Every year, VLAM, Flanders’ Agricultural Marketing Board, organizes a press tour for the foreign trade press, to discover the ornamental horticultural products in Belgium. This year the journalists were welcomed to the production area surrounding the city of Antwerp and companies as Solitair Boomkwekerij, Plant Select, Herplant, Peers Boomkwekerij, Belgicactus, Arbor, De Bruyn and the interesting story of Plantentuin ‘De Kleine Boerderij’.
Founded by Dirk Cools, for over 35 years Solitair Boomkwekerij has specialized in growing solitary plants. As a wholesaler, it delivers to professionals in the green sector. What was originally a small nursery of hedge plants and topiary, has developed into a trendsetter in its sector, continuing by the passionated daughters Chloë and Valerie. The clients consist largely of landscapers and landscape contractors. After all, planting large, fully-grown trees requires the necessary know-how and care. Thanks to their habit or branching, the plants have their own character and can thus give a unique look to a garden or landscape. In the range, it is possible to find both evergreen trees and deciduous ornamental shrubs, as well as a wide selection of topiary. Solitair has over 130 hectares of plants in the most diverse shapes and sizes. The varieties and number of trees that they sell are different every year. The indigenous tree variety Taxus baccata covers a great deal of the stock, and every year represents over 10% of the turnover. In 2022, Quercus and Pinus followed closely as the best-selling varieties, just like the ornamental shrubs Acer and Amelanchier.
Plant Select is a Belgian biotech company that is active internationally in the horticultural sector and it is a global supplier of IN-VITRO plant material and horticultural licensing programs with innovation and sustainability as the ideal feeding ground. Its unique know-how and technology with regard to the production of non-invasive bamboo is one of the drivers of the company’s success. The company was founded in 1991 by Jan and Paul Oprins together with Chantal Quirynen and has developed into a successful player in the European horticultural sector. Since November 2020, both the company and management are owned by Group MC. Departing from in-vitro cultivation, Plant Select offers non-invasive bamboo (Fargesia) grown in pots and plugs of special hydrangeas. The Fargesia range offers a select assortment of strong, non-invasive bamboos and for the Hydrangea range, they produce quercifolia and aspera types with properties that guarantee compact plants that produce branches better than using regular production methods.
Herplant is a tree nursery that specializes in box and yew, which are available in many types, shapes and sizes. Other specialties include box and yew grown in pots, that are available all year round. The plant breeding department has developed resistant box varieties which are marketed under the name BetterBuxus®. At the moment, the nursery covers around 30 hectares; there are greenhouses on 3 hectares and container culture on 8 hectares. The tree nursery is specialized in growing box and yew in every shape and size. Over the past few years, Herplant has been able to acquire a lot of knowledge of assortment, fertilization, crop protection and cultivation research thanks to in-depth research in good cooperation with various research partners. The box breeding program, which started in 2007 in cooperation with ILVO (Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food), forms the basis for the introduction of scientifically tested, better box varieties. Since 2020 they have been marketed under the name BetterBuxus®, which is above all planted in historic and exclusive gardens in Europe.
Peers Boomkwekerij, founded in 1980 by Sonja Peers and her husband Louis De Swert, is nowadays run by their eldest son, Dimitri De Swert, who joined the business and took over in 2013. Investments are constantly made in equipment and infrastructure. In addition, a new 1,000m² warehouse was built with a permanent home for the potting machines. The nursery has a total surface area of over 20 hectares, of which 10 hectares are container culture and over 10 hectares are open fields. Peers tree nursery cultivates a very broad range of ornamental shrubs, grasses and conifers in pots and with root ball. The company tries to create the least possible waste flow. The pots are almost 100% made of recycled material. Poor plants are composted and used to improve the soil for cultivation in the open fields. The pots of the poor plants are recovered and reused. With regard to pesticides, IPM is applied (integrated pest management): the company tries to prevent diseases and pests, if necessary biological corrective action is taken, and only if really necessary is a chemical treatment used. In the greenhouses, biological pest control is used (predatory mites and bugs) to keep the pest insects under control.
Belgicactus is specialized in the production and sale of a wide range of indoor and outdoor succulents. The new b2c brand ‘Fabulous Fat Friends’ aims to really emphasize the strengths of succulents vis-à-vis consumers in the EU market: versatile, varied and low maintenance. Colorockz ©, is the b2b brand for promoting their own Sempervivum varieties in the EU, USA and Australia amongst growers and young-plant suppliers who market them there. Over the years, the company has developed to cover a surface area of 10,000 m² of greenhouses and 18,000 m² closed lava-container fields. Belgicactus’ products are mainly sold in mixed trays. In its range of outdoor plants, Belgicactus offers around 50 types of Sempervivum and Opuntia Humifusa, in pot sizes from 5.5 to 23 cm. Belgicactus is constantly looking for new varieties to continue to surprise its customers. Just recently it bred the Sempervivum Coral Red®, a strong, bright red Sempervivum with plenty of branches.
Arbor is the largest tree nursery in Belgium and one of the leading tree nurseries in Europe: 90% of its production is destined for global export. The combination of know-how and tradition, an efficient organization, a professional team and the many European relations guarantee perfect service and products of the very highest quality. In Belgium, Arbor has over 260 hectares of open fields and another 220 hectares in France. Solitary shrubs and conifers, multi-stem ornamental shrubs and transplanted trees are available in every possible size. At the site in the French village of Vicq, the emphasis lies on transplanted avenue trees. Arbor constantly invests in the research and development of environmentally friendly production techniques, always with an eye to improving quality. In container cultivation, irrigation methods have been refined to achieve a closed loop, without additional resources. Arbor also uses machines with the lowest emissions. Thanks to its central location in Europe, on delivery the carbon footprint of Arbor products is amongst the lowest in the sector.
De Bruyn tree nursery produces trees, conifers, solitary trees and large shrubs on around 150 hectares. With over 1,000 different species, varieties and cultivars, they rank amongst the most species-rich tree nurseries in the Benelux. In addition to the extensive range of self-grown trees for avenues and parks, multi-stem trees and solitary trees, they offer hedge plants, shrubs, perennials, ornamental grasses and other park and garden plants that together will complete any green project. De Bruyn tree nursery has been aware for some time now that diversity and biodiversity go hand in hand. So the range is cultivated with respect for the plant and its environment. For 10 years already, insecticides and fungicides have no longer been used at the nursery. The strips of grass between the trees are sown with flowers to stimulate biodiversity. They contribute by participating in events to support greening goals, for example by supporting the Climate Pact, a joint venture between Flanders and the VVSG (Association of Flemish Cities and Municipalities). De Bruyn tree nursery will promote both known species and new varieties that fit this vision. They believe that a diversity of trees and plants increases biodiversity, which is a major contribution to developing a better and more sustainable living environment in the current climate crisis.
During the tour, one stop was Plantentuin ‘De Kleine Boerderij‘: the garden is primarily a demonstration garden focused on nature, education and well-being where everyone is welcome to be inspired and relax. It is a special collection garden in the former penal agricultural school of Merksplas-Kolonie, where it is possible to admire several exceptional plant collections including hydrangeas, African lilies, magnolias, peonies, witch hazels, daylilies, bamboos and many others. Moreover, the garden is the setting for all kinds of parties, (company) events, networking moments, photo reports and much more.
The Flora Journal 