The summer is over and demand for radish is dwindling. Fresh salads make way for soft fruit, and consumers opt for a hot meal. This does not mean radish growers are idle. They are making use of the intermezzo for a thorough clean-up of the greenhouses.
The garden of Daily Fresh Radish in Naaldwijk is 'winterproof'. The glass is cleaned for maximum light intake and the heating tubes have been painted.
The heating tubes are painted in fresh white.
All eyes on the soil
But the soil, on which radish is grown all year round, gets the most attention. John Grootscholten: "Because we are sowing the same crop nine times a year, the soil is suffering. To guarantee quality and reliability of our product, we must take good care of it."
"In August we started to decrease our sowing, to create room to clean out a square." A layer of cocos peat is applied, after which the soil is loosened up, steamed, and decontaminated.
There is a demand for radish all year round, so the garden is never completely empty. "Now we are sowing extra to fill up the empty spaces, and soon the garden is full again."
Applying cocos peat
The soil is being loosened up...
...and steamed.
Certified
"We are doing everything to grow environmentally friendly. There are less means now, so that is a real challenge. We are pretty proud of our certificates. We started with GlobalGAP, after which Grasp, Milieukeur, Plantet Proof and Sedex followed. Customers are requesting a product that is grown in the right way."
Good season
John is very happy with the past season. "And I would be even happier if next year is the same. The cold spring is good for the growth of radish, after which a summer with lots of sun and high temperatures followed. That is always good for consumption. People choose for dinner salads with radish. The market has been quiet and stable, and we seldom have large profits or big losses, but this season was great. Prices can collapse in September/October, but this year luckily not."
Vlog
Looking back at the past season cannot be done without naming the vlog by John's son Renzo. Renzo vlogged. for a day about his vacation job at the company for LTO Glaskracht. He showed the renovation of the company and how radishes are grown sustainable.
"Renzo won a prize with his vlog. We went water skiing with the entire company and went out to dinner. The vlog was fun for everyone, for LTO Glaskracht because it was viewed so often, for Renzo, because it made him feel famous for a moment, and it was fun for us of course. With over 19.000 views, our company got quite a lot of air time."
Voor meer informatie:
Daily Fresh Radish B.V.
Hoge Geest 25
2671 LK Naaldwijk
John: 0031 (0)6 51 59 28 38
Dennis: 0031 (0)6 54 24 44 14
F: 0031 (0)174 64 10 79
E: info@dailyfreshradish.nl
www.dailyfreshradish.nl