Hidden away behind a country lane near the Dutch town of Heemskerk, the only tell-tale sign that you're close to this Astilbe paradise is the small display of potted plants for sale by the side of the road.

It's been a good day for sales with just a few plants left

But once you've found your way behind the buildings and into the nursery you are treated to the site of over 6000 Astilbe seedlings growing in the field.

Seedling fields at Harrie's nursery

Harrie studies these plants continually so that he can make his selections each year.

As every breeder will tell you, the hardest part is being disciplined enough to throw away the seedlings which don't make the top grade, so when you have to whittle 6000 plants down to just a few hundred that can be a lot of heartache!

But the other side of the story is the immense satisfaction gained when finding something special to introduce as a new variety.

Familiarising ones-self with over 6000 seedlings takes much dedication, but Harrie loves his work!

In July 2006 Harrie found what he hopes may even become the first red chinensis species Astilbe.

Others are coming through too - large flowered plants, small-flowered plants, very bushy plants and plants with new colours. Harrie would love to breed the first blue Astilbe, but even he admits that's a long way off!

As with many other breeders, even once Harrie has found a great new plant he still experiments to see if an improved version is possible, perhaps with more flowers or stronger colour.