A number of live international events are helping growers worldwide to learn more about the Plant Empowerment philosophy. The series kicked off with a presentation in Kazakhstan in mid-April. The next stop for the Plant Empowerment roadshow will be Canada in mid-May, followed by two sessions in the Netherlands in June.
The Plant Empowerment philosophy helps growers worldwide to grow crops more sustainably and achieve higher yields based on the natural behavior and vigor of plants. This unique data-driven way of thinking supports the plant’s natural balances to facilitate increased production and better crop quality for growers while also enabling more efficient use of valuable resources such as water, energy, and nutrients. As a result, the Plant Empowerment philosophy provides a roadmap to both profitable and environmentally friendly horticulture.
Now that many travel restrictions have been eased following the COVID-19 pandemic, the Plant Empowerment Partners and members are taking the Plant Empowerment philosophy on the road in a series of live sessions to help growers around the world to learn more about the benefits of this approach. “It’s fantastic to finally be able to get together in person again to share insights into the benefits of the Plant Empowerment principles based on real-life examples,” says Jeannette den Boer, project manager for Plant Empowerment.
Kazakhstan
The Plant Empowerment roadshow kicked off in Kazakhstan with a presentation during the 12th International GreenHouses Exhibition in Almaty on 20 April. “The Plant Empowerment partners Hortilux, Ludvig Svensson, and Koppert organized the presentation in collaboration with the Dutch embassy in Kazakhstan,” comments Harm Ammerlaan, sales director of Hortilux. “It was a very successful session, attended by around 40 growers who were interested to hear about the opportunities for optimizing their production while saving resources thanks to the Plant Empowerment principles.”
Canada
The next stop for the Plant Empowerment roadshow is Canada, where the partners will be holding a couple of 2-day live and interactive workshops for growers from Canada and the USA (in British Colombia from 16-17 May, and in Leamington from 19-20 May). Both sessions will take a deep dive into the Plant Empowerment philosophy and highlight the potential benefits for growers based on real-life case studies, including a focus on energy savings against the backdrop of rising prices. “These sessions are almost fully booked, with around 60 people enrolled already, but we still have a handful of places available,” continues Jeannette den Boer. To secure one of the remaining places, go to: www.plantempowerment.com/event.
GreenTech Amsterdam
The final destination on the list before the northern hemisphere’s summer is the Dutch city of Amsterdam, where various Plant Empowerment Partners and members are organizing two breakfast sessions (from 08:30-11:30 h) just outside the GreenTech venue. The session on the morning of 15 June will discuss the assimilate balance (with Lumiforte & Letsgrow.com), the energy balance (with Rijk Zwaan & Hortilux), and the water balance (with Saint-Gobain Cultilene & Koppert). The session on the morning of 16 June will cover the assimilate balance (with Van der Ende & Hoogendoorn), the energy balance (with BASF & Ludvig Svensson), and the water balance (with BVB/Kekkila & Van Iperen). Both sessions are free to attend based on pre-registration (via www.plantempowerment.com/event)
