Netherlands: First redcurrants from heated greenhouse

Berrybrothers starts harvesting redcurrants from its heated greenhouses. These redcurrants are of the Junifer variety. “The flowers were very good, and that results in very nice bunches and an excellent quality,” says Nijs van Zuilen. “This week we’ll still have to look for ripe bunches. These mostly hang in the warm places high in the greenhouses, and high in the bushes where the light can reach them properly. A fun challenge for our harvesting employees.”

It’s expected that Berrybrothers will harvest redcurrant from their heated greenhouses until week 23. They will then switch to harvest from the Junifer variety from the unheated tunnels. Berrybrothers also expect the first redcurrant and blueberries from their production location in Northern Portugal in week 22 or 23. “We grow redcurrant of the Junifer variety and blueberries of the Duke variety there,” according to Nijs. “Prospects are good, and we therefore expect a good production. The Portuguese season will last until week 29.”

The recent night frost during the flowering period of soft fruit crops also caused some damage for Berrybrothers. “Especially redcurrant and early blueberries show frost damages in the crops. But now that we’ve had the setting of the flowers, we’ve been able to properly assess the bunches, and they’re looking good so far. However, that doesn’t mean the volume we’ll harvest will be as large as in previous years,” Nijs explains.

Frost damages were also seen with blackberries and raspberries. “The harvest of some plants will shift a bit because of that,” Nijs says. “We expect the first blackberry harvest from heated greenhouses in week 22, and the outdoor cultivation blackberries will be harvested from week 27. During this week, we’ll also start harvesting raspberries. Our entire production of raspberries is in tunnel greenhouses, so that we’re less dependent on the weather and better able to guarantee quality. Harvesting of raspberries will last until the first night frost in autumn, probably in October,” Nijs concludes.