Technical meeting at Ghini in Imola
"We have some popular and some growing products. Cometa is the most popular white onion of all. Everyone knows it: high productivity good shape and grades. However, one must be careful of the inputs, especially through fertilisation, as one mustn't overdo it. The variety is at its best in the 70-80 grade range and is usually ready for late July even though this year, due to the weather, it is almost 15 days early," explained technician William Cavalieri.
Cometa rows
The Cometa variety yielded 75 tons per hectare. It usually stores well until February. Sowing was carried out rather early on January 25th with pneumatic sowers and 800 thousand seeds per hectare.
Cometa onions
The second variety examined was Rhea. One of its best characteristics is that its white colour maintains well without degrading to greenish reflexes. It can be stored until March.
William Cavalieri
Solstice provided good results when stored until April. It is the earliest variety, and in fact it is usually harvested in mid-July. This year, harvesting was 10 days early. Even though it is the earliest, it's the one that has the longer shelf-life. It has a less perfect shape than the other two, but grades are always good.
"The hot weather with no rain was ideal for white onions. The producer irrigated using a drip line, which makes the soil less compact than with cart irrigators."
A golden onion variety that combines high-quality and early ripening is Valero, which can adapt well to different areas and has excellent bulb colour.
Utrero is a very rustic golden variety with a long shelf-life and a shiny deep bronze colour.
Contacts:
Numhens Italy (Bayer)
Via Ghiarone 2
40019 S.Agata Bolognese (BO)
Tel.: (+39) 051.6817411
Email: william.cavalieri@bayer.com
Web: www.bayer.com