Why Retine Switched to Pina Colada
The most important question for a grower is, naturally, "which varieties do I put in the ground?" There are only so many square meters of land or greenhouse, so it is important to choose wisely. Jan Willem de Jongh of Dutch chrysant grower Retine made a conscious decision when switching to Pina Colada in July 2018. And he has not regretted it for one single day. 
Jan Willem:
"We began our nursery back in 1979 with spray carnations and switched to chrysants in 1986. Ever since we started with chrysants we used to grow a lot of different varieties here, five or six colors at least. We felt the need to change this to fewer varieties to make it more manageable. Four should be enough. Two of these are Pina Colada: we have them in white and yellow."
Learning How to Grow Pina Colada
Jan Willem and his son René found out that they had to learn how to grow Pina Colada. Jan Willem:
"This chrysant can be grown colder than other chrysants, at 17 degrees Celsius. This is an advantage because you save on energy, but you have to get rid of the increased humidity in the greenhouse. Here, we have learned a lot from Delphy, who advised us about growing the perfect Pina Colada, and from the cultivation supervisor of breeder Dümmen Orange. And it worked out, I am really happy with this beautiful chrysant."
Big Flowers for a Big Market
The obvious market for Pina Colada is Eastern Europe. Jan Willem explains why:
"Weight counts in Eastern Europe. Big flowers have a big market over there. Pina Colada has all this, so they develop well in that direction. Especially because they have a very long shelf life and you may send them rawer than comparable varieties."
That demands some explanation from the grower. How is it possible that you can send raw chrysants? Don't they stay raw then? Usually, chrysants don't tend to extend their growth or bloom after they're cut, right? Jan Willem:
"Pina Colada is different. Just put them in a vase, also the raw ones, and you will see that they do still grow on. You will be amazed by how this flower still develops until all blooms are fully open!"
The Future of Pina Colada
Jan Willem:
"How is the future looking for Pina Colada? Well, this year started badly with prices plunging due to the coronavirus. Pina Colada is a real event flower. There were hardly any weddings and borders to our target countries closed, so that hit us. Prices have recovered already, but we are still waiting for events to be allowed again so Pina Colada can show itself in its full splendor."
Photo credits: Jan Willem de Jongh, Van Vliet Flower Group's Facebook
