Solutions for excellent air circulation in the greenhouse

Good air circulation is essential for many plants and crops. Two West Flanders growers therefore chose foil greenhouses from their West Flanders partner Vermako when installing their new greenhouse.

_{Text Elise Noyez   | Image AF Photography} 

Cold cultivation

When nursery Het Wilgenbroek decided six years ago to house the specialized cultivation and breeding of Helleborus in a separate nursery, a site in Hertsberge was purchased for that purpose. "There was already a glass greenhouse there," explains business manager Thierry Van Paemel. "But that wide greenhouse was built at the time for growing warm greenhouse plants. So for our Helleborus, which blooms in winter and just requires cold growing, it didn't immediately offer the ideal growing climate. The construction of a new greenhouse was imminent."

Last year, work was done on that, in partnership with Vermako. "For the construction of a new 4,000 m2 greenhouse, we were explicitly looking for a local partner," says Van Paemel. "Moreover, we had already heard very positive things about Vermako's conservatories and follow-up." Consequently, a Vermako Polyventilation 9.60 greenhouse has been standing on the grounds of the Helleborus nursery since this spring.

"The construction of this conservatory is optimal for us. Not only can both parts of the roof ventilation move independently of each other, but the greenhouse is also high. As a result, there is excellent air circulation and the climate in the greenhouse easily remains 3 to 4°C colder than outside during the summer. This is excellent for the production of our plants. In addition, this greenhouse allows us to catch a lot of wind, so the plants harden off better." Today, the old glass greenhouse is used only for breeding.

Rapid assembly

Nursery Maes-Reyns also built with Vermako in recent years, although the reason for that partnership sounds just a little more dramatic. In fact, the family business from Wevelgem got in touch with the foil conservatory constructor after a fall wind nearly destroyed an entire glass conservatory in January 2014. "Within minutes, we had seen our life's work collapse," recalls Isabelle Maes. "The damage was enormous and we were looking forward to a hellishly long process to rebuild everything." 

Vermako, however, gave the team renewed hope. "The knowledge, flexibility, speed and helpfulness were remarkable. Not only did they manage to safeguard part of the old conservatory, cover it with foil and thus reuse it, but they were also able to act very quickly. Normally you think about a new greenhouse for several years, but thanks to Vermako's advice and commitment, less than a year after the tragedy there was already a new 2.8-acre greenhouse, fully geared to automation." 

Meanwhile, to complement this Semi Ventilation 12.80, another new Vermako foil greenhouse is being built. "Here we want to protect our perennials from too humid weather in the winter," Maes said. "Therefore, above all, it had to be an airy greenhouse. So we placed it completely free-standing, and opted for a model in which the side walls can also be opened. This allows us to extend the outdoor climate into the conservatory as much as possible." In December, the new greenhouse of almost 1 ha will be put into use.