Process

Annual production of hundreds of millions of flower bulbs in the Netherlands

Every year, we treat hundreds of millions of flower bulbs in the Netherlands. As such, we are one of the largest export companies in the world. Since we are in control of the entire process, from breeding and growing to treating and shipping, we can guarantee our customers a consistently high quality. Our aim is to obtain flower bulb varieties with improved characteristics, such as flower bulbs with a stunning appearance, resistance to diseases, high productivity, and excellent forcing properties. Thanks to our very sophisticated approach, our flower bulbs have a particularly high success rate and limited failure rate. Read on to find out how we achieve this. 

Cultivation and preparation of the flower bulbs

Our flower bulbs are grown in the Netherlands, where the soil and climate are excellent for growing flower bulbs. We work in close collaboration with the best Dutch growers and monitor their methods, so we know exactly what happens to the flower bulbs. 

Immediately after harvesting the flower bulbs, the entire treatment process commences. Treatment of the flower bulbs takes place at our premises in Hillegom and Anna Paulowna. As soon as the bulbs arrive, the harvest is meticulously checked for any abnormalities and diseases. We separate the healthy bulbs from the rest. The next step is an all-in-one process of cleaning, peeling, sorting, selecting, and counting the bulbs, before they are stored in our climatic chambers. We meticulously note down all our findings about the bulbs in a quality report. Each batch is assigned a unique number so that our customers always know the characteristics of their flower bulbs. 

Temperature treatment

During temperature treatment, the flower bulbs are brought to the right temperature with continuous quality checks in modern climatic chambers. This process ensures that the forcer can produce a cut flower or potted plant at exactly the desired time. Temperature and humidity are both carefully controlled, as well as fresh air that is continuously circulated using computer-controlled equipment.

We conduct a stage test to make sure we give the bulbs the correct temperature treatment. Our specialists perform the stage test, looking at the developmental stage of the growing point of the flower bulb. A forcing schedule is created for that particular batch of bulbs based on the data from the examination. 

Improving bulb varieties

We focus on discovering and improving bulb varieties, so that we can continue to guarantee high-quality flower bulbs. To us, high-quality means a flower bulb that produces good results; good-looking on the outside and in perfect health on the inside. Nord Lommerse is always doing research to improve current species and varieties. Innovation, appearance, disease resistance, and suitability for efficient and automated cultivation are the main pillars in this regard.

We are quick to pick up on signals from the market and put these into practice in our breeding processes, thanks to the close cooperation between our growers, the sales team, and the breeding association Remarkable. Combined with our passion for the industry, this results in regular introductions of new top varieties.

Delivery and transportation

With all of our sophisticated and streamlined working methods, we manage to process impressive quantities of flower bulbs. The flower bulbs are divided into several orders, either for immediate shipment or for possible further processing. This means that we can process a relatively large number of order lines, ranging from crates to containers, in a short time at our facility.

We use temperature-controlled containers for our worldwide transport, to ensure the optimal condition of the flower bulbs on arrival. We do everything we can to get the bulbs to the desired location as quickly as possible. While our customers have the option to arrange their own transportation, we can also take the hassle out of this process, together with our preferred logistics partners if desired. We want to listen to our customers' wants and needs and arrive at best solution, together.