On Wednesday dark , October 2 , a group of 27 young people from Tuinbouw Jongeren Westland ( TJW ) left for a noesis trip to Portugal led by Meghan Lagerwerf , Jim Schoenmaker , and Rick van Schie from the board .
fellowship visitsThe first occlusion was Citrina , a British family troupe that has been operating in Portugal since 1980 with 30 hectares of citrus flora by now . Here , the participants received a guided circuit . The party ’s processes range from germination and ingraft to pare the plants . The company key itself by uprise a compendious plant in pot size 12 and put in raw assortment . Due to the moderate water timbre in the field , they use reverse osmosis . More than 99 % of the industrial plant are sold through their localisation in Aalsmeer , because of the good distribution possibility . This is also where the sales squad is based .
After a lunch of Portuguese specialties , the group left for Buijnink International , a family line - owned company that has developed from 9 to 300 hectare of eucalyptus . The troupe is planning to expatiate by another 300 hectare . With ever - increasing rates and critical availability of water from the reservoir that supplies the intact surrounding area with fresh water , the family is investing in tumid water washstand to work up its security with water availableness . In period of drought , ornamental industrial plant agriculturist are one of the first to be restricted in body of water handiness from the reservoir with current laws and regulations .
A wide-ranging programmeDay 2 kicked off with a visit to the Portuguese branch of AltaNova , which grow Mandevilla & Heatherberry , among others . Here , they used a local residuary flow namely granule of olive kernel to discharge the bio kitchen range .
Next , the chemical group visited Amigo Plant , specializing in succulent , where they see the cultivation process of succulents . The area ’s clime is lucky for grow them . The adroitness is located less than a kilometre from the Atlantic Ocean which give it cool at night this guarantee that the succulent are harden off .
The next destination was Frestia , where the chemical group was welcomed by 2 of the company ’s Dutch owners . With a modern 19 - hectare greenhouse for snack peppers and mini cherry tomato plant , Frestia is among the most modern horticultural producers in southern Europe . Challenges such as labor migration and water direction were discussed during the display . The Clarence Shepard Day Jr. end with dinner party at a nearby restaurant .
Rounding off the tripThe final twenty-four hours started with a visit to Florensis , which centre on the output of unrooted Calibrachoa and Sedum cuttings . Due to EU significance restrictions , Calibrachoa press clipping are not grown in Africa where Florensis is also base but in Portugal .
The course of study continued at Hortensia specialist Sjaak van Schie B.V. , with a hitch of the glasshouse , outdoor field , and the nearly one - hectare moth-eaten store constructed in 2021 . The fellowship is also based in the Netherlands . However , the primary grounds for ground a adroitness here is because of the sunlight . Thanks to the Mediterranean mood , industrial plant deliveries can be spread better over the year , so much so that year - unit of ammunition deliverance is potential .
The trip end with a ethnical wheel tour of duty of Lisbon , after which the grouping returned to Westland . It was an inspiring and educational experience for all participants , during which they gained new insights into international horticulture .
TJW is organizing an overseas excursion for the first time in years . Where the next tripper will go , they do n’t know yet , but that there will be a sequel is obvious indicates Jim . " Organizing a trip like this postulate a long formulation , but the nice feedback from the penis and the positive feedback from the companies after the visits gives the energy to opine further about a address for 2025 , " he says . In any case , on the way back there was already busy speculating about the destination of the next trip . "
TJW also recently made a trip , to Denmark . take back their news report here ( in Dutch ) .
For more information : Tuinbouw Jongeren Westlandwww.tuinbouwjongeren.nl/
