IPM Essen 2018: Princess of Denmark visits; show seals partnership with Landesverband Gartenbau NRW

The international green sector has been meeting at Messe Essen since Jan. 23. Around 1,600 exhibitors from almost 50 countries are presenting their innovations and new products at the 36th International Plant Show IPM Essen, the world's largest horticultural trade fair. Here are some highlights below.

IPM Essen's partner country this year is Denmark. For this reason, Her Royal Highness Princess Benedikte of Denmark was one of the guests at the opening event of the trade fair. The guests of honour also included numerous representatives from the leading professional associations as well as politicians such as the State Secretary Dr Maria Flachsbarth and the Minister for Agriculture of North Rhine-Westphalia Christina Schulze Föcking. And on the first day of the world’s leading trade fair for horticulture, the winners of the Novelties Show and the INDEGA IPM Innovation Award were announced. The IPM Essen will be hosting international guests from the world of horticulture until Jan. 26. About 1,600 exhibitors from nearly 50 countries have put their innovations spanning the entire value chain of horticulture on display: ranging from plants and technological solutions to floristry and equipment.

Princess Benedikte of Denmark rounded off her welcoming speech to the guests of the opening event with the message: “Let flowers speak”. The sister of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark followed up on this with the reveal of the new Danish rose breed “Ocean of Roses”. This new breed is the result of a close cooperation between Queen Genetics, which is one of the most renowned rose breeders in Denmark, and the nursery Thoruplund, which has more than 70 years of experience in breeding various potted plants. The special feature here is that the rose is highly ethylene resistant and can be grown worldwide regardless of the climatic environment.

As part of the opening event, a moderated discussion on the future of the horticultural sector was held with contributions from Christina Schulze Föcking (minister for agriculture of North Rhine-Westphalia), Jürgen Mertz (president of the Central Horticultural Association), Eva Kähler-Theuerkauf (chairwoman of the Technical Advisory Board of IPM Essen and president of the Association of Horticulture of North Rhine-Westphalia), as well as Frank Lock (president of INDEGA). Key topics were digitization in horticulture, the promotion of biological variety and the improvement of the appreciation of horticulture.

Novelties Show: 62 novelties competed

Plant novelties received awards for the 11th time at the IPM Essen. A total of 62 breeds, submitted across eight categories by 33 exhibitors, were in the running for the award “IPM Novelty 2018”. After the expert body had inspected the candidates the previous evening, the novelties were awarded in six of the eight categories. One novelty even received a special award from the jury. The award in the category “Bedding and Balcony Plant” went to the salvia x hybrida ‘Mysty’ submitted by Florensis from Weeze. The Kalanchoe Interspecific Hybride Queen ElseFlowers ‘Dean’ submitted by Knud Jepsen from Denmark received the award “IPM Novelty 2018” in the category “Blooming Houseplant”. The company Knud Jepsen won another category, “Cut Flowers”, with the Kalanchoe Interspecific Hybrid Queen CutFlowers ‘Smiling Yellow Meadow’. The award of the category “Shrubs” went to the Ilex x meserveae ‘Monnieves’ submitted by the company Helmers from Westerstede. The jury selected the Bergenia cordifolia Hybride ‘Schneekristall’ submitted by the company Kientzler from Gensingen in the category “Perennials”. In the category “First Spring Flowers”, the award went to the Pericallis x Hybride Senetti white submitted by the company MNP Flowers from the Netherlands. The Hydrangea macorphylla ‘Saxtabbar’ submitted by Hydrangea Breeders Association from the Netherlands was awarded a special prize this year for product innovations.

INDEGA IPM Innovation Award: Stacking hull for CC cart wins

Small hull, but great effect. This is an appropriate summary by the jury for the INDEGA IPM Innovation Award 2018 regarding the stacking hull for CC carts by Uwe Dominik. The hull, for which a patent has to be submitted, securely connects stacked CC carts together, thereby preventing them from falling. The small hull helps avoid a drastic increase in transport costs for the horticultural sector, as the transport for stacked CC carts in trucks may otherwise have been prohibited. Four identical hulls, each for one strut, ensure that everything is securely fixed. The jury deemed it “a smart idea and thus truly deserving of this award.”

IPM Essen and Landesverband Gartenbau NRW seal their partnership until 2030

Messe Essen, organizer of the IPM Essen trade fair , and the Landesverband Gartenbau NRW, a regional association for horticulture in Germany, intend to work together to shape the future of the world's leading trade fair until 2030.

Oliver P. Kuhrt, CEO of Messe Essen, explains: "Landesverband Gartenbau Nordrhein-Westfalen has been an important and loyal partner at our side since the beginning of IPM Essen in 1983. Without them, IPM Essen would not be what it is today: the world's leading trade fair for horticulture. We are therefore particularly pleased that we are extending our cooperation until 2030."

As the strongest regional association in Germany, Landesverband Gartenbau Nordrhein-Westfalen e. V. represents 3,100 businesses from all sectors with around 50,000 employees. Many of the plants produced in NRW are traded worldwide. Kuhrt goes on to say that the association is therefore an indispensable part of IPM Essen. "The continuation of our cooperation clearly underlines the importance of our work for an entire industry. Landesverband Gartenbau NRW and IPM Essen are pursuing a common goal in this process: We want to drive the green sector forward, be its engine and driving force,” says Eva Kähler-Theuerkauf, president of Landesverband Gartenbau NRW and chairwoman of the IPM Advisory Board.