May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com 23 22 www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013 22 www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

AutomationAgromillora’s

business in providing planting material demands

production in growing media

modules that will provide an excellent root

environment in the nursery, in a stable

unit for handling, packaging and

transport. Eight years ago, the

Spanish company began to use the

Ellepot system to meet these

needs. Agromillora remains very

satisfied with their experience.

by John Sutton

in fruit. The company produces young plants of nearly twenty dif-ferent types. Peaches and nectarines were originally the most important, but the range now also includes plums, cherries, apricots, apples, citrus fruits, kiwi fruit, berries and several sorts of nuts. Most of these are sold as micrografted trees, (trademarked name Micrograft), and almost four hundred combina-tions of scion variety and rootstock are offered. Among facilities at the headquarters site is a computerised grafting room. Agromillora also supplies grape vines to growers in Spain. In association with the world-leading specialist Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo (VCR).

Olive treesAround forty per cent of the world’s olives are produced in Spain, making the country a natural base for

Agromillora. Founded in 1986, the company now has around five hun-dred employees worldwide. There are two affiliated companies in Spain, and overseas a further nine, three in South America, and others in the USA, Australia, Turkey and North Africa. Total world olive production is esti-mated to occupy nearly 100, 000 sq km of land, an area well over twice the size of The Netherlands. Both production and consumption of ol-ives is growing fast in countries far from the traditional Mediterranean heartland of the fruit. Through-out the developed world there is a rapidly growing appreciation of the health-promoting nature of olive oil, a key feature in the typical Mediterranean diet.This is driving increased demand, while another important step in boosting the need for young olive trees is a large change in growing

The young plants are robotically placed into planting holes that have been drilled into the larger Ellepots, 60mm diameter and 100mm high. These are already in specially designed trays, allowing the plants just the right space for their contin-ued development. The roots, un-disturbed by the move, quickly run out through the short-life sleeving paper of the original small Ellepots into the fresh growing medium of the Jumbo Ellepots. In these they grow on for sale as young trees 30-40cm high, each with a single stem supported by a cane. The EP grade Ellepot paper used has a life of eight to twelve months before natural decomposition in the soil.

Root environmentThe same final size of Ellepot is used for some of the rootstocks that are to be micrografted by Agromil-lora, to produce young trees ready for final planting. The company also supplies large quantities of rootstocks to nurseries, and these are grown in smaller Ellepots, 40mm diameter and 50mm high.“We are growing roots”, says Agromillora technical manager Joan Torrents Pallarès. “If they have good conditions while the plants are with us, the trees will grow well when they are planted out in the field. If we choose the right substrate, and calibrate our Ellepot machines to maintain the correct pressure, we provide a dependably

good root environment.” He adds, “The ideal physical properties in our growing media combined with the use of well-designed trays, guarantee perfect drainage.”

200,000 plants per dayEllepot machines can run fast without loss of quality, enabling a throughput of up to 200,000 plants per day on Agromillora’s largest nursery.Plant stress is minimal when they are removed from the nursery, for packing and transport to custom-ers. No root breakage occurs, and all of the growing medium is re-tained in place, bonded by the root system. For the customer, planting speeds are high, and when planting is complete, there is no plastic waste product left behind for disposal. Most importantly, plant roots are undisturbed during planting, and establishment in the new environ-ment is rapid.

Modern science and (Ellegaard) technologyThe success of the Agromillora Group comes from the application of modern science and technology to the production of some of the world’s oldest and most important fruit crops. Careful selection of the best clones of the most valuable varieties already in the market place is combined with modern techniques of virus testing, disease elimination from infected material, and in vitro multiplication. Work in laboratory conditions is afterwards backed up by strictly controlled growing environments for mother plants, cuttings and newly grafted material. All this brings to producers a qual-ity of young plant far in advance of anything available in the past. For the future, the company has a forward-looking policy of collabo-ration with universities, research institutions and private breeders, in Spain, Brazil, Russia, France, Chile and the USA. This will play an ever more important part in maintain-ing success for the company, and for its many customers in every continent. |||

practice. In Agromillora trials, six varieties have been identified as suitable for high density plant-ing. These share features such as naturally dwarf habit and precocity in cropping, resulting in economic yields while the trees are still young. The hedge-style planting and prun-ing allows the use of highly efficient over-the-row mechanical harvesting machinery.

