Difficult growing season reflected in onion yield figures

Now that the onion harvest is over, it is time to take stock. The onion yields of the Boerenbusiness Crop tour are on average not that bad and the late, challenging growing season is reflected in the yield figures. The spread between the ten plots is large this year.

In contrast to the growing season, the onion harvesting and loading went fairly smoothly and successfully. The brakes were only applied at the beginning of September, due to the very high temperatures that hampered the harvest. During that period, the harvest started on the plots in Lepelstraat (North Brabant) and Zeewolde (Flevoland). Ultimately, the heavy rainfall at the end of the harvest period resulted in the last onions being loaded between showers. The onions from the plot in Wezup (Drenthe) were the last to be (partly) brought in.

In the period when the onions were almost dead or just before loading, test harvests were carried out and estimates were made on the plot. A square meter was cleared several times over the plot. These test harvests were weighed and converted to yield per hectare.

Onion yield Crop tour 2023

_{*Yield in tons of kilograms per hectare. 15% of the proceeds have been deducted due to spraying tracks, tare, headlands, etc.}

The average hectare yield of the Crop Tour onions is 47,7 net tons* per hectare, making it the lowest since the start of the Crop Tour (2019). The spread in yields varies widely this season from 15 to 68,4 tons per hectare. Something that the participating growers are not surprised about, given the late spring and the special growing season. There are no peaks of more than 70 tons per hectare this year either.

Another special season
Due to the wet spring, the sowing dates this year were on average April 24, almost one month later than in 2022 and a few weeks later than in previous years. The season started with a significant deficit. The poor weather that followed meant that initial development was slower and the much-needed catch-up took a long time. It was slow, especially on the heavier soils. Growth was generally faster on sandy soils. The drought continued until early July, after which precipitation provided the long-awaited catch-up. The growing season lasted a little longer than other years and harvesting started a little later. It has never been a complete catch-up, given the below-average yields. Moreover, ironing the onions was difficult and it is clear that the quality is also substandard.

The 2023 growing season was very dry after sowing. As a result, this year there has been frequent irrigation on various plots. Since 2018, the irrigation system has been installed more and more in the country and irrigation on onions seems to be a normal concept. For example, 7 out of 10 growers were irrigated several times. The plot in Kortgene is the only plot that could not be irrigated. However, no clear conclusion can be drawn from the yield figures that irrigation this year is worthwhile for higher quality kilos. This was the case in previous years.

For example, the two plots with the highest yield were irrigated twice and not even at all, respectively. The two plots with the lowest yield are both also not irrigated, of which Kortgene is one. The other plot in Beemte Broekland (Gelderland) was hit by extreme rainfall a few weeks after sowing. That had a strong influence on the plant number and was the reason why the number of tons was disappointing. It is therefore not possible to draw an unambiguous conclusion that no or less irrigation leads to lower yields.

Drawing conclusions based on soil type is also difficult, but the plot in Wezup (Drenthe) achieved the highest yield on the sandy soil. This confirms the national image that the sector had this season about onions on the sand. The smoother development at the beginning of the season on the sand provided an advantage over the onions grown on heavier soils.

Finer size sorting
The size sorting of the onions this season is better than in other years, as was evident in the field and according to growers. In previous years they have on average larger onions. Several plots do not reach 60% coarse (60mm+), while in recent years the average has been above 60% coarse. The plot in Wezup is 80% coarse this year and the plot in Beemte Broekland also turned out very coarse due to the hollow position.

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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