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Topics Könst Sandy®Könst Ajax® Könst Reflex® Könst X-treme® X-treme crop Könst Shakira®. Horti Fair Alstroemeria Himalaya® nominated for 2008 Horti Fair Innovation Award New catalog Inca collection® Inca collection® garden in Nieuwveen. more pics. more pics. Inca Pride® and Inca Azur® Fertilization of Inca collection ® Könst Himalaya® Könst Flame® Könst Rabanne® Könst Sparta® Könst Stratus® Könst Vision® Könst Zantedeschia Nursery Artflor Könst Prada® Könst Simply Red® New subsidiary in Colombia The Latest news about Könst Alstroemeria direct in your e-box! As an addition to our yellow varieties assortment we introduce the new cultivar, Sandy®. It is a light, smooth and very clean yellow variety that offers several key advantages for growers. Sandy® is a suitable variety to be produced without soil cooling when not grown in warmer climates. In warmer climates we advise to apply additional soil cooling. It has a very good growing performance and a high productivity of 350 to 400 stems/m²/year when grown in The Netherlands. In other countries, under different growing conditions, the productivity will be about 200-230 stems/m²/year. The length is approximately 120 to 150 cm, which makes it a rather good handy variety.. Moreover, the excellent quality of the straight stems and the nice flower formation, gives it a harmonious balance between buds and leaves and a very attractive presentation, like for instance Firenze®. Last but not least, Sandy® is a less virus sensitive variety.   Producing red color Alstroemeria varieties can be especially difficult under warm conditions. However, the flower market always wants strong red colors. As an answer to this, we offer you one of our newest varieties: Ajax®. In the red color range it is just like our Fuego®, however, looking at quality and durability Ajax® is even better. This variety has a good heat tolerance, which makes it also suitable for growth under warm conditions. Ajax® hardly produces blind shoots. Moreover, it has a very generative growth, giving sturdy stems with upright short leaves, making it handier during the post harvest process. In addition, it has a very nice crown, composed by a remarkable amount of flowers with long pedestals. A special feature of Ajax® is its fragrance. It is the only fragrant Alstroemeria known. One can profit and enjoy this unique characteristic at the most, when the flowers will be cut in a more open stage. Ajax® produces about 300 stems/m²/year when grown in The Netherlands. Under different climate conditions in other countries, the productivity can be about 200-230 stems/m²/year. Production figures will rise when planting Ajax® at a higher planting density. Ask your sales manager about our sales conditions.   The flower market in The Netherlands, tends increasingly to high quality Alstroemeria flowers and we are very keen to help our growers to be successful on it. Thus, we think having Reflex® in your Alstroemeria assortment will be a plus. Last two years the average stem weight of Alstroemeria offered to the Dutch Auctions seems to rise. The main reason for this is very simple: exporters just pay more for heavier stems. That is why we focus more on heavy weight varieties these days. Könst Reflex® is such a variety. The weight per stem is over 70 g , which enables you to sell 700 g bunches with very good price possibilities. Besides that, the big bud with some nice pink color touch on it and the remarkable size of the flowers gives Reflex® an extraordinary presentation on the whole. After planting some pinching may be necessary to avoid blind shoots. But there is more. This variety does not need much soil cooling which makes Reflex® easier and cheaper to grow since it demands less energy cost. Reflex® produces about 300 stems/m²/year when grown in The Netherlands. Without the application of soil cooling, CO² and artificial light, the productivity is about 200-230 stems/m²/year. For all these reasons Reflex® is the right variety if you are focused on the best quality market.   Whenever we talk with flower arrangers or florists, they always ask about the new developments in the flower-breeding field. During HortiFair 2008 we exhibited one of our innovations called, X-treme®. It caught the eye of many visitors. Florists are very enthusiastic about this variety because it “is something really different and special”. Its use in floral arrangements is multifunctional. X-treme® is unique since it has a total different shape in comparison to other Alstroemeria varieties. It has greenish-white flowers with a delicate touch of pink on it and the crown looks like a Freesia. This unique variety has an other very remarkable quality. Flowers as well as leaves almost do not fall; making vase life very long. Besides that, it is not only beautiful, X-treme® has a very good growing performance as well. X-treme® reaches a production of 300 to 350 stems/m²/year when grown in The Netherlands. Overseas, under different management conditions, the productivity is about 180-200 stems/m²/year. This as a consequence of different climate conditions. However, when soil cooling and artificial light is applied, a higher production will be reached. We recommend to harvest the stems at the right flowering stage. Compared to the traditional Alstroemeria crop, it takes a little more time before the first flowers of X-treme® will open. Nevertheless if you are looking for something totally different and new, X-treme® will not disappoint you. 
