Trandos Hydroponic Growers is intensifying collaboration with Cultilene
Quality is the guiding principle at Trandos Hydroponic Growers; one of the largest and most advanced propagation companies in Australia. That is why Trandos is relying on the use of RootmaXX cubes from Cultilene more and more. Since roots grow less at the bottom and more within the cube, the risk of damage during transportation is minimal, says Danny Trandos. “Also by sharing knowledge, Cultilene helps us to deliver top quality products.”
Trandos Hydroponic Growers is a real family business: the grandfather of Danny Trandos laid the foundations for the company almost eighty years ago. “Our nursery in Neerabup – about forty kilometres north of Perth – today covers 1.2 hectares of glass and is equipped with the most modern cultivation techniques,” says Danny, general manager of Trandos Hydroponic Growers. “We grow plants here all year round. The emphasis is on tomato plants, particularly vine tomatoes and specialties. We also produce pepper, melon and strawberry plants. We set a very high standard; our goal is to deliver a disease-free and uniform plant of the highest quality all year round. For example, we are GSPP certified. This international chain system for hygiene and prevention focuses on the prevention of the Clavibacter in tomatoes. Trandos Hydroponic Growers also has its own laboratory, where we can test the seed and plants for bacteria and viruses.”
Most of Trandos’ customers are located in the south of Australia. “This means that our plants have to travel thousands of kilometres. We are now specialised in long-distance transport under the right conditions; we want to make sure that the plants arrive at the grower in top condition and at the right time
Despite the continuous attention to supplying a disease-free product, the nursery was not allowed to deliver plants between January 2017 and March 2018. This had everything to do with the discovery of the tomato-potato psyllid Bactericera cockerelli in Western Australia. “This insect was not found on our farm, but in the state of Western Australia”, says Trandos. “Because the Perth region had not been faced with this before, and to prevent further spread, a quarantine area was established. The government locked down all horticultural companies, which meant that we could not supply for over a year. It was a difficult period, but in the end we came out strong. We owe this mainly to our customers, who are extremely loyal. And to prevent any such disruptions in the future, we have also taken the necessary precautions ourselves. So all vents are now equipped with an insect netting.”
Trandos has been working with plugs and cubes from Cultilene for many years. For the last few seasons more and more tomato plants have been grown in RootmaXX. “RootmaXX is a fantastic cube”, emphasises Danny Trandos. “The X-fiber fibre structure ensures fantastic root distribution throughout the cube, which means that many more roots can be found in the cube and fewer roots at the bottom under the cube. This unique characteristic helps to reduce the risk of damage during transport. This makes RootmaXX the ideal cube for the conditions under which we have to operate as an Australian propagation company: the distances in Australia are large and our plants are on the road for a long time. In addition, this product is notable for its good rooting. Our customers are also enthusiastic about RootmaXX; we get a lot of positive reactions.”
Danny Trandos is satisfied with the cooperation with and support from Cultilene. “The plugs and cubes are supplied via the distributor E.E. Muir & Sons; this runs extremely smoothly. In addition, contacts with the specialists from Cultilene have intensified in recent years. Ivan Casteels and Emiel Bronswijk of Cultilene visit Australia about three times a year to help us get the most out of the cube and achieve optimal plant growth. This is very valuable trip, because they also visit many places and therefore see a lot. They use this knowledge and experience to help us further. In other words, Cultilene enables us to deliver top quality products – thanks to its high quality substrate products, but certainly also by sharing knowledge.”
