His blooms are transported to the famous flower auction at Aalsmeer, from where they end up in florists shops all over the world.

It can be an unstable business, with prices often varying from one day to another in accordance with supply and demand.

One of the ways to guarantee yourself a more secure income is by offering a good variety that nobody else has, a perfect incentive, if one were needed, for operating and maintaining a breeding program.

Preparation of cutflowers at the nursery.

The cut flower market, however, looks for different standards in plants than the garden perennials market. Delphiniums for cutting should produce very long stems while garden plants are more attractive if the stems are comparably shorter. This practice has resulted in many excellent garden-suited varieties being rejected over the years, as most cut flower producers have been unaware of their value.

Nico Wigchert was no exception, but his contact with a supplier of young plants led to a meeting with a garden perennials exporter, where all was explained and Nico issued with instructions to keep an eye out for those shorter varieties.

Delphiniums from Nico's nursery are packed in his own bags for the flower auction.