In yellow we used to grow varieties like Goa or California. They both were not that easy to grow without soilcooling. Besides Estrada we now have a new yellow one called Könst Shakira that can be grown without soilcooling very well. The stem quality of Könst Shakira improved a lot compared to a variety like Goa. Flower size is rather good, and it lovely combines the yellow with a green touch in the flower. Könst Shakira is characterized by its longer pedestals and wonderful dark foliage. The contrast with the yellow flower is remarkable. The way this variety grows seems to have a lot of similarity compared to a variety like Modena. The straightness, not too many blind shoots and productivity from year 2 is about the same. Although, productivity the first year will be a little lower since the rhizome needs some time to spread itself through the bed. Könst Shakira can be grown under colder circumstances (minimum 6° C) as well. It keeps on growing and doesn’t abort during the winter without artificial lighting under the Dutch or UK circumstances.   This year the Horti Fair will be held from Tuesday 14 until Friday 17 October 2008 in the RAI, Amsterdam. You can find us in Hall 7, booth number 07.0307. However, we also welcome all people interested in the cutflower business, to bring a visit to our show greenhouse in Nieuwveen as well. We are proud to be able to show you many interesting novelties of both the Alstroemeria cutflower and the Inca Collection. Besides these crops we will show some interesting new Zantedeschia varieties. During the opening days of the Horti Fair, our doors will be open daily from 08.30 until 17.00 hours. If you wish to get the most up-to-date information on the varieties for your specific area, we advise you to contact our sales staff beforehand for an appointment. Best time to visit our Open Days in Nieuwveen is during morning hours. Our address is: Nieuwveens Jaagpad 93 2441 GA Nieuwveen
Looking forward to see you shortly! Alstroemeria Himalaya® nominated for 2008 Horti Fair Innovation Award From hundreds of innovations, the international jury of experts has nominated Alstroemeria Himalaya® ‘Konalaya’ from Könst Alstroemeria for the prestigious 2008 Horti Fair Innovation Award. Apart from Himalaya®, five more products are eligible in the category ‘Production’. The overall winner of the 2008 Horti Fair Innovation Award will be selected from the winners of four different categories. These categories are: Technology, Supply and Trade/Services and Production. The jury describes Alstroemeria Himalaya® ‘Konalaya’ as ‘Big, real white flower which fits in the current trend’. And indeed, the flowers are very big; they can even grow to more than 10 cm in diameter! The bright white colour of the flower, de sturdy straight stems and the leaves of a wonderful green contrasting colour, make this Alstroemeria variety very special. Alstroemeria Himalaya® ‘Konalaya’ is really a promising and interesting completion to the Alstroemeria assortment. On the exhibition’s official opening day, October 14, the jury will announce the overall winner of the 2008 Horti Fair Innovation Award. The International Horti Fair will be held at Amsterdam’s RAI exhibition center from Tuesday October 14 to Friday October 17, 2008. The doors are open daily from 10:00 to 19:00 hours. All products nominated for the 2008 Horti Fair Innovation Award can be recognised by a special certificate. The Horti Fair will also pay more attention to the nominations on their website. 
The new Inca collection brochure is available right now. We will have 6 new varieties !
We added varieties with new colours and bigger flowers. The compactness, firmness and studiness of the newer varieties have improved.
With good care the plants will give a great quantity of flowers for a surprising length of time. The new varieties Inca Azur Inca Pride and Inca Desert, are available in bigger quantities. Availability of Inca Birdy, Inca Rocky and Inca Classic is limited.
Please let us know if you would like to receive the catalog by using this link.  Inca collection® garden in Nieuwveen.
