'For a higher balance, you quickly end up with onions'

De Boerenbusiness This year, Crop Tour will follow 8 plots with yellow seed onions in the Netherlands. Every week we ask an onion grower about the plot, his choices and vision. This week it is arable farmer Geert Jilissen from Oeffelt (NB). In addition to seed onions, he grows potatoes, carrots and spinach.

The seed onions are breaking through, how is the Crop Tour plot doing?
"The onions are now in the staple stage and the next spraying will probably follow this week. The plot itself is a rental plot, where maize was grown last year. The plot was plowed in the spring and rotated the next day. soil. Immediately after sowing, I sprayed with Stomp. The whole field was sown with primed seed, so I sowed half a unit less. The sowing unit is about 3.4."

What strategy do you have for sales?
"I've always sold all onions overseas. I'd like to store some onions, but I don't have the space for it. Unfortunately, then you run the risk that there are many other suppliers who want to sell the onions at the same time as I do. the price is never at its highest. Fortunately I am reasonably on time with the onion harvest on our light soils, but it is never really early for me."

Which varieties do you grow on the farm?
"We are growing the Vento and Nation varieties this year and this is primed seed. When we started growing seed onions, we actually knew nothing about the varieties. Someone in my area sold onion seed and through his advice I ended up with Vento "I notice myself that the buyer is also charmed by this variety. The onion is fairly early, is hard and partly because of that good to store. The kilos are also not disappointing. I would also like to have another variety along. The idea was to grow the Promotion variety, after the trial with this variety went very well last year. Unfortunately, onion seed was not available this year, so it has become Nation."

Why did you choose seed onions in your growing plan?
"This is the seventh year that we are growing onions and that is going quite well. The precise spraying that is involved and the crop itself really appeal to me. There are not many alternatives for a crop with a higher balance. Wheat supplies For example, don't eat much and then you quickly end up with onions. Moreover, it is nice to try something new. Last year I also had a corner of red onions of the Red Tide variety. The kilos were slightly less than with yellow onions, but the price has made up for it last year. Who knows, I may do another piece with red onions next year."

Why are you joining the Boerenbusiness Crop tour?
"This is the third year that I participate. I find it interesting to share knowledge, what others do and write. There are a number of new growers and you hear other things about them. You just see that there are huge differences are sitting through the Netherlands and it's nice to get that along."

Jesse Torringa

Jesse is an editor at Boerenbusiness and focuses in particular on the arable farming sector, including grain and onions. He also closely follows the fertilizer market. In addition, Jesse works on an arable farm in Groningen with seed potatoes as the main branch.

j.torringa@boerenbusiness. Nl

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