Although a large proportion of pink wine amount from Africa these days , Dutch rose growers are far from standing still . Kwekerij Marjoland from Waddinxveen has invest to a great extent in sustainability in late old age to make the society future - test copy and minimize its wallop on the environs . Owner Daniel van den Nouweland tells us more about it .
in the first place , Daniel ’s father started as a cucumber vine grower in the seventies . In the mid-1980s , he made the substitution to roses . The business organisation carry on to boom in the years that postdate . Daniel has now been at the helm of the folk business for some six geezerhood , whose name is a combination of the names of his female parent Mariola , his father Joop and the family name Van den Nouweland . On some 20 hectares , the nursery produces nine varieties of roses , of which Red Naomi is the principal one in terms of act . shortly , the 10th Marjoland rose will be festively introduced .
From emergence to efficiency"Our aim is to leave the best quality roses class - rotund , " order Daniel . " We can do that because in the greenhouse we can control conditions - light , temperature - in such a mode that it ’s fundamentally summertime all yr around . "
" Whereas my Father-God was principally consecrate to development , now it ’s more about efficiency . In fact , I have n’t grown a hectare , but all investment have choke into efficiency and sustainability . How can we get the upright potential roses with as few in the raw materials as potential ? That is the challenge , and for me also the essence of what sustainable mean . Sustainable growing is about more than just energy consumption , he stresses . " It is also about using stain , water , fertilizers consciously and limiting the function of chemicals as much as possible . "
Water is reused , Daniel explains . " Each plant life is watered singly with a dripper . Part of the water , about 50 % , the plant life steep . The other half would normally vanish into the ground , but we collect that in a gutter . That is collect in a silo , cleaned and reused . So there is practically no waste of water supply . "
Whereas in the 1990s the number of hectare of rosaceous nurseries in the Netherlands was still around 1,000 , it has now dropped to around 200 , he says . " output now mainly take aim place in Africa and South America . So the number of hectares in the Netherlands has dropped substantially , but the number of stems produced per hectare has grown . Dutch rise growers have therefore bulge out to produce more expeditiously . In my popular opinion , we also lead the way in the global rose sector in this . Abroad , a rose baby’s room is also often only profitable from 30 or 40 hectares . "
Energy savingsMarjoland hold open vigor in various ways : " We are now in the process of switching from traditional SON - T lamp via hybrid lighting systems with 50 % LED and 50 % SON - T lamp to full - LED . This is still a challenge , because SON - T lamps also give off beamy heat , while LED does not . LED is much more vigor - effective for the light it gives , though . So if you look purely at the light component , you have a rescue of 40 % . The heat component you have to puzzle out at certain times in another way , i.e. with heating , with screens ( which retains heat better , ed . ) , or with a dehumidification organisation . All in all , these are pretty capital - intensive investments , so we spread that out over several years . "
Heating the greenhouse is done with gas . " Extracting geothermal heat is unmanageable in this area . There is talk of the town of build a heat roundabout that would bring geothermic heat from a nearby source and residual heat from diligence to us . Electrification is a godsend for us but due to grid congestion you may see that the infrastructure is not ready for it yet . Gas has had a disconfirming halo to it since Russia ’s war but I think it is a great changeover fuel . Gas is much cleaner than coal and oil . For now , gaseous state is the good option . "
As for packaging , the company judge to keep it to a lower limit . " We have eliminate cardboard packaging altogether in sure output crinkle , and trim it as much as possible in others . Royal FloraHolland has also helped us develop smaller composition board collars . That has definitely been a plus for us . "
'' We make full use of biologic control agent . For representative , wanderer mites , trips and whitefly are already easy to control biologically . Lice are still a challenge though , more growers struggle with that . We have one garden where we use utmost biology on aphids with five different natural enemies . They are expensive creatures , so we are still in the early stages . And sometimes you have to use chemicals because otherwise the rose will be lost . We do endeavor to extend the spray rounds and thus spray less . "
Acting together"I retrieve it ’s a compassion that you are hampered in your solutions . I leave out the politics a mo in that . When you protrude look at : how can we harness this together as smartly as possible ? With the ultimate destination of growing everything organically . That process is very fascinating . It would be nice if it could also be a snatch of fun , instead of just banning more and more substance directly away . Because that is not necessarily always directly tributary to the process . "
" I would like to sit at the table together and make a architectural plan . That we say : in five years we desire to get here , and what do we need to get there ? At that table should then be the government and nursery gardening representatives . But because you also have to carry on with EU statute law , that is complex , I interpret . In the EU , greenhouse horticulture is less well - represented compared to cultivatable agriculture . If nursery horticulture is too small , you run into the problem that it is very hard to introduce new product , including constituent one . They are just very expensive to develop . "
unjust play field"I can also get annoy by the regime ’s push policy . It shoots in all directions . With an unreliable government , it is difficult to exchange gears . Again , the same storey . Everyone does agree that the sector needs to become more sustainable . But the way the governing facilitates that could be much better . "
" The Dutch raiser is taxed on vigour , while we confront an international competitive field of study . Our counterpart is an African Cartesian product wing in , while kerosone is not taxed . Europe articulate : we are going to be hard on sustainability , everything is taxed . The steel manufacture is work with import levies to make a level playing playing field . But horticulture is not big enough to do the same . So I do n’t think the competitive plain is spirit level at the moment . "
The Netherlands can play key role"And that while there are also great chance . We have a huge high-pitched - tech industry in the Netherlands when it comes to gardening , which leads the world . I expect that in the skinny future we can toy a key persona in the problems that are coming our agency . You see that when delegates from China and the US come here , they see horticulture as a root . They see that if you may produce more expeditiously , you may solve problem . I sometimes overleap that , that window of opportunity . So have us make those introduction strides and give us way to innovate . Then you really get a sphere you may be majestic of . We are also doing very well compare to many other sectors . That could be contribute into the limelight more . "
' It is significant to have front - runners along’In that setting , it is important for Royal FloraHolland to have front - runners of the changeover with you , says Daniel . " Because it does become a job if the companies at the forefront start to pretermit out . That would be a real shame when you see all the great thing that have been built up in the meantime . A cooperative of so many blossom and plant growers in the Netherlands and abroad , it ’s a wonderful concept . I imagine wise choices have been made in late age in terms of logistics and digitalization . If it were not for Royal FloraHolland , we would be missing clear convention and social system , I think . It is a reliable party that sits between client and grower . That gives a lot of peace of mind . "
For more information : Royal FloraHollandwww.royalfloraholland.com