At this moment our wonderfull show garden in Nieuwveen is flowering abundantly ! Most of our varieties survived the winter and started flowering again in spring. We have planted our newest varieties as well in between the older varieties that already grow there for a couple of years. We observe theyr garden performance, and ofcourse everyone is welcome to observe them. At this moment you find 14 varieties in full bloom.      
This season we have 2 new varieties in bigger quantities available. Both varieties are in the purple colour line. Azur a light purple or lavender variety is a big flower medium size and easy pot filling variety. Inca Pride®
did win the golden reward of best novelty 2007 at the Plantarium fair in Boskoop the Netherlands. The abundant flowering combined with the size of the flowers makes this plant look like a bouquet of flowers on a pot. It is really stunning ! Inca Pride® can either be grown indoors or outdoors. Inca Azur® is a little darker, and a real true purple one. This one is medium in size as well. Growingwise Inca Azur® looks excellent. It fills the pot very easy. Remarkable is the re-growth after the first flush of flowers. This is perfect! It just keeps on flowering throught the season as long as you remove the older stems. The flowers are a little smaller than Inca Pride but still quite good. Inca Azur can either be grown indoors or outdoors.   Fertilization of Inca collection ®
During our visits to our customers this year, one thing became very clear. It is difficult to fertilize Alstroemeria ! Alstroemeria needs a lot of fertilizers during the final 6 weeks of the crop. We did see quite some yellow crops, that really need more fertilizers.
We also struggled with this problem at our facility in Nieuwveen, The Netherlands. We used to work with slow release fertilizers. Of course this is an easy way of fertilizing. You just add them to the soil and they are ready to go.
Unfortunately this use of slow release fertilizers often resulted in yellow plants. If you grow outside, under rainy circumstances it is even worse ! The rain will wash away a lot of the fertilizers !!!!
That’s why we advice to make sure you have the ability to add extra fertilizers during the growing season. We use a very simple Dosatron system and add a 15-8-18 fertilizer to our plants. We feed them with an E.C. of 2,0 . During rainy periods you could even increase the E.C. till 2,5-3,0.
This higher level of nutrition in the pot will make your Alstroemeria plant look a lot better ! It will give dark leaves and firm and heavier stems ! This is what we need to provide our customers with excellent quality Inca collection Alstroemeria !
As you might know white is one of the more difficult colours to breed. Especially the yellow throat, which is a natural characteristic of Alstroemeria, is difficult to eliminate. Knowing this, you will not be surprised that it took us a while to breed a new pure white variety.
We are therefore, very proud to present Könst Himalaya®, our latest real white Alstroemeria variety. Könst Himalaya® shows a big flower on top of a heavy stem. The flower size is surprising; it measures a diameter of 8 cm. Many customers have decided to grow a bed of Könst Himalaya®. An old school variety called Casablanca® (also bred by Könst Alstroemeria) resembles Könst Himalaya® most closely.
A wonderful bud presentation makes the bunch look very attractive. The pedestal/break length is quite tall. In short, the Könst Himalaya® is the perfect choice for use in flower arrangements.
The crop length will be between 1,30-1,70 cm. In comparison with other varieties it is a little taller. Especially during the summer the crop seems to be a bit open. The growing speed of the shoots is very fast. In summer it takes only 5 weeks for small shoots to develop into a ready to harvest flower. This open but fast growing crop results in a productivity of around 220-260 stems per m2.
Könst Himalaya® is a hybrid, not a butterfly type. The heat resistance seems to be a little less than for instance Fuji®, but is still quite significant. Könst Himalaya® can be grown without soil cooling, but then some blind shoots will occur during autumn.  
Four years ago Könst introduced the orange variety Firenze®. Many growers are keen on this quality variety, but colour wise Firenze is yellow/orange. New in the orange colour range is Könst Flame®. People describe Könst Flame® as a real and true darker orange variety.
It combines heavy quality with real straight stems. A first grade percentage of more than 90 % the first year is common. This is one of the reasons that makes Könst Flame® a high percentage first grade variety.
