Last year, Limgroup launched its first F1 hybrid strawberry variety: Limore One. At the Van Beusichem - De Waal fruit farm in Eck en Wiel, the first growing season with this seed-based strawberry is coming to an end, and it has been very successful.
"Our goal was to reach a yield of 6 kilograms per square meter from our July planting," says Louise van Beusichem. "But this weekend, we passed 8 kilograms, which is fantastic."
© Izak Heijboer | FreshPlaza.com
Louise van Beusichem
"We usually grow the Fandango variety until the end of June. Then, at the start of August, we plant Elsanta. But we were looking for a variety that could replace Elsanta in this greenhouse. When we only use Elsanta for autumn production, the yields aren't high enough. Extending the growing period would help, but we don't want to do that here, because Fandango is already part of our crop rotation. That's when FruitMasters introduced us to Limore One, which has a major advantage: It can be sown at any time of year."
Within the F1 Hybrid Pioneers partnership, Gipmans Planten handles the sowing and early growth of the seedlings until they're ready for transplanting. Then, Van den Elzen Plants and Van de Avoird Trayplant take over, growing the plants into strong, ready-to-plant material.
For this season, seeds were sown in January, and by July, the young plants were delivered to several growers, including Van Beusichem - De Waal and Zachtfruitkwekerij Van As in Tricht.
© Limgroup B.V.
Growing protocol key to success
Before planting began, both growers put their wishes for the plant type down on paper together with their crop advisor, Sander van Broekhoven from Hortinova. Based on that input, Remco van Endschot, head of strawberry propagation at Van den Elzen Plants, worked with Limgroup to develop a special propagation protocol for a strong Limore One tray plant. The goal was to produce a robust, heavy plant with multiple crowns and an exceptionally vigorous root system, grown in 250cc trays.
Good starting material
"The crop advisors were closely involved to make sure the strawberry plants were delivered as top-quality tray plants," says Roland Sweijen from Limgroup. "A key advantage of seed-grown strawberries is that their propagation can take place indoors, where every growing condition, light, temperature, and humidity can be precisely controlled. After all, everything starts with good planting material."
"We can definitely say the propagation strategy has been a success," adds Renske Arnts from Van den Elzen Plants. "Compared to plants that are grown under artificial light and heat, these have benefited from more natural light and a longer development period, which has resulted in stronger, healthier plants. For next season, we plan to start delivering the plants from the end of June onwards."
© Limgroup B.V.
© Limgroup B.V.
No problems with mildew
At the start of the season, powdery mildew was Louise's biggest concern. "It was a hot topic in strawberries last season, but we didn't have any problems with it at all," she says with relief. "We're also very happy with the overall quality of Limore One. The variety produces firm berries that are easy to pick, maintain a nice uniform size, and keep their bright red color. With Elsanta, we often see white shoulders appear in November and December, but Limore One stays beautifully red. The plants are a bit more expensive, but with the higher yields, that's absolutely worth it."
According to the cooperative FruitMasters, the strawberries—marketed under the Sonrosa brand—have been well received both in the domestic market and abroad, with shipments going to Greece, the Czech Republic, and France. "FruitMasters holds the exclusive rights for these strawberries in the Benelux," explains Roland Sweijen, "but we're also open to exploring new and innovative partnerships throughout the supply chain."
From the sauna to the icebox
Since August, the lights have been switched on in Van Beusichem's greenhouse. "This variety needs long days to perform well," explains Renske Arnts. "In the spring crop, we noticed that when you take a pampered young plant from a warm, well-lit greenhouse and move it straight into a cold outdoor environment, it's a bit like going from a sauna into an icebox." For next season, the team plans to work with sturdier, more mature plants, which will have more age and resilience from the start.
"Growers are also discovering greater flexibility in their production methods thanks to the availability of fresh plants almost any time of year," adds Roland Sweijen from Limgroup. He's seeing strong interest from the market. "Of course, we often say that one season doesn't make a trend, but the yields we've achieved this first autumn season clearly show the potential of Limore One."
© Izak Heijboer | FreshPlaza.comRoland Sweijen (Limgroup), Renske Arnts (van den Elzen Plants), and Louise van Beusichem
Sixteen years of development
Limgroup is fully committed to the development of seed-propagated strawberries. "When the time is right, more varieties will follow," says Roland. "Nearly every breeding company has now jumped on this train, even the traditional vegetable breeders. Our big advantage is that we've been working on this for sixteen years already, which gives us a strong head start in knowledge and experience. We've learned a great deal, but there's still plenty we don't know. That's why we continue to run extensive trials together with our partners to achieve even better results."
In 2024, more than 50,000 plants were supplied to growers. This year, that number has already exceeded one million. "Seed availability is no longer a problem," Roland explains. The seed is now being shipped to growers in the United Kingdom, France, Canada, North America, Australia, and South Africa. "Everyone is looking for clean, healthy starting material, and seed is far easier to ship around the world than live plants," he adds.
Heading toward 50% hybrid everbearers within five years?
"I'm convinced that these hybrid strawberries will eventually replace a large part of the Sonata and Elsanta varieties," Roland continues. "Traditional June-bearing production has always been costly, and with labor becoming more and more expensive, being able to spread out the workload evenly across the season can significantly reduce costs."
When asked what share hybrid strawberries might represent among everbearing varieties in about five years, Roland answers, "I hope we'll reach around 50%. That might sound ambitious, but I truly believe it's possible. Our goal is to develop high-quality, high-yielding varieties that not only deliver excellent flavor and resilience, but also help growers achieve consistently strong results year after year."
© Izak Heijboer | FreshPlaza.com
At Van Beusichem, the Limore One pickers averaged 24.7 kilos per hour for strawberries sold under top quality. At Van As in nearby Tricht, they achieve a picking capacity of 30 kilos per hour for the regular channel. "As long as we can, we'll continue picking. I expect we'll definitely reach 8.5 kilos," concludes Louise.
For more information:
Louise van Beusichem
Fruitbedrijf van Beusichem - de Waal
Wielseweg 40
4024 BK Eck en Wiel
www.beusichemdewaal.nl/
Limgroup
Roland Sweijen
Veld Oostenrijk 13
5961 NV Horst (NL)
Tel: +31 0641970122
[email protected]
www.limgroup.eu
Van den Elzen Plants
Renske Arnts
Kraanmeer 24
5469 SN Erp
Tel: +31 (0)413 216 200
[email protected]
www.vandenelzenplants.com
