Yuriy Marchuk, a farmer from Cherkasy, returned to Ukraine in 2008 after 30 years in Australia. Inheriting his father's business, he began cultivating vegetables and hemp on the former orchard lands. After trying to grow fruit tree seedlings, Yuriy switched to asparagus cultivation, becoming the first to do so on a commercial scale in Ukraine.
Conditions for asparagus cultivation proved challenging for Yuriy Marchuk due to a lack of agricultural technology and unfamiliarity with suitable varieties for Ukrainian soils. After seven years of experimentation, he found optimal conditions for growing this crop. Asparagus can be grown without irrigation, but deep and well-drained soil is crucial for its successful cultivation.
In 2013, Yuriy Marchuk became the first in Ukraine to start commercial asparagus cultivation. During this time, he tried to grow 14 different asparagus varieties from around the world, requiring considerable attention and research. Planning the cultivation of asparagus is also crucial, depending on row spacing and planting density, which affects costs and yield.
The demand for asparagus in Ukraine exceeds cultivation capacities, forcing Marchuk to expand the acreage under asparagus, emphasizing the need for a workforce for harvesting, processing, and packaging the crop. He noted that for 50 hectares, about 200 people are needed, as automation of this process is impossible due to the specific nature of asparagus harvesting.
From a lack of development over four years, he transitioned to active expansion to make up for the losses incurred during the pandemic and war.
Marchuk's clients are retail chains, but even they cannot get enough asparagus.
The farmer has also started growing curly kale, observing demand for this product after visiting Copenhagen. Kale grows throughout the winter period without storage, making it valuable for the market.
Kale cultivation has its peculiarities: the product is vulnerable to pests, and chemical agents are used only at the initial stages. Marchuk believes that agribusiness is a sphere for experimentation, emphasizing the importance of risks and market analysis for successful farming.
source: kurkul.com