Poland: Scientific exchange of thoughts about perennials and bulbs
Two days of thematic sessions given and listen by experts from all over the world. The third day was devoted to field visits with plenty of insights in the Polish production of bulb flowers and perennials. The XIV International Symposium on Flower Bulbs and Herbaceous Perennials took place in Warsaw and turned out to be a success!
The symposium began with an informal welcome meeting in the Crystal Hall of the Warsaw University of Life Sciences (SGGW) on the afternoon of 14 April. This provided an opportunity for veterans and new participants to meet, mingle and converse.
Opening Sessions
The symposium commenced with a general session featuring four lectures.
Dr. Rina Kamenetsky-Goldstein (Volcani Center, Israel) opened by discussing the interplay between science and geophyte production in a changing climate.
Subsequent lectures explored the use of biotechnology in breeding ornamental geophytes (Dr. Ki-Byung Lim, Kyungpook National University, Korea) and intensive planting of flower bulbs in urban areas (Dr. William B. Miller, Cornell University, USA).
A joint presentation by Dr. Dariusz Sochacki (SGGW, Poland), Mr. Tomasz Michalik (Vitroflora, Poland), and Dr. Jadwiga Treder (NIHR, Skierniewice) on Polish bulb and perennial production and breeding rounded out the plenary session.
Research Focus
Day two featured two dedicated sessions: propagation, cultivation, and forcing; and biodiversity, genetics, biotechnology, and breeding.
Dr. Margherita Beruto (Chair, ISHS Division Ornamental Plants, Italy) delivered the keynote address for session 1, focusing on micropropagation of ornamental geophytes. Other presentations explored in vitro techniques for tulips, high-quality tuber production in Zantedeschia and virus-free lilies, trials with herbaceous perennials, and the use of LED lighting during tulip forcing.
Dr. Paul Arens (Wageningen University and Research, Netherlands) presented the keynote lecture for session 2, titled "Developments in Breeding Bulbous Crops from a Genetics and Genomics Perspective."
This session also featured presentations on breeding Lycoris and Hemerocallis with Eremurus and Lycoris, resistance breeding in Impatiens, and distant hybridization of daylily with Eremurus and Lycoris (awarded the ISHS Young Minds Award for best oral presentation to PhD student Yi Lv, Beijing Forestry University, China).
Sara Benchaa, a PhD student at Laval University (Canada), won the ISHS Young Minds Award for best poster with her work titled "Do Recently Released Cultivars of Ranunculus and Anemone Still Need Vernalization?"
During the symposium there was a possibility to take part in excursions and visit several Polish companies producing flower bulbs and bulb flowers as well as erbaceous perennials.
Excursions
On the third day there was a possibility to take part in an excursion (there were three in total). The tours included:
- BOTANIA and Morawski Flowers- two modern farms forcing tulips hydroponically,
- Panek- a nursery producing herbaceous perennials ,
- Volmary- a company producing young perennial plants and bedding crops,
- Norwa Plants- a tissue culture laboratory producing herbaceous perennials.
The tours provided an opportunity to observe modern ornamental horticulture production in Poland. But to give a small touch of Polish culture also a visit visit to Żelazowa Wola, the birthplace of Fryderyk Chopin (with a nicely planned garden) and historic gardens at the Royal Castle in Warsaw were offered as attraction to the participants of the symposium. The day ended with an evening visit to the summer residence of King Jan III at Wilanów and a gala dinner in a Villa Intrata belonging to the Museum.
If you wish to learn more about the content of the lectures given during the symposium you can find the abstracts here.
Concluding Sessions
The final day offered three thematic sessions:
Dr. John M. Dole (North Carolina State University, USA) delivered a keynote address on long-term storage of cut flowers.
Session 4 focused on plant protection, with a keynote lecture by Dr. Gary A. Chastagner (Washington State University, USA) on integrated disease management for ornamental geophytes and herbaceous perennials.
Session 5 explored the use of geophytes and perennials in landscaping and other applications. Dr. Bożena Szewczyk-Taranek provided a keynote address on selecting perennials and geophytes for therapeutic horticulture. Additional presentations from the University of Agriculture in Krakow (Poland) discussed the evaluation of ornamental grasses and perennials, as well as perennial meadows in parks.
The post-symposium tours included a visit to the
- Vitroflora Producer Group Ltd near Bydgoszcz (young plants of perennials, including in vitro propagation),
- the Królik Company near Poznań (bulbs and corms production, geophytes as cut flowers) and
- Polish Tulips – Orłowscy (Polskie Tulipany s.c.) near Kalisz (tulip forcing in hydroponics).
During the business meeting, Dr. Dariusz Sochacki (Poland) was elected as the new Chair of ISHS Working Group Flower Bulbs and Herbaceous Perennials.
The XIV International Symposium on Flower Bulbs and Herbaceous Perennials was held at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences (SGGW), Warsaw, Poland, from 14-17 April 2024, with a post-symposium professional tour from 18-19 April 2024. The symposium was hosted by the Polish Society for Horticultural Science under the aegis of the International Society for Horticultural Science.
The event was organized by the SGGW and the National Institute of Horticultural Research (NIHR) in Skierniewice, under honorary patronage of the Rector of the SGGW, in cooperation with the Embassy of the Netherlands in Poland and the Museum of King Jan III’s Palace at Wilanów. The symposium was co-financed from state budget funds granted by the Polish Minister of Education and Science under the framework of the “Excellent Science II’ program.
The symposium brought together nearly 80 participants from 15 countries in Asia, Europe and North America.
It was agreed that the next XV International Symposium on Flower Bulbs and Herbaceous Perennials will be in the USA in 2028.
Dariusz Sochacki and Julita Rabiza-Świder
Section of Ornamental Plants,
Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Poland
edited by Agnieszka Murawska