Why can’t we just buy American grown flower bulbs?

In light of the recent imposition of import tariffs on EU products, we’ve received a number of questions about flower bulb (specifically tulip bulb) production. Here are some answers.

Before we get started, it’s really important to differentiate between growing tulip flowers and raising tulip bulbs. These are two different things. We’re talking about bulb production on a commercial scale for the US and international marketplaces below.

You might be thinking: With all the tariffs on the European Union, why can’t US flower farmers just buy American-grown flower bulbs?

Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. While some areas in the US can provide a similar environment for flower bulb production (you might be familiar with the Skagit Valley in Washington State), these areas are limited in size and it would take decades and enormous amounts of capital to try to replace what is already readily available from The Netherlands, even if we’re just talking about feeding the US flower bulb marketplace. The current tulip growing regions in the US do not supply the bulbs you see growing nationwide.

For comparison:

The Skagit Valley in Washington State is 1,920 square miles. 8% of the land is classified as agricultural.

The Netherlands is 16,041 square miles. 53.8% of The Netherlands is farmland.

What kind of environment does large scale tulip bulb production require?

Tulips are a water loving crop. In our sometimes, drought-stricken west coast region trying to increase tulip production could be irresponsible.

The elevation in The Netherlands is right around sea level. You’ve probably seen the canals in their towns and cities. Maybe you’ve seen how canals also feed their fields. The water table is high and fresh water is readily available.

How much space does commercial tulip bulb production require?

Tulips are grown on a 7 year crop cycle rotation. They are not planted in the same ground each season to protect the soil and reduce the implications of disease in the crop. Tulip bulb farmers in the Netherlands swap fields with growers of other bulb crops like allium and hyacinth and daffodils during the interim years. So when you think about commercial large scale tulip production, you need to factor 7 times the land space into the picture. You also have to consider that bulb farmers are growing smaller bulbs into larger bulbs on their land, too. You’ll need even more land to ensure that you can prepare bulbs for future seasons.

Why can’t we just grow tulip bulbs in greenhouses anywhere?

The primary issue is space. We are talking about tens of thousands of acres. And, as mentioned above, tulips require crop rotation. So you need even more space.

Next, the amount of energy and money that would have to be put into maintaining the proper environment within those spaces would be extraordinary. A project like this would create an enormous carbon footprint and untenable pricing for the bulbs that were eventually produced.

But aren’t tulips grown in greenhouses in The Netherlands?

In a way, yes. Some tulip flowers from top size bulbs are grown in greenhouses for early season cut flower production in The Netherlands. But it takes years for bulbs to reach the proper size (10-12+) for good cut flower production, and those bulbs are prepared in open fields.

Why can’t we just grow the same bulbs out every year?

Some flower bulbs are excellent perennials and good at naturalizing. Daffodils are a great example. Tulips are not.

Cut flower tulip production is the result of growing out the largest size tulip bulbs. Once the bulbs reach that size (12+), they want to divide into many smaller bulbs that require being grown out for several years again before performing well.

Additionally, cut flower tulips are harvested with a long stem and all their leaves. Without leaves, there is no way for the plant to feed itself through photosynthesis to grow in strength during the summer months. This is why you will see tulip bulb farmers “top” or cut off all the flowers from their plants shortly after they bloom. The bulb farmers don’t want the flowers to go to seed and rob the bulb of energy. Instead, they remove the flower and allow the leaves to feed the bulb through photosynthesis.

How much time does it take to prepare a new crop of tulips?

It takes longer than you may think to develop a new crop of tulip bulbs to the size required for cut flower production. If you are starting with a seed (a new hybrid) it can take a decade. If you start from a small bulb, you can reduce that time to a few years. But someone still needs to grow the smaller bulbs somewhere for you.

Let’s consider the shorter track: planting from small bulbs:

In order to grow flower bulbs, bulb farmers purchase patent rights to hybrids that come from decades of breeding and research. The farmers then own the right (usually for a limited period of time) to grow those certain varieties. Most farmers grow a limited collection of varieties. They specialize in those types so that they are able to produce the large volume international buyers request.

This patent-regulated marketplace ensures that the hybridizers are able to keep doing the tedious work that is needed to develop new varieties and react to the pressures of climate change, disease, and pests. Without their work, the industry would quite literally die.

In order to start a new bulb farming operation there are substantial start up costs just to grow a few varieties. In order to offer the wide collection of varieties that we share with you, we’d need access to MANY farms who are simultaneously producing tens of millions of bulbs.

If we can’t grow them easily here and there is a high tax on The Netherlands, why don’t we buy bulbs from some other countries that produce tulips like New Zealand or Chile?

Good question. I wish this could be an answer. First, there is the issue of supply. These other marketplaces cannot absorb the pressure from our industry quickly. We’ve investigated purchasing some bulbs in the past.

But those bulbs would only be of interest to certain buyers here who can provide regulated cooling and growing spaces during a different time of year.

New Zealand and Chile are in the Southern Hemisphere and they have the opposite seasons. Their spring is our fall. Their bulbs are ready for fall planting when ours are just blooming here.

To sum it all up:

There’s no easy or fast solution for US flower farmers who might want to switch to American grown flower bulbs. There may not even be a responsible or sustainable way to do it here at a scale that could be financially realistic.

Is the answer to just stop growing flower bulbs? We don’t think so! Flowers grown from bulbs can be highly programmable crops that help farmers mitigate the effects of climate change through succession planting. And many of them can be perennialized.

Most flower bulbs have a short day-to-bloom period and thrive in close planting plans, so they take up less space and bloom faster than other kinds of flowers.

Our partners in The Netherlands have perfected flower bulb production. Many of them are small, family-owned farms not dissimilar to the farms that grow out the bulbs into flowers worldwide. Impeded access to their products hurts the American Grown flowers movement and reduces the quantity of local flowers available to florists and retail customers nationwide.

-Linda & the Team at Ampersand Bulb Co.

To learn more about how import taxes may affect your commercial flower bulb order, read this post.