Hennie de Ruiter, Peony Grower to the World

Hennie de Ruiter, devloper of many of Holland's most beautiful peonies.

The Dutch city of Aalsmeer is located in heart of Holland's flower-growing district. Though flower farms dominate the countryside, Aalsmeer is known by florists far and wide as the home of the world's largest flower auction. Millions of cut flowers and plants are sold there each business day. Though most of the flowers are grown locally, many of them are flown in specifically for the auction from growers all over the world. More than 8,000 nurseries send their plants to the Aalsmeer auction.

The auction opens early—at 6 a.m.—and by lunchtime the warehouse, which is the size of nine football fields, is almost empty. The plants and flowers are already on their way to the U.S., Europe, Asia, and nearly everywhere in between.

One of the Dutch growers who calls Aalsmeer home is Hennie de Ruiter. Hennie's passion for plants began early—he started collecting peonies at the young age of 13. Though his father was a rose grower, peonies captured Hennie's heart and he has devoted the past 30 years to growing these beautiful perennials. He currently grows more than 220 different varieties of peonies and in early summer ships about 1.5 million peony flowers to the Aalsmeer auction.

Anemoneflora Peony

Always on the lookout for new and more beautiful varieties of peonies, Hennie travels the world, adding to his collection. Visits to China, where peonies have been revered for centuries, always yield new delights.

Most peony flowers are white, pink or red, but one of Hennie's favorites is a yellow peony that he discovered and named for his daughter Kelly. He says he always has an eye out for a blue peony—surely the holy grail for a peony lover.

Spring is the best time of year on the de Ruiter farm. Hennie loves to see the red peony shoots emerging after their long winter rest. May is a flurry of activity as flowers are cut in bud and shipped to market each day. Summer is when Hennie finds time to look closely at the newest varieties in his collection, watching for variations in flower form and color, and superior plant characteristics.

Some of Hennie de Ruiter's superior peony varieties now available to Dutch Gardens customers, include Sorbet, Karl Rosenfield, Sarah Bernhardt, Festiva Maxima, and the beautiful new early-blooming varieties Anemoneflora, Alba Plena, Rosea Plena and Rubra Plena.