Foreign nurserymen and the EMEA director of Nova Siri Genetics speak

Strawberry seedlings of the pot plant type of Nova Siri Genetics' varieties are being distributed, with fresh strawberry seedlings continuing next week. The target countries are those of the Mediterranean basin, i.e. Southern Italy, Spain, Greece, Albania, Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia.

The varieties offered by NSG's breeding programme are Melissa, NSG 203 - Marimbella®, NSG 207 - Gioelita® and NSG 465 - Rossetta®. The multiplication was carried out by 10 licensed nurserymen of NSG located in Spain, Poland, Germany and the Netherlands, in areas characterised by special soil and climate conditions. The total planned volume is 130 million plants, 90% of which will be the fresh type and the remaining 10% the pot plant type, in line with production and market demand.

The pot plant of the NSG varieties, in fact, produces its fruit already in the last weeks of autumn, offering an advantage in terms of timing of arrival on the markets compared to the production of the fresh plant. The latter, on the other hand, starts producing in the first few days of the year in a staggered manner and lasts until May/June, making it possible to respond more satisfactorily to market demand, which grows from the spring period onwards.

Among the licensed NSG nurserymen in Spain there is Viveros California, whose EMEA Director, Antonio Infante, says: “The NSG cultivars we produce in our nurseries show positive trends in their respective market segments, contributing to the continued success of the agricultural sector in Huelva. In particular, Marimbella® has shown steady growth in the early fruit production segment. Its adaptability to the climate and its earliness of production have made it a popular choice among producers in the region, contributing to its growing recognition and demand".

Positive feedback also came from the Polish nurseries; in particular Marcin and Karolina from the Siekierska nursery stated: "This is the fourth consecutive campaign with NSG cultivars, which have developed very well in Poland. We appreciate them above all for their productivity and rusticity and this year, thanks also to innovative cultivation techniques and favourable weather conditions, we believe we will deliver excellent quality seedlings. Since mid-August, the hours of light are gradually decreasing; the plant has already reached the vegetative standstill and is ready to be uprooted”.

Once uprooted, the seedlings are carefully selected, packaged and loaded onto refrigerated trucks. Delivery to producers takes place within 48 to 60 hours, depending on the location of the customers/producers.

We also have a comment from Carmela Suriano, EMEA director of the research company, who says: "Considering the state of the nurseries and the increased market share of our varieties within the Mediterranean basin, the outlook for this campaign is quite positive. NSG's cultivars respond to different growers' needs: Marimbella® is appreciated for its earliness and productivity; Melissa® is used with excellent results in organic and zero residue systems; Rossetta®, thanks to its organoleptic characteristics and beauty of the fruit, is increasingly used to meet the demand from specialised market segments, which require large, uniformly sized fruit suitable for different types of packaging".

For the fourth consecutive year, Nova Siri Genetics will exhibit at Fruit Attraction in Madrid (3-5 October), in Hall 9 - Stand G07.

Source: FreshPlaza