Again this year, in Vivero el Pinar we have been planning and working hard to produce a healthy and high quality plant, capable of meeting the needs of our customers. Our expertise, with over 30 years of experience, and our weather condition at the plots, are key factors when making every year the height nursery.

About 50 ha have been planted in different points of the province of Segovia, and the variety that occupies the largest surface is Splendor. The fact of having started early the plantation, will allow us to obtain early and good quality runners for the subsequent production of pot plant, mini pot and tray plant.

The choice of varieties and formats responds to the results obtained in the previous season, the data recorded in our test plots as well as the experiences of our customers, which also provide an important source of information.

To carry out the nursery, we have the most modern means in the market, as well as the use of the leader techniques in the nursery industry that help us to execute a proper disinfection, optimum planting and crop development. These plants, which will be harvested around October, predict a superb best-quality strawberry production during the autumn-winter 2012-2013.

In April this year, unlike last year, Splendor not only did not downloaded fruiting, but also has produced continuously and without oscillations, surpassing all expectations and projections.

Dry weather and strong winds in mid April have led to a rapid ripening of the fruit, coinciding with a general fall in prices, causing the commitment of the sector by varieties as Splendor: early and well-behaved throughout the campaign. It thus ensures success, to achieve together in the same variety earliness, quality and total production.

Another aspect to highlight of Splendor, in this period of low prices, is that it involves lower collection costs than other varieties, so the profitability of the plantations is maintained, even with low prices.

With a view to next season, the reserves of plants by farmers continue apace; these are days where the thought is to choose the best variety and best nursery, coinciding with the last days of planting in height nurseries.

Antonino Vázquez

The planting of the strawberry varieties –bare root- for the fruit season 2012 has began. Along with our test plot, we have reached the 5 has of plants placed on substrate. The proper choice of varieties is one of the keys to success on the campaign. Later, we will begin with the trayplant, to be concluding at the end of this month. We are overcoming the inclemency of the weather, usual for this period of the year, to give the best care to the plants. This is the beginning of the fruit that we will find on the market from May.

At this time, exceeded the campaign equator, the variety SPLENDOR continues standing out in Huelva and confirming its good behaviour throughout the strawberry campaign.

Yields are higher than previous years; and it is being normal to find in many plantations, at March 31st, average yields around 500 grams per plant, from one end to another of the province. This confirms that at this time, Splendor is the variety most ” jack-of-all-trades” and more consistent and reliable in terms of production, from all the varieties that are planted in Huelva. All thanks to the know-how and exquisite care of farmers and technicians.

Splendor remains the preferred in the Spanish market. This year, the smaller size of the early fruit, due to the continued flowering, has ensured that farmers rely on Splendor for all kind of presentations and special works, done to the most demanding markets.

Although the rains finally came in recent days, and the cold that has been so detrimental to some plantations has moved away, there are not special phytosanitary problems, except for perhaps the rapid emergence this year of “trips” in some areas.

In recent weeks, coinciding with the highest peaks of production, the variety Splendor brings out one of its greatest strengths: the rapid collection and great performance by collector. This is an aspect to consider in times of maximum work and production, lowering costs of collection and overtaking here, clearly, the other varieties in the province.

The early production data, the uniformity of plantations and relatively good prices achieved so far, make that both farmers and growers, bet on Splendor for next campaign, coinciding with the beginning of the planting in height nurseries.

This week we have started to plan tour strawberry plant nursery. We are going to plant 70 ha (172.97 acre), divided into different plots in the province of Segovia. Prior to this task, at the end of last month, we disinfected the plots that are being planted now; so a proper plant health in the nursery is ensured.

Although the strawberry season 2011-2012 is not finished yet, we have already begun to prepare the coming one. The planting will be phased and it will last 4 weeks.

At this point in the campaign, its early part can be understood as finalised; the fact is that in March starts its bulk in Huelva. The most classical people say that the campaign is starting, for the rest is just continuing.. but we all hope the same: that the prices remain stable.

After a plantation with high temperatures, where thanks to the know-how and exquisite care of the farmers we did not see any root problem, in these weeks we have observed how all the varieties have developed in a special advanced way; in general it is said that probably 3 weeks ahead last year. The production is still high despite the cold in the last couple of weeks, which caused a considerably slowed down the plantations.

Splendor means already more than the 35% of the production in Huelva and therefore it is a referent in the market. Again this year the production started in the last days of 2011 and from then to now has been increasing, keeping good quality in the fruit except punctual problems with soft tip due to the significant temperature contrasts between day and night linked with dark days. The rest of the production is being really good, and we have found several fields with averages higher than 280 g per plant (1st category) at this point.

Regarding markets, Splendor remains the favourite in the national market, where its excellent flavour, perfect coloration and size are ideal; on the other hand, every time, more European supermarkets are asking for this variety to their farmers in Spain and Morocco, as this variety is more and more appreciated in the most exigent markets as England, France or Germany.

The 7th International Strawberry Symposium has been held in Changping district (Beijing, China) and there we have gone from Vivero el Pinar in order to participate and being able to share everything that was happening with our clients and friends. Accordingly, we launched www.misfresas.com where commentaries about our impressions have been published; now you can find there a summary with the best tweets and pictures of everything we have seen.

We have taken this excellent opportunity to meet up again with many international colleagues and get updated about the last technical innovations and researches that are being carried out not only in China but also all around the world. In our opinion, the result of the Symposium has been more than positive and we are glad to being able to share with you our feelings.

Cheers and Strawberries!

We are happy to announce you that we are attending to the 7th Strawberry Symposium that is taking place in Beijing(China) from the 18th to the 22nd of february. Like in other editions the Symposium hosted by the International Society for Horticultural Science is the meeting point for the strawberry industry,  at the Symposium we will have the great opportunity to connect with the principal academics and professionals of the sector.

El Pinar team wants to approach all our friends to the Symposium, to do it we launch a micro site where you can follow everything that happen in the symposium,  the only thing that you have to do is visit www.misfresas.com regularly,  we will upload during the talks and visits comments and pictures of what we live at the ISS.

We hope you enjoy following our adventure by Beijing.

Cheers and Strawberries!

Today has started the campaign of  strawberry plant in our nursery facilities. At 5 in the morning more than 480 workers have begun to select and pack the plants that we are  already sending to our clients.