The clods are best

The harvester

It is time again for the annual harvest forecast, now an annual column in the Fluwel News Blog. The entire bulb sector has set their alarm clocks for a quarter past half seven on Sunday morning, to be the first to include these indispensable forecasts in their purchasing and sales policy. Over the years, the Fluwel harvest forecast has grown into a phenomenal source of reliable information.

Looking under the tractor you can see that the harvester is pushing the top layer of soil off the bed.

Like every year, I have looked closely at the bulbs at our nursery and have spoken to many bulb growers, but to be honest, I didn't really have to leave the house to predict that it won't be a top harvest this year. If the bulbs grow well in this beautiful weather, we might as well grow bulbs in Spain. Moses Pietjes, it has been sunny and warm every day. Day in, day out, full of sun and happy people. It is fantastic, it really felt like Spain last spring. The Tapas, Bella Ciao, Flamenco and Paella are still missing, but the Siësta and Sangria are already starting to gain ground in our originally cold frog country.

The balls are then placed on a chain, from which most of the sand runs out.

It was only half past nine when neighbour Van Rijn, who has tulips opposite our shed, sought out the shade of the shed to have a break. Great, I can hear how they are growing. Well, the clumps are fine, said mother Margret who always helps her son and husband when they really have to work. What big clumps, it's because of all that drought, I've never seen so many clumps. And the tulips ? I asked with interest. There were none against the edge of the ditch, they were disappointing. What we are digging up now is going well, those are the Impressions for our Velvet mixture ' Gentle Giants '. If they are not good, then nothing has grown, Impressions always grow.

The chain rattles a little so that the sand sinks away properly.

Yes, what a rotten weather it was this year, son Paul continued. Much too cold and much too wet for the flowering, which caused us to suffer a lot from fire and after flowering from one day to the next a wind from the North. The wind was straight in the North for about seven weeks. Every gardener knows that nothing grows when there is a North wind. Much too dry and too poor, and then that heat, day in day out it was too warm for the bulbs to grow well, they simply had trouble surviving.


At the back of the harvester, the bulbs are placed on a sieve from which the dirt and clods are thrown out.

Also drove to Suzan. Suzan is the administrator of Land van Fluwel , and in her spare time Suzan helps at home at the Camping Duinzoomhoeve and at her father's bulb nursery. Just helping for a day with the harvesting of the tulips , driving crates. Can I come and take photos for the News Blog? Sure, come by.

At the back of the harvester the tulips end up in a cubic meter box which is removed here by Suzan.

No top harvest here either, the Tulip bulbs were barely twelve. The Canasta was dug up, but that is not a Tulip that gives a good twelve, we will see, at first sight it could have been an ounce more, they were on the most beautiful piece of land.


Suzan's view from the tractor.

Most bulbs are still in the ground, they have only been harvesting for a week, but the first indication confirms what everyone had already expected; it will not be a top harvest. Probably not a normal harvest either, the growers fear the worst and sincerely hope that they can deliver all the bulbs they have sold.


The crates with tulips are driven to the barn

As I write this I immediately think 'oh dear, now customers are going to call to ask if they will receive the Tulip bulbs they ordered this fall. Yes of course, it's not that bad. Almost all the bulbs we ordered from the growers will only be sold in the fall. So don't panic if you have already ordered bulbs, they will certainly arrive. What is something to keep in mind this year is that due to the disappointing harvest, many varieties will sell out sooner, because the stock will be smaller than we initially hoped.


In the barn, the tulips are passed over the vibrating screen once more to remove the last of the sand, after which they are placed in the storage cell to dry.

And the Daffodils , what about the Daffodils ? Ha, good news, the Daffodil originally comes from Spain. It knows what heat is, it can handle it. Originally, the Daffodil knows that it can be dry and hot during the growing season, it makes deep roots so that there is always something to drink. Fortunately, we do not have to worry about this beautiful flower bulb, the Daffodil speaks Spanish. Olé, they will come.


Fresh Tulip Bulbs …Bella Ciao

Carlos van der Veek