Text: Maria Rozhkova
Celery production in Russia is gaining momentum
Until recently, stalked and root celery in Russia was grown only by summer residents. There was no point in organizing industrial production - it would be difficult for small farmers to withstand competition with foreign manufacturers. But, as they say, there would be no happiness, but misfortune helped: the pro-embargo, introduced in response to anti-Russian sanctions, cut off celery supplies from many countries. Thanks to this, Russian agricultural producers paid attention to this new culture for them.
Of course, Russia is still far from the volumes of traditional celery-producing countries. According to Andrey Ivashkin, a specialist in root and petiole celery and leeks of the company "Raik Zwaan Rus", at the moment in Russia under root and petiole celery
occupied no more than 300 hectares, while in Europe only petiole is grown on 16 thousand hectares: 4,6 thousand hectares in Italy, 3,1 thousand hectares in France, 2,1 thousand hectares in Spain (for export to Great Britain ) and about 1,4 thousand hectares in Germany. Petiole celery is also popular in the United States, China, Japan, Israel, and the Scandinavian countries.
Planting area of petiole and root celery:
Russia 300 ha
Italy 4,6 thousand hectares
France 3,1 thousand hectares
Spain 2,1 thousand ha
Germany 1,4 thousand ha
Vladimir Matusevich, head of the Maentak Matusevichy farm (Republic of Belarus, Minsk region), was one of the first to grow celery on the territory of the former Soviet Union. He founded his family business in 1988. “We began to grow all the rare and little widespread in the territory of the former USSR crops that were long known in the West - celery (root and petiole), leeks, all types of cabbage (Savoy, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi) - all to surprise consumers, recalls Vladimir Matusevich. "Then people really wanted to try freedom and other assortment." At first, the demand for unique products was very active, and then it slowed down a little - people were fed up with curiosities and returned to their traditional cabbage, says the head of the farm.
"Maentak" Matusevichy "is only 20-30 hectares of land. Of these, no more than 1,5–2 hectares were occupied under celery in different years. “Previously, we grew more root celery, but in recent years difficulties began to arise with its implementation, therefore, if we plant celery, it is mainly petiolate,” says Vladimir Matusevich. The farmer noted that he knows only one more celery producer in the territory of the Republic of Belarus. “But in recent years I have heard about very large-scale projects in Russia,” he said.
The impetus for the industrial cultivation of celery in Russia was undoubtedly the sanctions, Andrei Ivashkin is convinced. “This culture has long been popular among the population due to its beneficial properties. And if earlier celery was mainly imported, now more and more agricultural producers produce it in their fields, - he states. "Before the sanctions, this crop was grown only by summer residents, there was no industrial distribution." Most of the acreage is occupied by stalked celery in the Krasnodar Territory and Crimea, and the root
more often grown in Central Russia. Petiolate is mainly grown outdoors, but it is also possible to grow in greenhouses in hydroponics.
Celery production is gaining popularity every year. “The growing interest in such a culture as celery is associated with a tendency for a significant spread, primarily in large metropolitan areas of Russia, of a healthy lifestyle (HLS), which provides for the inclusion of a number of low-calorie vegetable crops in the diet,” says Sergey Kutko (Republic of Crimea; vegetable growing). “Our company is the largest producer of a number of medicinal herbs, so the topic of human health care is not new to us.”
The head of the farm Vladimir Parkhomenko explains the choice of stalked celery as one of the main crops of the Agroleto company (Krasnodar Territory) by the constantly growing demand from supermarket chains, as well as by regular requests from trading partners to grow this product. Agroleto is the largest stalked celery producer in Russia. “We are engaged in the cultivation and pre-marketing of several crops - radishes, leeks and stalked celery,” says Vladimir Parkhomenko. "These are quite marginal crops, if everything is done correctly: from the choice of a variety or hybrid adapted to our specific growing conditions, to washing and packaging the product, ready to be placed on the shelf chilled."
Every year more and more agricultural producers try to grow celery in their fields. So, in the "Farmers Agrosoyuz" For the Motherland "(Moscow region; growing salads on 60 hectares, cabbage, celery, leeks and other crops in the open field) this year they have grown and harvested the first crop of celery. The total area under root and petiole celery was 4,2 hectares. “We strive to work as much as possible with the assortment: buyers need new crops, we are trying to grow them,” said the chief agronomist of the farm Sergey Korolev. - As with any new culture, they were afraid that there would not be enough knowledge. However, the first year gave very good results, so we can safely say that we liked the culture and we plan to expand the area under celery next year. "
Seedlings are the basis of everything
The most important thing in celery production is to grow seedlings, because how the plant develops will depend on the quality of the planting material, recalls Andrey Ivashkin.
The main difficulty is that the celery seeds are very small. “For the same reason, this crop is difficult to grow by direct sowing,” warns a specialist at Raik Tswaan Rus, “small seeds germinate slowly”.
Usually celery is grown at several times: planting seedlings in open ground can be done from mid-May to July. This is exactly what Maentak Matusevichy does. “We plant celery in three stages: we sow the first batch of seeds for seedlings in March, the second -
at the beginning of April, and the third - at the end of April, - shared the head of the farm Vladimir Matusevich. “This allows us to harvest celery in Belarus until mid-October.”
... this the culture is difficult to grow by direct sowing, small
seeds germinate slowly
“The algorithm for growing by seedlings is simple and straightforward,” says Andrey Ivashkin. "First, they grow seedlings: they sow them in boxes, then they dive into cassettes or cups, and then they are planted in open ground." Seeds for seedlings are usually sown on March 1, seedlings appear on the 10th day. The first 7 days after this, it is necessary to maintain a temperature of 14-18 ° C so that the seedlings do not stretch out.
