Tulips are being cultivated in water in the tourist hotspot of Antalya, with a company producing 200,000 blooms specifically for International Women’s Day.
A company in the region has been exclusively working on producing soilless tulips in greenhouses using only water. Operating in the Belek district of the Serik province of Antalya, the flower production center has been cultivating tulips in water for nine years. Spanning across a 500-square-meter greenhouse, this production method, devoid of chemicals and fertilizers, mirrors a model implemented in the Netherlands.
On Valentine’s Day, the center dispatched 200,000 tulips to supermarkets and florists nationwide. Now,in anticipation of International Women’s Day, 200,000 tulips in seven different colors are being readied.
Explaining the process, Agricultural Engineer Anıl Yolcular said that tulip bulbs are left in water containers in cold storage for four to eight weeks at temperatures ranging between seven to 8 degrees Celsius to meet the chilling requirement. Subsequently, they are transferred to the greenhouse and left in water-filled crates for 21 to 25 days before harvesting.
Saying that their modernized greenhouses will produce 400,000 bulbs per year, Yolcular also added, “We experience high sales during Valentine’s and Women’s Day. Our regular sales continue at other times. Currently, we are shipping to all provinces of Türkiye. We have plans to export overseas after renovating our greenhouses and increasing our technological capabilities.”
Source: hurriyetdailynews