Ellepot systemThe company’s business in provid-ing planting material demands pro-duction in growing media modules that will provide an excellent root environment in the nursery, in a stable unit for handling, packaging and transport. Eight years ago, Agromillora began to use the Ellepot system to meet these needs. The company now has six of the machines designed by the Danish company Ellegaard at their sites in Spain. Another nine are used by their affiliated companies in other countries, from Turkey on the edge of Europe, to far-away Brazil and Chile.

Step-Up systemNewly rooted olive cuttings are pot-ted into 20mm diameter Ellepots, 40mm high. After approximately six weeks, partly in acclimatisation conditions in polythene greenhous-es, the well established young plants are potted into Jumbo Ellepots, using the Step-Up system.

The Agromillora Group does what it does on a grand scale. Currently it supplies

forty-five million young plants a year to growers across the world. Among them are up to fifteen mil-lion olive trees, each labelled with the company’s Olint trade mark. It is the largest user anywhere of in vitro propagation technology for fruit. From its production labora-tory at its headquarters at Subirats, near Barcelona, over ten million plants a year are produced. In ad-dition to olives, twenty rootstock varieties for fruits are included in the Agromillora product range. Five of them are of their own breeding, and are sold under the Rootpac trademark.

FruitStone fruit rootstocks are just a part, although an important one, of Agromillora’s much wider interests

The Ellepot system on the grand scale

From Agromillora’s production laboratory at its headquarters at Subirats, near Barcelona, over ten million plants a year are produced.

Newly rooted olive cuttings are potted into 20mm diameter Ellepots, 40mm high. After approximately six weeks, partly in acclimatisation conditions in polythene greenhouses, the well established young plants are potted into Jumbo Ellepots, using the Step-Up system.

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com 23 22 www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013 22 www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

AutomationAgromillora’s

business in providing planting material demands

production in growing media

modules that will provide an excellent root

environment in the nursery, in a stable

unit for handling, packaging and

transport. Eight years ago, the

Spanish company began to use the

Ellepot system to meet these

needs. Agromillora remains very

satisfied with their experience.

by John Sutton

in fruit. The company produces young plants of nearly twenty dif-ferent types. Peaches and nectarines were originally the most important, but the range now also includes plums, cherries, apricots, apples, citrus fruits, kiwi fruit, berries and several sorts of nuts. Most of these are sold as micrografted trees, (trademarked name Micrograft), and almost four hundred combina-tions of scion variety and rootstock are offered. Among facilities at the headquarters site is a computerised grafting room. Agromillora also supplies grape vines to growers in Spain. In association with the world-leading specialist Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo (VCR).

Olive treesAround forty per cent of the world’s olives are produced in Spain, making the country a natural base for

Agromillora. Founded in 1986, the company now has around five hun-dred employees worldwide. There are two affiliated companies in Spain, and overseas a further nine, three in South America, and others in the USA, Australia, Turkey and North Africa. Total world olive production is esti-mated to occupy nearly 100, 000 sq km of land, an area well over twice the size of The Netherlands. Both production and consumption of ol-ives is growing fast in countries far from the traditional Mediterranean heartland of the fruit. Through-out the developed world there is a rapidly growing appreciation of the health-promoting nature of olive oil, a key feature in the typical Mediterranean diet.This is driving increased demand, while another important step in boosting the need for young olive trees is a large change in growing

The young plants are robotically placed into planting holes that have been drilled into the larger Ellepots, 60mm diameter and 100mm high. These are already in specially designed trays, allowing the plants just the right space for their contin-ued development. The roots, un-disturbed by the move, quickly run out through the short-life sleeving paper of the original small Ellepots into the fresh growing medium of the Jumbo Ellepots. In these they grow on for sale as young trees 30-40cm high, each with a single stem supported by a cane. The EP grade Ellepot paper used has a life of eight to twelve months before natural decomposition in the soil.

