SPECIALIST POT PLANT & CUT FLOWER VARIETIES OPEN DAYS June 14th - June 17th, <strong>2011</strong> 8 a.m. till 5 p.m. participant <strong>of</strong> the Flower <strong>Trials</strong> Mijnsherenweg 15 • 1424 CA De Kwakel, Holland • T +31 (0)297 38 20 38 F +31 (0)297 38 20 20 • info@hilverdakooij.nl • www.hilverdakooij.nl Hilverdakooij_178x<strong>12</strong>4.indd 1 25-05-11 09:37 649xxx_ad_FCI_178x<strong>12</strong>4_24_mei.indd 1 24-05-11 16:<strong>12</strong>
World News by Arturo Croci Buongiorno! France PVR applic<strong>at</strong>ions <strong>at</strong> all-time high During the first three months <strong>of</strong> the year <strong>2011</strong>, the Community Plant Variety Office CPVO received 834 applic<strong>at</strong>ions for Community plant variety rights out <strong>of</strong> which 343 (41%) were filed for varieties <strong>of</strong> ornamentals, 267 (32%) for agricultural crops, 172 (21%) for vegetables, and 52 (6%) for fruit. The total number <strong>of</strong> applic<strong>at</strong>ions for the first quarter is the highest ever received. In 2008, the year the Office received the highest annual number <strong>of</strong> applic<strong>at</strong>ions, “only” 700 applic<strong>at</strong>ions were submitted by the end <strong>of</strong> March. Ornamentals, usually counting for <strong>at</strong> least half <strong>of</strong> all applic<strong>at</strong>ions have a lower share than expected; by contrast, applic<strong>at</strong>ions for agricultural and vegetable varieties are scoring high. ||| United St<strong>at</strong>es Inspiring FNGLA Floriculture Field Days Excited, motiv<strong>at</strong>ed, inspired - <strong>at</strong>tendees came away from FNGLA's <strong>2011</strong> Floriculture Field Days using those words to describe the conference. On May <strong>12</strong> and 13, over 200 <strong>at</strong>tendees came from across the country to <strong>at</strong>tend the educ<strong>at</strong>ional conference and tour performance trials held in conjunction with the Epcot Intern<strong>at</strong>ional Flower & Garden Festival. Held for the first time <strong>at</strong> Epcot, it was a showcase <strong>of</strong> the <strong>sea</strong>son's new varieties. Not only did industry members get a chance to see how resilient over 236 varieties are to Florida's he<strong>at</strong> and humidity, but <strong>at</strong>tendees particip<strong>at</strong>ed in a top-notch educ<strong>at</strong>ional program, toured priv<strong>at</strong>e and public gardens and had a gre<strong>at</strong> chance to network with breeders and peers from across the country. ||| Flowers and tango After my health problems, every year I try to escape for a couple <strong>of</strong> weeks from the cold European winters. The middle <strong>of</strong> February, right after the busy Valentine’s Day sales <strong>sea</strong>son is the best time to visit Argentina because the warm, humid summer is usually followed by a nice and pleasant autumn: beautiful sunny days with temper<strong>at</strong>ures ranging between 15°C <strong>at</strong> night and 30°C during the day. I’m lucky because in the Buenos Aires area I have a lovely aunt, an uncle and many cousins; this is due to the big Italian emigr<strong>at</strong>ions in the last two centuries. My aunt Effa lives in a special place in the north west <strong>of</strong> Buenos Aires; the property bought <strong>at</strong> the end <strong>of</strong> the 60s from Aristoteles Onassis and Maria Callas. In those days, the Onassis family used to spend some time in Argentina, mainly in order to particip<strong>at</strong>e in the Greek Week. The original Onassis’s wood house doesn’t exist anymore, but the garden trees have been kept and are those planted by Onassis and Callas, including a specimem <strong>of</strong> Cedrus deodara growing just next to the house designed by the architect Horacio Eduardo Inveraldi. Today, this Cedrus is considered an Argentine green heritage. When it come to flora, Argentina has a lot <strong>of</strong> endemic species, perhaps more than 10,000 and the potential <strong>of</strong> many <strong>of</strong> those has not yet been fully discovered. Buenos Aires is a metropolis with 15 million people and lots <strong>of</strong> greenery such as beautifully flowering trees like Ceibo (Erythrina crisa-galli, Argentina’s n<strong>at</strong>ional tree). Palo borracho (Ceiba speciosa)’, Jacaranda mimosifolia and Ombù (Phytolacca dioica).. In some areas more maintenance is needed but the actual economical crisis also had its impact on the st<strong>at</strong>e <strong>of</strong> urban green. . Argentinean floriculture, thanks mainly to the ‘Argentinean Japanese’ (Italian, Spanish and other European emigr<strong>at</strong>es who started growing nursery stock products, fruits or vegetables) produces for the local market . The different provinces have a lot <strong>of</strong> possibilities in growing plants and <strong>flowers</strong> ‘accordingly’ with the special local clim<strong>at</strong>es (varying from the very cold areas in the south to the tropical areas <strong>at</strong> the Brazilian border. The main production areas are: Buenos Aires, Chubut, Córdoba, Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Formosa, La Pampa, Mendoza, Misiones, Salta, Santa Fe and Tucumán. According to the ‘Fondo Argentino para la Floricultura’ the area dedic<strong>at</strong>ed to pr<strong>of</strong>essional flower and plant growing is 2465,48 ha; 634,02 ha are protected crops (plastic tunnels). 51% is in the metropolitan areas; 70.81% in Buenos Aires and Santa Fe Provinces), 42.6% <strong>of</strong> the producers deal with cut <strong>flowers</strong>, 30.6% with potted plants and the remaining both <strong>flowers</strong> and pot plants. Argentina is a country with gre<strong>at</strong> n<strong>at</strong>ural resources and a good potential in floriculture and nursery. The demand for <strong>flowers</strong> and plants is growing even if the effects <strong>of</strong> the economic downturn is hindering growth. Viva la vida Arturo Croci is the founder <strong>of</strong> Italy's leading horticultural business magazine Flortecnica and a walking encyclopedia <strong>of</strong> Italian horticulture. arturo@floracultureintern<strong>at</strong>ional.com June <strong>2011</strong> | www.FloraCultureIntern<strong>at</strong>ional.com 19
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