At Kwekerij De Molenkamp in Brakel, Gert-Jan Klop deliberately chooses color. After years of growing white double Chrysanthemums, he’s now focusing on the daisy-flowered red Bontempi from Royal Van Zanten – a striking appearance with a fresh green heart.
Entering a New Era With Chrysanthemum Bontempi
This autumn De Molenkamp will go for something new. After many years of experience with other Chrysanthemum varieties, grower Gert-Jan Klop has started cultivating Bontempi, a red daisy-flowered Chrysanthemum from Royal Van Zanten. With this move, this grower opts for a distinctive color and flower form in the market – and it’s a conscious step.
“We just auctioned Bontempi for the first time last Thursday,” Gert-Jan says. “It’s really new for us. In the past, we grew Baltica, but as a seasonal grower, we noticed it’s harder to perform well in the market with white. With red, we hope to strengthen our position more quickly.''
The Only Red Daisy-Flowered Chrysanthemum on the Market
Bontempi is already an established name in Royal Van Zanten’s assortment, but Gert-Jan deliberately remains the only Dutch grower with this variety in production this season. ''We had the chance to grow this variety ourselves.''
De Molenkamp cultivates up to week 4 or 5 and then supplies until the end of March. “After that, we switch to Celosias,” explains Gert-Jan. “At the end of the season, we’ll evaluate how it performed, but the plan is to do the same next year.”
Guidance and Collaboration
Gert-Jan describes the collaboration with Royal Van Zanten as particularly pleasant. “The guidance is excellent. A lot of attention is given to it – quite refreshing, to be honest. We receive support from Anton van der Zalm and a production advisor. Anton visits weekly and the production advisor every other week. They maintain good contact with each other, discuss observations, and analyze samples together to fine-tune the fertilization. The cooperation is truly excellent.”
A Fresh, Bright Red Appearance
Seeing the Bontempi field in bloom instantly evokes the spirit of the holiday season. “It’s a real Ferrari red,” laughs Gert-Jan. “But it’s not just a Christmas flower. There’s always demand for red as we approach November 1st as well.”
What, in his view, sets Bontempi apart is the fresh flower form with a green heart. “Most flowers have that lovely green core, which provides a crisp contrast with the red. When the heart turns yellow, the bloom looks older, even though it isn’t. That fresh green heart is truly characteristic of Bontempi.”
Consistent Quality and Clean Finish
The cultivation is progressing smoothly. “We follow the advice of the cultivation advisors and keep a close eye on the growth pace to preserve leaf quality,” says Gert-Jan. “We’ve been pruning since Friday and ensuring the flowers are uniform. We don’t want small ones in the batch – it has to be just right.”
With around eighty thousand stems per week, De Molenkamp supplies Auction Aalsmeer, where the new auction-grouping format offers room to combine several lots. “That’s convenient,” says Gert-Jan. “It lets us work honestly without being penalized by extra lot charges.”
A Family Business in Bloom
Kwekerij De Molenkamp is an actual family business. Gert-Jan runs it with his brother, Sander, and hopes his son, Ruben – the third generation – will take over in the future. “He’s still young, but he enjoys it. A few years ago, we transitioned from a partnership to a BV to make it easier for him to come aboard.”
The Molenkamp name refers to the location on Molenkampseweg, where Gert-Jan’s father initially started with strawberries and tomatoes. Later, Dahlias and Chrysanthemums joined the lineup – and since then, the focus has remained on cut flowers.
“We’re not a large nursery,” Gert-Jan concludes, “but we work with a small, close-knit team and simply want to deliver quality. And with Bontempi, we’re taking a new step toward a flower that looks as fresh as it is to grow.”
