Spring is a time for new beginnings, but for one revered gardening supplier spring 2018 brings cause for a celebratory look backward: Breck’s, the largest direct-to-consumer Dutch bulb importer in the United States, is marking its 200th year of growing goodness.

We at Horticulture feel a bit of a kinship with Breck’s. As you may know, Horticulture began in Boston, Mass., as a trade publication for florists and greenhouse growers in 1904. It turns out that Breck’s was born in Boston, too, starting out in 1818 as a seed, lawn and garden store owned by Joseph Breck. Horticulture may not be quite as old as Breck’s, but we can certainly dream!

Joseph Breck’s store evolved into a catalog company and the product line expanded. Today the Breck’s company maintains a full-time team in Holland that works with bulb growers there to ensure high quality. They also survey new European perennials that might be worthy additions to the greenhouses Breck’s runs in the U.S. Of note among these is a series of hellebores representing the life’s work of three generations of hybridizers at the van der Meijs nursery in Geldern, Germany. Breck’s is introducing this series—named Wow! King Size Hellebores—to celebrate the 200th anniversary.

Visit Breck's now to check out all their new offerings. Congratulations, Breck’s, on 200 years of supplying gardeners with what we treasure: exciting, beautiful plants!