Capri glasshouse: first fruit expected around 10 March

 At the International Soft Fruit Conference in Holland 19/01/2012 Dr Alessio Martinelli from CIV presented the results from the 2011 Capri crops on table tops and in glasshouse.

Capri has a very good flavor and combines this with an excellent firmness, even at high summer temperatures!

On 19 December 2011 the first new Capri crop was planted in glasshouse and the crop is developing very satisfactory.

 

First yield is expected around 10 March! This first peak comes in the same period as the early Clery production between 10/3 and 20/4!

The second flush comes between end May and half July! So covers the traditional dip week 27-29!

 The third flush comes August-September.

 

 

August 28, 2011.

News from the nurseries

Weather conditions in the nurseries in North Italy have been so far optimal for most varieties.
In this picture the nurseries for bare rooted plants Joly.

Also minitrays of ever bearers are developing very nicely. On the picture a Capri minitray, 23 August 2011.

 

June 18, 2011.

Supplementary lighting in Clery glasshouse crops confirms potential

 

Clery as the earliest strawberry crop is well established in the area of Veiling Hoogstraten in Belgium. This early Clery crop starts yielding half March, to peak end March. Half April this crop is finished but by that time the Elsanta crops take over.

  

Gaston Opdekamp, general manager of Veiling Hoogstraten (in the picture on the right) mentions a growing demand for an early local crop of high quality.

Several growers started in recent years to use supplementary lighting to further improve earliness of the crop. With Clery the system worked out very well with production starting end February/first days March, to peak half March and to end the first week of April.

Important: with the supplementary light yield per m² increases also with more than 10 %.

Second flush! Many growers leave the crop in the glasshouse after this first flush of fruit. It is a remarkable characteristic of Clery that the early crop starts flowering again in April, at the end of the first flush. This second flush is than harvested in June.

 

January 4, 2011.

 

Serious frost damage in strawberry crops

 

Extreme low temperature from end November on has caused serious damage in many crops.

 

December was also cold but by then more crops had a protection from snow.

The low temperatures are not the only factor for assessing the risk. Wind, wind chill plays an important role.

Frost damage is recognized by a brown coloration of the plant hart. Is the coloration is slight than the plant might survive, depending on the variety.

If the coloration is dark, than the crown is lost.

 

Depending on the degree of frost damage several measure can be taken. With a light damage it is often sufficient to help the plant at the moment of regrowth with foliar fertilizers. In fact the frost damages the vascular system of the plants making nutrient uptake more difficult at the moment fo regrowth.

If the damage is serious it is often better to replant the crop rather than having problems for the rest of the season.