Peen can use support Serenade just fine

"Carrot cultivation is certainly not over the top here in the Frisian and Groningen coastal regions. There are about ten or fifteen growers who often started with it in the 90s. They have it in their hands, think it is a nice cultivation , have the necessary machines and can often also store the carrot. Those are the permanent ones, there are not many more to come."

Jan Klaas de Graaf van Hoogland BV outlines in a few sentences the 'status' of carrot cultivation in the Northern Netherlands. In recent decades, several arable farmers have ventured into cultivation, but many have also given up, the adviser knows. "Carrot cultivation requires a lot of attention, especially around sowing and harvesting. A lot can go wrong there and it immediately costs a lot of money. Moreover, sales have not always gone smoothly in the past. Growers regularly had to deal with high tare percentages, which were partly due to quality problems, which did not do the image of carrot cultivation any good...'. 

Permanent club of growers
Nevertheless, there is a fairly solid club of growers who - with some ups and downs - are quite successful with the cultivation. One of them is Nico Walstra. As manager of the Cleveringa partnership in Den Andel (Gr.), he has been familiar with the crop for many years. "I think we have had carrots in our cultivation plan for almost 30 years, about 7 hectares every year," he says. Walstra thinks it is a great crop, but is certainly aware of the risks. "Especially on the older, With light soil along the coast, you are more likely to get a spot on the carrot. And then the tare percentages can immediately rise so quickly that it immediately becomes a very mediocre crop'', he now knows from experience.

This year the carrot is on a beautiful, light loam – right along the Wadden coast. At the beginning of July, the roots are in excellent condition, as it turns out during a tour of the crop. The first weed control with soil and contact herbicides was also successful, as a result of which there are hardly any weeds to be found. De Graaf and Walstra estimate that there are at least 80 to 100 plants per linear metre. "The basis for a good yield has thus been laid. Now all we have to do is ensure that everything continues to grow and remains healthy," Walstra looks ahead.

Black spots and cavity spot
Besides the 'regular' diseases and pests such as powdery mildew, Alternaria (foliage browning), Sclerotinia and carrot fly, in the North there is mainly concern about black spots and cavity spot (Pythium). In the past, growers have had to contend with black spots during storage. This has to do, among other things, with the type of soil – the older the soil, the greater the chance of stains – but also with the cultivation method. "Growers who treat their soil neatly and keep it open generally have fewer black spots, and sometimes even no problems at all. Harvesting also plays a role; with growers who do this neatly, we encounter fewer black spots." De Graaf knows.

According to him, what certainly 'helps' is keeping the crop growing well and making it robust and resistant to diseases, so that black spots and also cavity spot have less chance to develop. That is why Walstra has the biological agent for the first time this season Serenade applied during sowing. "Because the bacteria in Serenade are added to the seed, the carrot roots are colonized from the moment of germination," says De Graaf. "This results in numerous harmful fungi that are responsible for black spots in storage, less chance of attacking the carrot. Serenade is also known for having a strong effect against the Pythiumfungus, the causative agent of cavity spot."

In addition, the product also ensures better root development, so that moisture and fertilizers can be better absorbed. "Serenade therefore offers good support to the crop in several areas. That is reason enough to gain experience with it," says the advisor. 

Hands-on experience
De Graaf acknowledges that this 'support' is not reflected equally well every season. "In practice, the results with Serenade sometimes a bit fluctuating, but overall positive. By now gaining practical experience with this product, we are getting more and more comfortable with the application and we will know in a few years' time which circumstances positively influence the effect of Serenade." Walstra is also curious to what extent Serenade can improve carrot quality - or at least maintain it. In this context, he points to a block marked out with pickets in his plot. "We closed the Serenade tap there for a while. The intention is that we will dig up that block separately later. We may be able to see the difference between treated and untreated carrots next winter in the cooling. win, then it's worth it'', he concludes.

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