Friday, March 29, 2024

A specialist in lily production

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William (Bill) Doreen was a pioneer in New Zealand’s flower farming industry and more specifically in the development of lily growing both here and internationally.
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Doreen, aged 89, died on July 15 in Levin where he and wife Carol lived since 1953 after moving from Wellington. Carol died on December 15 last year.

As a boy Doreen had an uncle who owned a plant nursery near Fielding, which he visited often and was inspired by.

By 1948 Doreen had finished school and worked at Wellington Botanical Gardens as an apprentice gardener. During his job interview Doreen asked if he could be considered for a place at Massey Agricultural College to study for a diploma in horticulture. After working at the gardens for 12 months his wish was granted. It was an opportunity he did not waste and in 1950 got his diploma.

Doreen caught the eye of Massey’s botany head Dr John Yeates, an accomplished plant breeder. He invited Doreen to work with him in his spare time. He became Doreen’s mentor and friend and instilled in him an inherent passion for lilies. He returning to the gardens and in 1951 completed his apprenticeship before moving in1953 to take up a year-long position as a nursery manager in Levin while the owner Phil Gardner was away climbing the Himalayas. Doreen then became ground supervisor for a new sanatorium being built in Levin.  

He designed and planted the grounds and created a substantial vegetable garden on half an acre. Surplus vegetables were sold to a local grocer.

Doreen and Carol spent what little spare cash they had building up lily stock. After a year they had some larger bulbs they could market. That was perfect timing as his job at the sanatorium ended when a cure for tuberculosis was discovered. 

In 1958 they bought 4ha in Fairfield Road, Levin.

Doreen carried on with a milk run he had bought while breaking in the property that was to become Fairfield Bulb Farms. He initially established it on 1.2ha with bulbs being grown in rotation while clearing and preparing the rest of the property. 

By 1968 they had the largest lily growing operation in New Zealand and the company took on the name Lilies International. Doreen supplied lilies to decorate Government House during a visit by Queen Elizabeth and appeared on a national television gardening programme.

Hybridisation was a special passion.

Doreen developed many, most notably the white lily known as Casablanca (or Snowdrift in the United States). Initially hybridisation was by cross-pollination but in the 1980s Doreen built and equipped his own tissue culture laboratory and developed techniques that received international recognition. He was especially successful in work with Oriental and Asiatic varieties. 

His work on developing upward-facing flowers was a game changer. That made lilies more popular with florists, being less prone to damage in transport and aesthetically more appealing in arrangements. 

Doreen travelled globally as a sought-after guest speaker at conventions and conferences. He was invited to join several US judging panels after spending three months in America studying. Bulbs and cut flowers were exported throughout the world from their Fairfield Road enterprise.

He was 1997 NZ Horticulturalist of the Year and in 1998 he was awarded the E H Wilson Medal – the highest annual award made by the North American Lily Society. 

The book he wrote in his retirement, Lily Species from Throughout the World, is a just one legacy he left behind of his contribution in the industry. 

He held numerous offices in horticultural organisations worldwide. 

The Doreens are survived by their four children who all had an association with the floriculture industry. Warwick was part of the home enterprise. Jonathan worked in research and operated a nursey of his own in Levin. Murray worked closely with his father, gaining a Diploma in Horticulture and establishing his parallel business, Flowers Corp, Rosemary is a qualified florist.

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