Fa. A. Vreugendhil
Arend Vreugdenhil has been co-owner of the family business since 2004. As a child he grew up in the business and experienced every bit of the growing process which he still enjoys working on every day. Together with his brother Kees, Arend is the fourth generation in the company.
Fa. A. Vreugendhil
- 2.3 hectares
- 12 varieties of Alstroemeria
How are you currently involved in the breeding process?
I manage our staff and am committed to climate and crop protection. For me it is important to be part of the team, being present is enough to achieve the best result together every day.
We have two people at work who find it harder to keep up with society. I really like the fact that as a team we can be meaningful to them.The social involvement is an intitiative that comes from us as owners, but we have to do the guidance of the people as a team. I really like the fact that we accomplish that together.
What are you most proud of?
That in recent years we have established a modern company with good employees. We are ready for the future in terms of energy. We have double screens, full LED lighting and dehumidifiers. We managed to do our cultivation entirely on substrate, I'm certainly proud of that. In our soil you have more problems with nematodes, you get rid of that with substrate cultivation. However, it does mean that the right mix of water and fertilizers is more important, the substrate doesn't have the buffer that natural soil does. Another advantage is that we can collect and reuse the given water more easily. So very circular. We don't have to steam when changing crops, which also saves energy.
We are with Rainlevelr: that means we work with the water board to adjust your water basin in terms of level to better capture the rain that falls. By doing so, we help the Netherlands keep its feet dry.
We invested in LED lighting and chose to hang our LED lighting as close as possible to the plant by means of a hoisting installation. This results in the highest possible light level for the plant with the least possible energy consumption.
Isabella van Daalen - Kwekerij de Hazekamp
What has changed or had the greatest impact in recent years?
In recent years, the biggest change has been the use of LED and substrate cultivation. Recently, it's the high energy costs, which have posed challenges.
What does sustainable cultivation look like in your organisation?
Integrated crop protection, as much as possible. We prefer to do everything organically but every now and then you have critters that you can't control with biology. As much as consumers want organic, we have to intervene chemically from time to time to make sure we deliver good flowers.
We have two screens in the greenhouse which allows us to keep the heat in better. Because of this there is more moisture in the greenhouse, which is why we have drygairs. With a drygair you dehumidify the greenhouse air, the residual heat released in the process is used in the greenhouse, as is the water extracted from the air. It is basically an inverted refrigerator. It costs 12 kilowatts per hour, but for that you receive 3 cubic meters of heat and dehumidify 45 liters of water per hour per unit. So a very clever system, which required the necessary investment but makes us sustainable.
What would you tell a florist about the Alstroemeria?
Show the color showing buds, they surprise the customer once they open. Tell your customers that a burst bud will be fine and the Alstroemeria will still have a long life!
How do you like to see the Alstroemeria?
Anything is possible with the Alstroemeria! Whether single stems or a classic or field bouquet, the Alstroemeria fulfills its promise in every arrangement.