NL: Super cyclamen with Soiltech supplements

"Root & Shoot is a unique product", according to David Damminga from Soiltech. "It is a liquid fertilizer that stimulates root growth and shoot development and also acts as an aid in stress situations such as frost, heat and transplantation. Fytaforce is a liquid product that contains an enormous diversity of useful fungi, bacteria and protozoa, that mainly increase soil resilience. In this test we used a special variant for greenhouse horticulture, Fytaforce Greenhouse Substrate."

Progressively strict requirements apply to crop protection products. There are also rules for biostimulants. "All our products fall under the Fertilizers Act. We also follow the legislation closely. That is why we are also a member of the EBIC (European Biostimulants Industry Council), on the one hand to discuss the development of European regulations in the field of biostimulants. And, on the other hand, it enables us to develop products that comply with the regulations," says David. "At the moment the European regulations for biostimulants are in the making. In the near future real steps will be taken in this field."

Via Benfried, a distributor of Soiltech, the company from Biezenmortel came into contact with Varinova, who carried out the test from September to early November. Next the durability of the cyclamen was determined by Royal FloraHolland by simulating the transport, the shopping phase and the situation at home of the consumer. "The entire process has been studied, from the nursery to the consumer. The standard fertilization of Varinova was compared with the functioning of Root & Shoot and Fytaforce and a system from another supplier with similar products." The results showed that the combination of the two products from Soiltech produces healthy, best developed and most durable cyclamen."

"The grower wants a healthy, strong plant with a beautiful color, rich flowering and a long durability. To demonstrate how our products can contribute to this, we do a lot of testing. We have a six-person R & D team that tests all our products extensively. In our own test greenhouse we very accurately carry out all sorts of tests, which we then translate, together with our distributors, into practical tests and demos such as this practical test that was set up together with Benfried and was executed by Varinova," says Damminga.