Könst Flame® is very popular on the European market. This shows in the fixing of prices on the Dutch auctions. When introducing Könst Flame® on the VBA (auction in Aalsmeer, The Netherlands) in 2007, the highest average price of Euro 0,36/stem was paid for Könst Flame®. This season Könst Flame® averaged at Euro 0,29 per stem for sales until week 24, 2008. The astonishing bud presentation is one of Könst Flame® characteristics. The dark orange colour already shows quite soon in bud stage. This qualification is very important for sales through the Dutch auctions.
Production seems to be medium. Only in the first year production is a little lower. However, in the second year, production will rise considerably as by then the rhizomes have spread through the bed.
Könst Flame® does not need that much soil cooling. It can be grown without soil cooling. Könst Flame® can also be grown successfully in northern climates (Holland/UK/Canada) without the application of artificial lighting. We advise to keep air temperatures a little bit higher in order to maintain production at an acceptable level during the winter months.
 
If you are looking for a heavy quality dark purple variety, choose for Könst Rabanne®.
The stunning big dark purple flower combined with the dark green foliage makes this variety unique in the purple range. The average stem weight of 70 – 80 gram per stem is very impressive. Könst Rabanne® prefers to be grown with the use of some soil cooling, but growth without soil cooling is also possible. As more new Könst Alstroemeria varieties, Könst Rabanne® does not produce many blind stems. This purple variety will give around 5 till 8 flowers on a stem. It should be grown a little warmer during the winter months in order to keep production going.
As far as production numbers go it belongs to the medium range. This means 200-220 stems in Colombia and around 325 stems per m2 in The Netherlands. With an average price of Euro 0,27 from week 1 till week 24, 2008 for sales on the Aalsmeer auction, proves that the wholesalers do like this heavy weight dark purple Könst Rabanne®.  
Looking for a heat tolerant variety? Könst Sparta® will suit in your warmer climate. Könst Sparta® is not only tolerant for warmer summers, it can stand a lower temperature regime in winter as well. There has been no abortion in Könst Sparta® planted in the UK in spring 2006 ! In countries like Brazil, Argentina and Spain (being cultivation areas with warmer climates), Könst Sparta® is a must have variety. Even in warmer temperatures the flower quality remains to be more than just acceptable. In general Könst Sparta® is a variety with better characteristics. It has a lovely bud presentation, presented nicely on top of the stem. The crop looks quite open, but there is always a reasonable quantity of stems on the bed. This open kind of character is caused by the leaves. They are quite narrow and tall. Every stem has a bud. Könst Sparta® surely is a generative kind of crop. It does not need a lot of labour for thinning either! Above on all these positive scores, production is more than average.  
The fuchsia flowers and the very colourful buds, makes the bunch catch the eye!
Combined with the big size of the flowers, this variety can be seen as a good addition to the present purple range.
Its characteristics in which the higher production and better quality are combined, make this variety stand out.
Compared to Napoli®, Könst Stratus® will keep its quality in summer a lot better. Even under lower temperatures it keeps on going quite easily. Könst Status® can perfectly be grown without soil cooling. In general Könst Status® is a bulletproof variety that could be grown in all kind of circumstances all over the world.  
When you go for production, Vision® is the one! Even under a low temperature regime Vision® keeps on going. Our UK agent and exclusive grower of Könst Alstroemeria varieties, Alan Cox, really loves this variety. Just like older varieties (f.i. Rebecca ®) Könst Vision® has no problem with lower temperatures. Könst Vision® did not even abort when grown at low temperatures and without artificial lighting during the winter period in the UK! Productions in the UK, without the applications of artificial lighting and soil cooling, reach a quantity of around 300 stems per m2. More and more growers are asking for low energy varieties. When considering an oil price of 130 dollar a barrel (June, 2008), this makes sense. Especially in countries like the UK, Germany, France and Canada, this low temperature resistance is important! Customers like the reddish/pink blush in contrast with the bright pink colour. It is something different than only pink. Könst Vision® can be grown without soil cooling. Looking at quality it is better to apply some soil cooling.
  Worldwide Könst is known as the specialist for Alstroemeria starting material. In the past 30 years Könst has procured much knowledge on the breeding and propagation of Alstroemeria. This know-how has been used for the research and breeding of a second product: Zantedeschia. Zantedeschia is a rather new crop, not yet well-known to growers and consumers. The product has many opportunities with regard to both assortment as well as sales. A few years ago Könst has started with the breeding of Zantedeschia. This has been successful and Könst is pleased to announce that some new Zantedeschia varieties will be introduced on the market in 2008. The newly bred varieties will be propagated in the Könst laboratory thus ensuring and controlling the quality of the starting material. For more information, please contact Wilfred Keijzer, Productmanager for Zantedeschia.
