Over 100 participants travelled to Salzburg, Austria, to attend the 53rd Fleuroselect Annual Convention from 2nd to 4th July. The Convention is the key annual event for Fleuroselect members to catch up with industry peers, visit member facilities, and explore plant trials and local horticultural highlights.

This year's event, held for the first time in Austria, was organised in collaboration with Gastager Gartenbau and Renner Jungpflanzen, the Austrian partners of Fleuroselect members Selecta one and Florensis.  

Exploring the Austrian market at Gastager Gartenbau

The programme kicked off with a visit to Gartenbau Gastager, Selecta one's agent in Austria. Klaus Gaumann, Marketing Director at Selecta one, and Stefan Gastager, CEO of Gastager Gartenbau, welcomed the delegates with an engaging company presentation. Founded in 1929, Gastager Gartenbau has evolved into a modern and innovative Austrian young plant producer with extensive production facilities, a modern loading hall and beautiful show garden. Thanks to its central location and own vehicle fleet, Gastager Gartenbau aims at combining a high-quality product with flexible service. 

Gregor Theißl from the Austrian Chamber of Agriculture then provided an insightful overview of the Austrian ornamental market highlighting both the challenges and opportunities in Austria. As in most  European countries, climate change, energy costs, a shortage of skilled staff and succession issues are all challenges for the Austrian grower. Opportunities meanwhile can be found in developing green cities, the upcoming importance attached to biodiversity, the increase of plant-based nutrition and the growing interest in self-grown vegetables and fruits.

The visit was concluded with a tour of the Gastager nursery and container trial field where a significant part of the product range is exposed to natural weather conditions, allowing for optimal assessment of seasonal performance. 

Renner: plant craftmanship meets marketing

A visit to Renner Jungpflanzen in Neumarkt am Wallersee provided deeper insights into the Austrian partner of Florensis. Founder and co-owner Hans Renner shared the history of the company highlighting how the relation with Florensis has grown over the years until today, Renner Jungpflanzen being the main supplier of the Florensis product range in Austria whilst also offering varieties of other suppliers including Perry van der Haak, Grünewald etc..