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A look at the process: uprooting old crop

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The Alstroemeria is a perennial plant that produces flowers all year round. As long as the plant is not replaced, it will continue to produce. Sometimes for years!

Every grower has their own strategy

Some growers will replace a crop sooner than others. From a young crop you often pick flowers of a heavier quality than from an older crop. A grower focusing on the higher segment will therefore replace his crop sooner. A grower who focuses more on the retail segment can afford to do longer with his crop.

On average, the Alstroemeria crop is replaced once every four to five years. Pretty sustainable! Sometimes because of cultivation problems it has to be replaced earlier anyway, but other times it goes so well for years cultivation and turnover wise that a crop can last more than ten years. Most growers replace the least profitable crops with fresh new crops every year.

Planting the new Alstroemerias

Once the crop is cleared, we can rebuild. Soil growers will prepare the soil again neatly for the new planting. Substrate growers will refill the substrate system with fresh coconut substrate. Drip and cooling hoses will be put back in place.

Then it's party time: the new Alstroemeria plants are delivered by the breeder and can be planted! The plants are watered and we lower the heating tubes. In the following weeks, all the netting is neatly put back in place so that the new flowers also grow nicely straight up again.

Picking the first flowers

Now comes the hardest part: waiting for the first Alstroemerias to be picked. Depending on the week of planting and the variety, it takes eight to 14 weeks before it is ready. Normally, Alstroemeria is planted between week 1 and week 20. We call this "planting with the light." During this period the days get longer, a crop will grow away more easily then.

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