Dutch Lily Days May 22th through 25th 2012

Dutch Lily Days to be premiering May 24th through 28th 2011.
Fifteen prominent lily companies organize a simultaneous open house.

From Tuesday, May 24th through Saturday May 28th the first annual Dutch Lily Days will be held. Fifteen of the largest lily companies will present a simultaneous open house. During these days visitors are welcome to see the world’s largest assortment of lilies in full bloom.  On January 26th, Mr. Gerrit Ravensbergen will kick off the worldwide promotion of this event at Van Zanten Flower Bulbs.

Goal of the initiatives of Dutch Lily Days is to give a better impression of today’s current commercial assortment as well as tomorrow’s varieties that are still at the hybridizer’s greenhouse.  In the past, most open houses were held along with the last ten days of Keukenhof’s Lily Parade, usually during the first part of May. Because of long forcing time of some cultivars, not all varieties would bloom during that time. By moving the open houses to the last week of May, a better representation of the total lily assortment can now be given.

With their ‘own’ lily event, the organizers hope to be answering a request from people in the lily industry. “The Keukenhof show will remain a very important event in the international lily market and will be remaining to be supported by several companies in the lily industry. However, the Dutch Lily Days is more appealing for professionals, with focus toward the actual product” says Hans Onings of Onings Holland, one of the initiatives. “The big advantage of Dutch Lily Days is that we offer our international customers the possibility to see a broad selection of varieties by visiting multiple companies”. Because Holland remains to have a strong position as lily hybridizer (95 percent of the product originate here), the organizers expect many visitors from abroad, with many visitors from Europe, but also from countries like Japan, China, Taiwan, North and South America.

The fifteen companies behind the Dutch Lily Days are: Van den Bos Flowerbulbs, Bot Flowerbulbs, De Jong Lelies, Lily Company, Mak Breeding, Marklily, Onings Holland Flowerbulbs, The Originals, C. Steenvoorden, G.A. Verdegaal, Gebr. Vletter & Den Haan, VWS Export – Import of Flowerbulbs, World Breeding, Zabo Plant and Van Zanten Flowerbulbs.