News » 22.09.2025 - Retired entrepreneur becomes succulent grower in Turkey despite naysayers

Huseyin Dilsiz, who returned from Germany to his hometown Rize in northeastern Turkey, 12 years ago, turned to succulent cultivation. The cultivation began as a hobby but turned into a business in recent years. Despite claims that cacti wouldn't grow in the rainy regions of Rize, he cultivated 500 varieties of cacti in a greenhouse he built at home. Dilsiz sells nearly 10,000 succulents each month.

Dilsiz, who initially sold cacti at retail, began growing various other succulent varieties at customer request, and his business has grown steadily. He said he sells four truckloads of succulents monthly and experiences particularly high volumes on important days. He noted that local and international tourists visit the greenhouse, and some tourists even take succulents back home as gifts.

Huseyin Dilsiz, who said he returned from Germany for good 12 years ago, said, "We settled in Rize. We had a love for cacti as a hobby. Then we did some research and started growing cacti here. Because of the rainy weather in this region, some people said, 'Cacti don't grow here.' It's been 10 years since we started this business. We've grown from retail to wholesaling. Over time, our customers started asking for different kinds of cacti. Over time, we've added new varieties, becoming like a full-service garden market. We have a variety of pots. We currently have all the varieties. We sell both wholesale and retail. We closely monitor the market and strive to meet customer needs."

"There are important days in our industry, like Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, and Teacher's Day. Business is very busy during those times. On average, we ship four trucks of 5,000 to 10,000 succulents per month. We have a wide variety of flowers available throughout the year. We have a wide variety."

Dilsiz, noting that local and foreign tourists visit the flower greenhouse, said, "When plant enthusiasts come to Rize, they find us on maps and come to our greenhouse. I speak a little foreign language. We can communicate. Tourists come from England, Germany, and Arabia. They buy flowers from us and take them back to their hometowns. We love what we do."
 

Source: www.floraldaily.com

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