Bisexuality in onions causes choice stress

Some onion plots of the Boerenbusiness Crop tour show duality. The different stages on 1 plot influence the crop protection. What choices are made by the growers?

Due to last week's rainfall, seeds have germinated and made it through the top layer. Because onions have come through before, and some are already developing pipes, you will end up on 1 plot in different phases of the growth of the onion. Not every phase of the crop has the same tolerance to spraying.

Waiting in Tollebeek
On the plot in Tollebeek (Flevoland), the emergence of onions has been regular so far. Places where no water has come due to the wind, or on the headland where the reel has not been able to irrigate properly, are lagging behind. According to the grower, it is not yet a problem in spraying and he first wants to see how the crop continues to grow and develop.

Local spraying in Wezup
On the plot in wezup (Drenthe) two waxes are slightly present. The plot is fairly clean, the grower does not suffer much from weeds. The grower plans not to spray a portion of the field with contact herbicide. "There has been less moisture, especially in higher areas, here I don't spray with contact herbicides to allow the smallest onions to develop better," says the grower.

Choice for mass
In Dronten The onions were sown a little over a week ago by the Aeres University of Applied Sciences. The expectation is that duality will not be too bad. The days after sowing there were some showers, so the onions immediately got moisture. If duality does occur on the plot, the mass will be chosen so as not to be too late with the spraying.

Not every onion can be taken into account
"You cannot take the last onions into account", is the conclusion of the grower from Kimswerd (Friesland). He says that he experiences some ambivalence in his onion field every year. The onions do not grow evenly and will be in several phases. Here too, mass will be chosen. "The last onions cannot be saved and you should not wait too long".

Taking small onions into account
On the plot in heijen (North Brabant) duality is also present. Onions come through in the heavier places in the field and in lighter places they have been on top for a longer period of time. The grower here takes the smallest onions into account and mainly looks at the flags. The grower tries to spare as many onions as possible from spraying for which the small onions may have too low a tolerance at that time.

Clean plot in Kortgene
On the plot in Zeeland Kortgene is due to light and heavier spots two waxes present. "The plot is clean, I don't really worry about this, there are more weeds on other plots. Here I will spray spot by spot to spare the onions with too low tolerance," says the grower from Kortgene. The grower has a slight uncertainty, after the hailstorm he first wants to see how the onion is recovering.

80/20 rule in Ysselsteyn
On the plot in Ysselsteyn there is a slight duality to be seen. The field was not sown on the same day and has a rise difference in the edges and inside of the field. The edges will be treated more carefully, as the onions are still smaller here and have a lower tolerance. The grower expects that when 80% of the onions have reached a decent size, he will no longer take the 'smaller' onions into account. This is followed by spraying that is intended for the other 80% of the crop. 

Not every onion can be saved
"Sowing onions in May is leek," says Mark Emmers advisor at Bayer CropScience. His advice is to focus on the masses. Not every onion can be saved. Double-washing has consequences for the later harvest. It may happen that some onions will start ironing and others will not. This may cause problems for your growth regulation. "Focus on the mass now, so you have less difference in the shed and you have to earn it with your mass", is the advice.

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