De Ruiter Seeds Demo Days ; a must-attend event for the Canadian greenhouse grower

On 19 June, vegetable seed company De Ruiter will hold its annual Demo Days in Ruthven, Ontario, Canada. Thijs Peekstok, Product and Marketing Manager of the firm, gave us a small preview of the highlights that can be seen during the demo. According to him, the must-attend event of De Ruiter will provide an interesting update on the tomato and pepper breeding pipelines. “Breeders from the Netherlands and from Woodland, California, are flying in, as well as the sales team and technical specialists. Everybody attending the event will get a customised tour around the greenhouse and every question they have will be answered.”

The “De Ruiter Demo Days” are organised in many countries, such as the Netherlands, Spain, Turkey and Australia. “We have been doing it in Leamington for quite a few years and it is already an established event,” assures Thijs.

The company has a specific breeding programme for the Leamington area. “Growers here are at a similar level as in the Netherlands, but the climate is different and thus the genetic needs also differ. Some varieties overlap with the Netherlands, but others are unique for Leamington.”

“The demo greenhouses which we have combined in one location are the tomato and pepper greenhouses, and thus from those two pipelines, growers can see all the new varieties. We also have a cucumber breeding programme that is not on the same site, but also with interesting varieties.”

De Ruiter will also put the spotlights on tomato rootstocks during the demo days. “Besides the well-known rootstocks as Multifort, Maxifort, Optifort and Beaufort, we will also have the DRO138TX and DRO141TX on display. The DRO138TX gives a crop endurance while making it easy to balance a vegetative crop. The DRO141TX is getting a lot of attention throughout the region, especially in Leamington, where there are many high-tech growers who appreciate the benefits of this rootstock. “It is a rootstock that really stands out in hot summer conditions, has big potential for high yields, and is enhancing plant endurance.”

In the Beef segment, De Ruiter has a very strong presence, with varieties like Torero doing really well and some traction being achieved with the new Foronti. “We have some new Beef varieties coming out with a ribbing shape, which gives the tomato a more old-fashioned look, and we are interested to see how that will work out in the region. It can be seen as a combination between a Coeur de Boeuf and a beef tomato, with old fashioned looks but also very high yields, something that isn’t available in the market yet. 

As for the Tomato on the Vine segment, Komeett is still very strong in the Leamington area; growers really know how to force the variety to tremendous productions. As well as this, are there many trials ongoing with Merlice. Merlice’s biggest advantages are its Oidium resistance and potential for higher yields. The variety reacts well under harsh conditions and does well in the sun. Merlice behaves extremely well with a strong rootstock like the new DR0141TX, which has more power than Maxifort, but is more balanced, so it's easier for growers to get a good, balanced crop from the start.

 

The speciality tomato sector has been booming for some time and De Ruiter is ready to showcase the newest varieties that are to be launched soon. Besides the complete speciality portfolio that will be on display, special attention will go out to a new orange-coloured grape tomato variety. “It is worth noting that while Europeans generally prefer the more rounded cherry tomatoes, North America favours grape-shaped tomatoes.”

There are some interesting varieties on display from the new programme offering high yields and a long shelf life. According to Thijs, the breeders are fully aware of the growers’ needs and are doing all they can to breed in new disease resistance to the varieties. In pepper cultivation, especially during hot summers it becomes really difficult to keep the produce in good shape. `This is why De Ruiter is offering varieties that can help growers achieve better results during this period. Besides veterans like the red pepper Moraine and yellow pepper Striker, there are some new introductions available in the orange segment: DRO719PB and the DRO713PB; the former offers consistently large fruit throughout the entire season, even in hot summer conditions, and an extended shelf life. The latter is much more versatile in terms of shape, making it ideal for speciality packaging markets.

De Ruiter also breeds smaller pointed peppers and has lines available, but it does not have them on display in Leamington. “This is not only due to their market being smaller, but also to the fact that in the greenhouse where we are growing the climate is much more focused towards blocky pepper varieties, making it a real challenge to display them the way they should be displayed.”

A very important aspect to note is that all new varieties coming out of the pipeline are resistant to Tm3.

Even though they are not on display, the breeders of De Ruiter are also pleased to share the latest updates on the cucumber pipelines. Since its inception, De Ruiter has always had a strong cucumber portfolio, and in fact, one of De Ruiter’s first hybrids was a cucumber variety. “Still today, we have varieties grown on large areas, such as the Camaro or DRL-9510, and Jawell, which is a mini-cucumber. We also have Unistars, which is a cocktail/snack variety.”

Of late, the CGMMV appears to be affecting many places, which was problematic, “as we did not have a portfolio that aligned with that, but we are now starting to develop hybrids that are resistant to the virus. We are very happy to be able to provide growers with something that will help in this area”, said Thijs. He furthermore added that the high wire cultivation system is also something that is growing very rapidly and that De Ruiter take it into account in their screening programmes.