Könst Sundance
Könst Minerva
Könst Luna
Crystal Blush®
Mango
Florex Gold
“Crystal Blush® is a registrated trademark of Golden State Bulb Growers”.
Artflor was the 1,9 ha big Könst Alstroemeria nursery with soilcooling, and HID lighting. Until the end of 2006 we grew Alstroemeria cutflowers on a large scale for the dutch auctions as well as trials of our new varieties at that location. Because of a change in our company’s strategy we decided to stop the Alstroemeria production at Artflor and to sell the greenhouses. We now concentrate on the breeding of Alstroemeria cutflowers and garden/pot plants and a (for us) new product: Zantedeschia (Calla). Of course, we are still testing our new varieties in Holland. We have set up trials of our new Alstroemeria varieties at our main nursery in Nieuwveen. You are always welcome to visit us at the location situated at Nieuwveens Jaagpad 93 in Nieuwveen, The Netherlands. At Artflor we used to keep detailed figures of the realized climate in the greenhouse, including soil temperatures, and of the production of several Alstroemeria varieties. We also frequently showed pictures and information on the culture of the Alstroemeria varieties. The registration of these details will be continued. You can still view and follow this: Climate- and production figures at Artflor Movies Recently we have started a new nursery in Colombia, named Flores la Serena, for the breeding and propagation of Alstroemeria and Zantedeschia. Read more.... This salmon pink coloured alstroemeria is easy to use in every bouquet . The flower formation is excellent, with 5 to 8 flowers forming a nice circle. The rather long brownish buds present themselves very well above the leaves. For the grower Prada offers a fine combination of productivity and quality. The crop is easy to manage with a very regular production going up to 220-250 stems a year. Always enough vegetation and length, never too tall, and stable in stem quality. In warm climates we advise a soiltemperature of 16-17 oC in the summer. Of our new recent introductions on the Dutch Auction Prada is most stable in price on a good level showing there is a year round interest in this color. If you need more information, please contact someone of our sales team   Könst Simply Red is one of our newest selections, just introduced on the Dutch Auctions. True Red is certainly a colour description that can be used for this variety. This unique bright Red combined with his excellent bud presentation, makes this variety a winner. The foliage of this variety is dark green, which makes the contrast with the bright red very extraordinary. The bud is perfectly on top of the stem. Flower size is bigger than average. Productivity will be in the range of 230-250 which makes this variety a more than average producer. When not grown too warm, stem quality will be kept at a medium till higher level. This variety needs soil cooling when grown in warmer circumstances. Advised soil temperature will be 15,5 o C. Our growers tell us that the crop looks like an ‘open’ grower. Fast growing shoots, and not that many blind stems. The upright leaf position makes this variety very efficient in growth, and difficult to harm during post harvest. The dark foliage is something that catches your eye. Prices on the Auction so far look very promising! If you need more information, please contact someone of our sales team.   Recently we have founded Flores La Serena Ltda., a subsidiary in Colombia. We have purchased land in Bogotá on which we are initiating the breeding, selection and propagation of a new line of Zantedeschia varieties. Zantedeschia is a new product for us. For several years we have carried out research on Zantedeschia which has succeeded in the development of several new varieties. During these years we have acquired a lot of know-how on the culture of this crop. On our new location in Bogotá we are also going to set up a tissue culture laboratory for in-vitro propagation of new varieties as well as insect-free greenhouses for the selection of Alstroemeria and Zantedeschia and the raising of tissue plants to young plants for cut flower and pot plant growers. In an also newly established joint venture with our Colombian agent, we will set up a demonstration farm for the cut flower production of new Alstroemeria and Zantedeschia varieties, as a way of supporting the market introduction of these new varieties and convincing local growers of the benefits of our new varieties in combination with improved cultivation technology.  The Latest news about Könst Alstroemeria direct in your e-box! |
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