"This summer, all of Bredefleur is in full LED"

There were already 6 hectares of lily cultivation under LED lights at Dutch nursery Bredefleur, and now another 9 hectares are being added. "By summer, the entire Bredefleur will be in full LED," notes Peter Evers with satisfaction. The company is again choosing Mechatronix, and this time for the latest four-channel fixtures. "It seems that four-channel is the final destination in LED. With this, we are prepared for the future."

Market Revival
The last SON-T lamps are currently being removed from Bredefleur's greenhouses in Moerkapelle and Luttelgeest, and teams are busy installing the new four-channel Mechatronix fixtures. This makes the company the first lily grower to offer a full range under LED lighting: large and small-flowered, oriental types, and double-flowered.

The majority of Bredefleur's assortment is protected in sales, for which long-term agreements have been made with breeders, bulb growers, and forcers. This way, the product enters the market in a controlled manner. "We want supply and demand to remain in balance so that the entire chain can earn a healthy income," says Peter Evers, who, together with his brothers Thomas, Levi, and Ruben, forms the management of the family business.

Current market developments confirm his vision: after two disappointing years, there is a revival in the market for the small-flowered varieties. "After Covid, flower sales in Western Europe have been more challenging, and particularly the small-flowered varieties have struggled economically."

The market for large-flowered varieties, which mainly find a market in the former Eastern Bloc, remained stable. Adjusting the assortment was considered. "But we are not ones to stop. We have long-term agreements with our suppliers and want to be a reliable partner for them as well. We have tapped into new channels for the small-flowered varieties, and we are now seeing them pick up."

LED learning curve© BredefleurThis entire assortment will henceforth be grown under LED lights. And although the brothers fully support the choice, the SON-T will still be missed. "You can grow lilies perfectly under LED, I'm convinced of that. But it comes with challenges."

The company has been working with LED for more than five years now, first in small-scale trials and later on a larger scale. "SON-T came closer to natural daylight in terms of light spectrum. That recipe wasn't so bad after all. With LED, it's all about efficiency, and as a result, there's little green light in it. Now the challenge lies with my brother to find the old SON-T recipe and apply more natural light."

Right: Peter Evers

The transition to LED brought a learning curve with it. "We've noticed that there's a higher risk of leaf burn. Lily leaves are very sensitive and can harden in the final stage of cultivation, which reduces ornamental value. If that happens, you have to pick the leaves, which brings extra labor costs. We also had to deal with this with SON-T, but with LED, you generally apply more mmol, and that seems to exacerbate the issue. You're demanding more from the plant."

Much knowledge has been gained in this area over the past years. "We also participate in collective research on LED and gain a lot of knowledge from it. It has also emerged that you can't really grow lilies well under very high micromoles. Now we have a high-efficiency lamp that delivers 130 to a maximum of 140 mmol everywhere."

Cost-wise a no-brainer
Cost-wise, investing in LED is a no-brainer. "The efficiency of SON-T versus LED goes from 1.9 to 4.0, which is almost double. If you can save three tons of gas, and that's the direction it was heading with the daily price at 45 cents, then you're robbing yourself if you don't hang LED. You do miss some heat and heat radiation that you have to generate, but there's no working against this. In terms of cultivation, it's sometimes still a search, and I hear my brother grumble occasionally," he laughs. "But I handle the administration and need to keep the bank account filled."

Moreover, he is also realistic in his expectations. "We've been growing under LED for five years now. First in trials, then increasingly on a larger scale. But it took us nearly twenty years to perfect SON-T. We're learning a lot, but we're not there yet."

Blue light
The new four-channel fixture anticipates this by offering the possibility to add blue light. "We found three-channel to be fine. Now we also have blue light available. What exactly it will do for more efficient cultivation or quality, we don't know yet," admits Peter. "But the price difference was minimal, and LED research is developing rapidly. We want to capitalize on that." He compares it to an iPhone: "In recent years, not much has changed, and the functions have remained the same. That's how it is with LED in my eyes. The efficiencies are now at 4.0, and that's relatively high, although there will probably be some more to come. And it seems that four-channel is the final destination."

This is partly why the choice fell on Mechatronix again, who could deliver this lamp as early as summer. "For a good price-quality ratio," Peter adds, describing himself as a critical customer when it comes to purchasing. "When I need something, I'm in the buyer's seat, and they certainly had to do their best. Then it's nice for both sides to be able to do such an assignment." Moreover, he is pleased with the mentality of the Mechatronix team. "Especially with the supply problems in the LED sector, I choose reliability, and they have shown that. Last fall, we had trouble with the drivers, and it was resolved within three months. Then you stand your ground and show that you have a commitment to a company. That aligns with Bredefleur's DNA: if there's an issue, you solve it from A to Z."

For more information:
MechaTronix
Tel: +31 (0)76 7901610
horti@mechatronix-europe.com
www.horti-growlight.com

Bredefleur
info@bredefleur.nl
www.bredefleur.nl