Taiwan Today

Two new varieties of anthurium, known as “Green Elf” and “Pink Panther,” are scheduled for sale in 2011, according to the Council of Agriculture's Floriculture Research Center. Taiwan's flower growers produce top quality anthurium, sometimes referred to as the Flamingo Flower. Each year, Taiwan exports over 10 million of the flowers, and anthurium rank second on the country's cut flower export list. The Japanese especially love the flower, making Taiwan the top source of imports of anthurium to Japan for many years. Anthurium has been grown in Taiwan for over 30 years. Most of the varieties are imported from the Netherlands and Hawaii. The director of the Floriculture Research Center, Hsieh Ting-fang, said local anthurium used to be primarily sold on the domestic market, until issues such as storage and transportation were overcome in recent years. The Japanese were stunned by the beauty of the flowers when a million of them were first exported to Japan from Taiwan in 2000. Hsieh said the anthurium grown in Taiwan are of an outstanding quality, and their production here is stable. She added that the popularity of the plants among the Japanese has only continued to grow over the years as exports continue to rise. Over the past several years, Taiwan has become the main source of imports of anthurium to Japan, accounting for 85 percent of the anthurium flowers imported there. In addition, Taiwan exports the flowers to Hong Kong and Singapore, among other places. Each year, Taiwan exports over 10 million of the flowers, making anthurium the second-largest variety of exported cut flowers, following only Oncidium orchids. The Floriculture Research Center began efforts to crossbreed anthurium in 1996, Hsieh said, and it has already developed five new varieties, which have been named Pink Panther, Green Elf, Orange Blast, Pink Girl, and Amber. Except for Orange Blast, which is sold as a potted plant, the other varieties are sold as cut flowers. Hsieh said cultivation technology for the Pink Panther and Green Elf varieties has been transferred to cooperatives and seed companies. These two new varieties of the flower are expected to appear on the market next year. (This article originally appeared in “The Liberty Times” March 10, 2010.)