The resilient lily starts from within

Paul Ruigrok has worked as a flower bulb crop researcher at Wageningen Research for the past four and a half years. Unlike Wageningen University, the “R” in WUR focuses mainly on applied research. This is often carried out in collaboration with the sector and market partners. Paul knows better than most how important it is to build resilient cultivation systems, but also how complex that can be.

He takes a broad view of the lily crop and connects different areas of expertise. When a question involves energy, disease, pest pressure or technology, he brings in the right specialists. It is a comprehensive approach, and an important one in a sector where everything is connected.

One term that is being used more and more in greenhouse horticulture is resilience. Paul immediately makes it clear that the concept is much broader than the strength of the plant alone. Resilience is not only about a stronger crop, but about the entire cultivation system. It means setting up a crop in such a way that diseases and pests have as little opportunity as possible to take hold. This includes the structural presence of natural enemies, but also healthy soil, climate control and technology. Even company hygiene plays a role.

A resilient crop is, of course, an important part of that. Strong roots, healthy bulbs and a plant that is less susceptible to diseases or pests all contribute. But it is very much the sum of many parts. The better each link is managed, the stronger the whole system becomes.

According to Paul, the main reason is clear: the options for solving problems chemically are becoming increasingly limited. Fewer crop protection products are available, and social acceptance is declining. The sector therefore needs to look for other ways to keep crops healthy.

Resilient cultivation is also often more logical and more efficient. Paul gives the example of overhead watering lilies in the greenhouse. It is practical, but it wets not only the soil, but also the plant. That creates opportunities for foliar fungi. To counter this, the crop then has to be dried with extra heating, which increases energy consumption. By using drip lines between the plants, for example, you prevent the problem at source. That is what resilience is all about: no longer simply responding to what goes wrong, but designing the system so that problems are less likely to arise in the first place.

Genetics is a sensitive subject. Many people quickly associate innovation in breeding with “tampering with DNA”. According to Paul, that image is incorrect.

Almost all lilies that exist today have been developed through crossing and selection. Put very simply: pollen from one plant is placed on the pistil of another plant. In essence, that is nature. Breeding is therefore not an artificial intervention, but an accelerated and targeted selection process for traits that could also arise naturally. Paul is clear about this: “Every lily currently on the Dutch market has not been modified, and that is not allowed either.”

Genetic modification, in which genes are actually inserted or altered in a way that would not occur naturally, is not currently permitted in practice. However, there is discussion in Europe about New Genomic Techniques, or NGTs. NGTs can alter DNA in a way that could also occur through natural crossing, only much faster.

Paul explains the boundary with a simple example:

Paul is positive about the future of the lily. Because however fast developments in the world may be moving, breeding is also gathering pace. Breeders use genetic markers. These allow them to see at a very early stage which young plants are promising and which are not. As a result, thousands of weak seedlings do not need to be grown on for years. This saves time and money, and speeds up the search for stronger varieties.

The future of the lily therefore does not lie in one major breakthrough, but in a series of smart choices that reinforce one another. In better systems thinking in cultivation, in new techniques and in the willingness to look at what makes a flower future-proof from within.

Paul Ruigrok shows that resilience is not a buzzword, but a direction. A way of thinking that starts with research and breeding, but only truly gains value when the whole chain moves with it. From bulb grower to greenhouse, from trade to florist.

Because however strong a variety may be, and however sustainably a crop is grown, the lily of the future must also find its way to the market. That is where a new question begins. How do you communicate that story well? How do you connect grower, trade and florist? And how do you ensure that knowledge does not remain stuck in the chain, but reaches the person who ultimately sells the flower?

In part three, we look at that complex reality. At the challenges facing the floriculture sector, the role of collaboration and the position of a trading company such as FM Group: as a connector, source of information and driving force in a sector that is very much on the move.