Root environmentThe same final size of Ellepot is used for some of the rootstocks that are to be micrografted by Agromil-lora, to produce young trees ready for final planting. The company also supplies large quantities of rootstocks to nurseries, and these are grown in smaller Ellepots, 40mm diameter and 50mm high.“We are growing roots”, says Agromillora technical manager Joan Torrents Pallarès. “If they have good conditions while the plants are with us, the trees will grow well when they are planted out in the field. If we choose the right substrate, and calibrate our Ellepot machines to maintain the correct pressure, we provide a dependably

good root environment.” He adds, “The ideal physical properties in our growing media combined with the use of well-designed trays, guarantee perfect drainage.”

200,000 plants per dayEllepot machines can run fast without loss of quality, enabling a throughput of up to 200,000 plants per day on Agromillora’s largest nursery.Plant stress is minimal when they are removed from the nursery, for packing and transport to custom-ers. No root breakage occurs, and all of the growing medium is re-tained in place, bonded by the root system. For the customer, planting speeds are high, and when planting is complete, there is no plastic waste product left behind for disposal. Most importantly, plant roots are undisturbed during planting, and establishment in the new environ-ment is rapid.

Modern science and (Ellegaard) technologyThe success of the Agromillora Group comes from the application of modern science and technology to the production of some of the world’s oldest and most important fruit crops. Careful selection of the best clones of the most valuable varieties already in the market place is combined with modern techniques of virus testing, disease elimination from infected material, and in vitro multiplication. Work in laboratory conditions is afterwards backed up by strictly controlled growing environments for mother plants, cuttings and newly grafted material. All this brings to producers a qual-ity of young plant far in advance of anything available in the past. For the future, the company has a forward-looking policy of collabo-ration with universities, research institutions and private breeders, in Spain, Brazil, Russia, France, Chile and the USA. This will play an ever more important part in maintain-ing success for the company, and for its many customers in every continent. |||

practice. In Agromillora trials, six varieties have been identified as suitable for high density plant-ing. These share features such as naturally dwarf habit and precocity in cropping, resulting in economic yields while the trees are still young. The hedge-style planting and prun-ing allows the use of highly efficient over-the-row mechanical harvesting machinery.

Ellepot systemThe company’s business in provid-ing planting material demands pro-duction in growing media modules that will provide an excellent root environment in the nursery, in a stable unit for handling, packaging and transport. Eight years ago, Agromillora began to use the Ellepot system to meet these needs. The company now has six of the machines designed by the Danish company Ellegaard at their sites in Spain. Another nine are used by their affiliated companies in other countries, from Turkey on the edge of Europe, to far-away Brazil and Chile.

Step-Up systemNewly rooted olive cuttings are pot-ted into 20mm diameter Ellepots, 40mm high. After approximately six weeks, partly in acclimatisation conditions in polythene greenhous-es, the well established young plants are potted into Jumbo Ellepots, using the Step-Up system.

The Agromillora Group does what it does on a grand scale. Currently it supplies

forty-five million young plants a year to growers across the world. Among them are up to fifteen mil-lion olive trees, each labelled with the company’s Olint trade mark. It is the largest user anywhere of in vitro propagation technology for fruit. From its production labora-tory at its headquarters at Subirats, near Barcelona, over ten million plants a year are produced. In ad-dition to olives, twenty rootstock varieties for fruits are included in the Agromillora product range. Five of them are of their own breeding, and are sold under the Rootpac trademark.

FruitStone fruit rootstocks are just a part, although an important one, of Agromillora’s much wider interests

The Ellepot system on the grand scale

From Agromillora’s production laboratory at its headquarters at Subirats, near Barcelona, over ten million plants a year are produced.

Newly rooted olive cuttings are potted into 20mm diameter Ellepots, 40mm high. After approximately six weeks, partly in acclimatisation conditions in polythene greenhouses, the well established young plants are potted into Jumbo Ellepots, using the Step-Up system.