New soilless strawberry crops that can be adjusted up to three levels have been completed in Basilicata, Calabria, and Puglia by Combimetal Carrera, the company that designs and manufactures such innovative systems that help workers during operations, FreshPlaza informs.
“Nine systems have been installed over the past two months in the Matera, Cosenza, and Lecce provinces, covering over ten hectares in total. Assembly operations started in July and ended a few days ago, and now operators are completing the transplants,” commented company manager Antonio Carrera.
The new systems are mostly dual-row. For Combimetal Carrera, the fall of 2023 was foretold by the growth in spring pre-orders, also thanks to the drop in the price of raw materials. “Albeit gradually, strawberry growing companies are acquiring better knowledge as regards the advantages of soilless crops. Our clients are reporting a percentage of plant decline that is almost zero, compared with what happens with the traditional method.”
Combimetal systems are characterized by 2 or 3 adjustable rows supported by 2.2-2.5 mm steel rods, 5 mm hot galvanized brackets, and fixing bases so that the rods do not sink into the ground under the weight. These systems help save labor and guarantee plant and fruit uniformity as well as a cleaner place of production.
“After studying for two years, we assembled the first system with 5 rows of trays instead of 4 in a greenhouse with five-meter wide arches. We managed to achieve this result by reducing the space between the rows in a way that would not damage the production due to, e.g., lower light conditions, and that would not hinder operators during their activities.”
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