Chicory varieties for the early season
The chicory witloof varieties and the red chicory variety Céralie for use in the early season are shown below. Darling and Bingo are the standard chicory varieties in this segment. Jackpot and Helios are the newest developments and Céralie is currently the only red chicory variety in the list below. These varieties need a growing period of 130-150 days in the field and are intended for processing soon after the roots have been harvested. However, these varieties still need a few weeks of post-ripening after harvesting, which takes place during the cold storage of the chicory root. During the forcing phase, these varieties need a sufficiently high temperature (18-20°C) so that they can form a firm head. The forcing temperature for the red chicory variety Ceralie is slightly lower than for the chicory varieties in the same period. By varying the sowing date and therefore the harvest date of the roots, these early season varieties can cover approximately the first 3-4 months of the forcing season.
Chicory Atlas
Atlas is extremely reliable and Atlas is therefor the standard variety for early forcing, moreover, this variety is highly productive, and easy to control. ATLAS is suitable for a broad range of applications and can be forced from early in the season right through to March. Atlas is extremely suitable for loose sale, but is generally used for consumer packaging such as flow pack packaging. In conclusion, if you require certainty and high returns then you should choose ATLAS!
Key figures for Atlas witloof chicory
| Forcing period | very early season | early season | beginning mid-season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sowing period * | as early as possible | normal | normal-late |
| Quantity of seed/ha | 280-310.000 | 300-330.000 | 320-350.000 |
| Optimum number of plants/ha | ca 250.000 | 250-270.000 | 260-280.000 |
| Growing days | 140 | 150 | 160 |
| Cold storage period (roots) | 2-6 weeks | 2 weeks - 2 months | 2-3 months |
| Cold storage temperature (roots) | 0,0 °C. | 0,0 / -1 °C. | -1 °C. |
The above figures should be interpreted as trends and depend on regional growing and operating conditions.
* The minimum 24-hour temperature for sowing is 12 °C. Avoid night frost.
Chicosem is part of the Chico-group. Chicosem supplies chicory witloof seeds to professional chicory growers around the world.
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Chicosem is part of the Chico-group. Chicosem supplies chicory witloof seeds to professional chicory growers around the world.
CONTACT DETAILS
PARTNERS
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