“I never run out of things to say about a new Nerine”

“It’s like an experimental garden here. I’m always working with new varieties, including Nerine, Eremurus and Agapanthus. The permanent greenhouse alone contains thirty varieties of Nerine. I am testing those for breeder and neighbour Bas van Keulen. Together we walk through the greenhouse once a week to make a selection: which can stay and will we be taking to market? We just pick them out: it’s about gut feeling. Only in terms of colour do I sometimes get it wrong. A purple and white Calla didn’t work. My girlfriend Wapke knows much better which colours will sell. A Nerine in a colour that the breeder and I called ‘underpants colour’ appealed very strongly to her and other women. So we’ll hang on to that one!''

''A new cultivar needs to meet many more requirements, such as good flowering (a high percentage of bulbs flower), stem length, straightness and flower shape. Sustainability is also playing an ever greater role. If out of three good cultivars one is not affected by bulb rot, we’ll pick that one. It saves on pesticides. The high gas prices mean we are also looking for cultivars that can be grown in a cold greenhouse. We continue to search, because it can always be better and more beautiful. It takes loads of time, but I find it’s a very rewarding job.”