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The quintessential Dutch flower, the tulip, is seeking to lure a new young and hip consumer crowd, to keep the Netherlands' flower industry from wilting.

A tulip harvester thins-out his crop in order to insure a better bulb growth
© AFP/ANP/File

With annual revenues of 606 million euros (747 million dollars) in 2004-2005, compared with 635 million euros a year earlier, "our part in the global market has fallen a little and we have to act so that this decline does not continue into the coming years," said Henk Westerhof, president of Athos, an organization of Dutch exporters of horticulture products and bulbs.

Gardening enthusiasts won't stop braving autumn rains to plant their bulbs. The real aficionados will also have the patience to wait until spring to watch the flowers come out.

But the usually urban-dwelling younger consumer "doesn't want to wait several months to see their gardens bloom," Westerhof said.

"That's why we are now selling potted tulips already in bloom, that you plant in your garden as soon as you come home, with an immediate and concrete result", he added.

Other gadgets are also trying to win back lost territory like an aluminium can decorated with flowers, sold in Britain. Simply remove the lid and pour water on the flower bulb inside and three weeks later, a tulip pops up.

"With this kind of product, we aim to charm an international public, attracted by its design, in order to convey the message that bulb flowers are easy and fun", explained Lucas Boreel, from the International Flower Bulb Centre.

Even the heart of tourist tulipland is looking for rejuvenation.

The Keukenhof, the famous flower park in the central western town of Lisse, attracts nearly 700,000 tourists each year who come to see its multi-colored beds of hundreds of varieties of tulips, daffodils and lilies.

"We are looking for a more active tourism, with workshops and events," said park director Piet de Vries.

The park is offering workshops in photography and flower arrangement, as well as weekly contests where growers bring their most beautiful flowers and compete for the most imaginative arrangements.

In the Keukenhof's "inspirational gardens" landscapers are invited to create a garden to their style, such as Mediterranean or urban.

Visitors do not leave empty-handed but with a small booklet giving them tips on how to plant their favorite flowers to get a similar year-round blooming bulb garden at home.

Still, statistics point to more signs of a wilting flower industry. The number of bulb growers has fallen more than 40 percent since 1990 and the amount of cultivated flower land has been stagnant for five years, according to the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS).

The Dutch flower growers face competition from the new economic giant in the east, China, where production especially of lilies is starting to emerge. But there is another key competitor right here in Europe -- Poland.

"The main problem in the Netherlands is the lack of space and the high cost of labor," Westerhof said.

This has driven some Dutch growers to Poland which couples low wages and more agricultural space with less strict environmental regulations, he added.

Still, Dutch growers are strong when it comes to "technical knowledge and innovation, which each year brings to market new and original flowers," Westerhof said.

"There, we have a considerable advantage, that we need to build on," he said.

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