Grodan and Fluence LED Develop New Concept for Year-Round Strawberry Cultivation
In this demonstration trial, the strawberries’ growth, yield and quality will be evaluated. Both companies will work to redefine the best practices in the cultivation of high-tech everbearing strawberries.
Optimizing high-tech strawberry cultivation will have significant implications for both growers and consumers. Grodan, renowned for its growing media solutions, and Fluence, known as an innovator in LED horticultural lighting, have combined their expertise to explore the transformative possibilities for indoor strawberry cultivation. The opportunities for indoor year-round cultivation are significant, and both companies are looking to bring the benefits of year-round, fresh, high-quality strawberries to the growers and consumers.
The trial started in August, and the researchers from Wageningen University & Research will focus on the effect of EC management on the growth, yield and quality of the everbearer cultivar Favori. The partnership seeks to provide data-driven insights using the GroSens sensors of Grodan that will redefine the way strawberries are irrigated. The plants used in this trial are fresh tips, propagated in stone wool growing media at EC 2, 3 and 4 mS/cm indoors on an ebb flood system with targeted irrigation. The grow-out trial will determine the effect of young plant quality on final yield.
During the grow-out trial, various agronomic treatments will be investigated, including lighting, irrigation and climate management strategies. The results will give insights for the optimum cultivation conditions and yield. A number of events are planned to take place during 2023 and 2024 with the aim of transferring this knowledge towards growers and stakeholders in the industry.
Fluence and Grodan will post ongoing updates on this groundbreaking trial on their respective social media channels and corporate websites.
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