To increase yield and shorten the growing cycle of their flowers, Cairo & Doutcher recently invested in Roots’ RZTO system for their farm in Italy.
“As a proof of concept, the system has been installed at 0.1 hectare for now”, says Noam Dinar, sales manager and agronomist with Roots Sustainable Agricultural Technologies. Cairo & Doutcher grows and distributes summer flowers, and act as a nursery for flowers, avocado, pomegranate, hemp and trees. The company’s commercial nursery facility also supplies its seedlings, graftings, and cutting varieties to wholesale growers.
Collaboration
“We expect Cairo & Doutcher to increase Roots' RZTO system in the coming months. We have signed a LOI with them to explore RZTO distribution opportunities in Italy in the next 12 months and have great faith in this collaboration.”
Stable root zone temperature
The Root Zone Temperature Optimization (RZTO) system is able to heat the root zone during the winter and cool it during the summer (by up to 10° Celsius), maintaining the root zone temperature at a relatively stable and favorable range throughout the year. “When the soil or substrate temperature rises, oxygen availability decreases at the root zone and negatively impacts the plants' growth and productivity. By cooling the roots in a hot environment, the oxygen availability is enhanced", Noam explains.
Accelerate plant growth
"On the other hand, heating the root zone in a cold environment, will ‘wake up’ the plants and ensure plant growth is not stunted due to cold soil temperatures. Because a low, overnight temperature will cool the soil and it takes longer for the soil to heat up and for the plant to start growing. You can lose 2-3 hours per day in plant growth because of this."
Optimal temperature range
"When the root zone is outside the optimal temperature range, the micro-organism and micro-element activity, will reduce and it will result in deficiencies in nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and micro-elements such as iron occur. A healthy plant with a consistently optimal root zone temperature will be more resistant to temperature fluctuations in the canopy area, like extreme heat and frost, and more resistant to pest and disease attacks. It will also need fewer nutrients. In summary, the Roots system offers increasing yields, a shortening of the cycle duration, possibilities to grow year-round with no restriction of weather, an improvement of water and mineral uptake and stronger plants in order to cope with insect, fungus and diseases.”
For more information:
Noam Dinar, Sales Manager, Agronomist
Roots
Beit Halevy 202, Israel
Phone: +972-9-768-9995
Mobile: +972-545313472
noam@rootssat.com
www.rootssat.com
Cairo & Doutcher
Contrada Vigna Grande – Loc. Seminaristi
73043 COPERTINO (LE)
Italy
Phone: +34 -02146332
www.cairodoutcher.com