Enkhuizen, The Netherlands
July 17, 2015
From 6th till 11th July Enza Zaden Brazil organised the 2015 Short Day Onion Tour and Symposium. The program was a combination of field trips, presentations and a symposium in the area of Uberlandia.
Nick Mendham, Portfolio Manager Onion: "The group visitors during this week consisted of onion growers, seed sales representatives, agronomists and breeders from all major Short Day onion growing regions in the world, including South and Central America, Asia , Australia, South Africa and the Middle East. We came together to share knowledge on three main vision points: the Enza Zaden Short Day Onion range, Short Day Onion machine harvest and assorted facets of onion production. Our vision was not only to impact the businesses of the tour participants, but the Short Day Onion industries as a whole from each country represented.”
Symposium
During the symposium on Wednesday a number of participants and guest speakers presented. Three growers from Australia and South Africa presented on machine harvesting of SD onions and some clear points came through from each. “To successfully machine harvest Short Day Onions you need to plan the whole system, from soil preparation to harvest and curing facilities,” said Peter Shadbolt, a grower from Victoria, Australia. “Clods in the soil are one of the biggest problems for machine harvesting Short Day Onions, which are softer than Intermediates. We apply 2 tons of gypsum per hectare to our soil before sowing to break down clods and prevent crusting”.
Mendham: "It was a very special week. I would like to extend a big thank you to Enza Zaden Brazil for organizing the event, and to all participants who travelled a long way to join us. I was honoured by the amount of information sharing and openness between participants and locals. It is the right time to start sharing information to make big improvements in Short Day Onion production in Brazil and in all Short Day Onion production areas in the world.”
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