse at Dümmen Orange.
Therefore, Basjes sees the demand increasing and not only within Europe. In order to have enough plants available, they upscaled their propagation, which is taking place in the greenhouse of Dümmen Orange in De Kwakel, the Netherlands. "Currently 90,000 plants are being produced which will result in 120,000 plants to supply."
Kordes Rosen
Göran Basjes
Email: Basjes@kordes-rosen.com
www.kordes-rosen.com