“From March 17, you can raise the daytime temperature to 21 ° C, and the night - up to 15 ° C,” he continues. - Basically, throughout this period, boxes with seedlings are in film greenhouses, as a rule, heated. And on April 1, when 2 true leaves appear, they are transplanted into cassettes or cups with peat. " They begin to harden seedlings in the open air approximately from May 5, and on the 10th, when the plants are 70–80 days old and they have 4–5 true leaves, they are already planted in the field. These stages and terms are typical for both stalked and root celery.
Specialist "Raik Tswaan Rus" draws attention to the fact that ready-made seedlings should be well removed from cassettes. Seedlings are planted manually or using transplanting equipment. At this stage, it is extremely important not to deeply deepen the plants so as not to fill up the growth point, says Andrey Ivashkin. Usually, 1 to 65 thousand plants of stalked celery are planted per hectare (depending on soil and climatic conditions, availability
relevant technology and market needs).
“High-quality celery seedlings are not just one of the most important, but the most important factor in obtaining a quality marketable product at the time of harvest,” insists Santiago Gaston, celery specialist at Rijk Zwaan Iberica. - Spain is the largest producer
stalked celery in the winter-spring cycle and supplies products to many European markets - to Germany, France, to northern Europe. In Spain, celery seedlings are grown by specialized greenhouse plants. The farmer receives a hardened, ready-to-plant plant of optimal size (55–65 days of vegetation). We work exclusively with precision primed stalked celery seeds. Such seeds germinate much faster and more amicably in the seedling department, which significantly saves time for obtaining high-quality seedlings. "
The area for celery is prepared in advance so that there are no weeds. The ideal predecessors - crops for which organic fertilizers were applied - are cabbage. After planting seedlings in the field, it is possible to use growth stimulants, if necessary. The growing season of this crop is 140–180 days (from germination), and the average yield of petiole celery is 40–70 t / ha. Moreover, the maximum
the yield was recorded in the USA - 96 t / ha.
The celery is harvested when the stalks are dense, without voids. However, you must have time to remove it before the fibers become tough and coarse. Shoots are cut by hand with a special knife, separating them from the root collar at soil level. The upper leaves can also be shortened. For sale to the end customer, petiolate celery is cut with a petiole length of 27–35 cm and a weight of 150 to 800 g. Before selling, the plants are cleaned
from unnecessary side shoots. Commercial processing consists in removing leaves and unripe petioles, sizing, packing and placing them in refrigerating chambers for cooling at a temperature of 0 ° C and a relative humidity of at least 98%. In specialized packaging with perforation, this product can be stored under specified conditions for 3-4 weeks.
During the harvesting of root celery, the tops are first cut off, then the root crop itself is dripped in (this can be done mechanically). “Then the root is cleaned and put into a container, which is put into storage,” says Andrey Ivashkin. “It is better to store root celery with lateral roots so that the infection does not get to the cut sites, and before shipping the client should be washed, stripped of lateral roots and polished, if necessary.”
Warm and humid
Soil and climatic conditions play an important role in the cultivation of celery. “The most suitable soils for this culture are loams with good moisture content,” says Andrey Ivashkin. "At the same time, drip irrigation is often used in the south." By the way, when growing on drip
light sandy soils are also suitable for watering. Celery also shows good productivity on loams, light loams and sandy loam soils. Dense soils flooded with water are definitely not suitable for this culture, warns a specialist from "Raik Tswaan Rus".
According to the experience of Sergei Korolev, only good unheated areas of land are suitable for growing celery, where groundwater is located at a sufficiently large depth. According to the chief agronomist of the "Farmer Agrosoyuz" For the Motherland ", culture is very difficult because
which does not like temperature extremes and requires constant watering in the early stages, especially after planting. “On celery, we use both reel irrigation and drip irrigation,” he said.
Celery specialist "Raik Zwaan Iberica" -
Santiago Gaston de Iriarte Dupui de Lome
“Celery is a very moisture-loving culture,” says Sergey
Kutko from "Fitosovkhoz Raduga". “On some, especially hot days in July and August, the irrigation rate was up to 250–300 m3 of water per hectare, and for the entire growing season we used about 6–6,5 thousand m3 of water per hectare.” The farm uses surface irrigation with front-type sprinklers from the American manufacturer TL. “We believe that when growing celery in the south, it is especially important not only to provide the plant with sufficient moisture, but also to reduce the temperature of the surface layer of the air - this contributes to better formation of the petiole, the absence of hollowness and woodiness,” explains the CEO of the company.
This culture is very demanding on the temperature regime, continues Andrey Ivashkin. “Celery can throw out a flowering shoot at temperatures below 10 ° C or, conversely, with a significant increase in temperature, so you need to monitor the temperature,” he warns. "In winter, celery tolerates frosts not lower than -4 ° C. The optimum temperature for growth is from 17 to 24 ° C." At the same time, in the Krasnodar Territory, where the average temperatures in summer are clearly higher, this crop is successfully grown.
Celery loves fertile
the ground is loam with good humus. Desirable predecessors for him are cucumbers and others
cultures under which they contribute
organics
Celery is also nutritionally demanding. However, before selecting food, the specialist of the company "Raik Zwaan Rus" recommends conducting a soil analysis in order to determine what exactly needs to be applied in each particular farm. It is customary to make the first feeding on the 20th day after planting the seedlings, notes Andrey Ivashkin. Celery needs nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and calcium, as well as trace elements. "Plant
itself signals a lack of trace elements and nutrients. So, if you see darkening in the middle between the petioles, then there is not enough calcium. Blackening of the core, drying of the youngest leaf in the center of the stalked celery plant may also indicate a significant deficiency of boron. In addition, we can talk about a lack of boron if a brown color is visible on the cut of the root crop (later
voids are formed in its place), ”he explains. “Therefore, it is important to use a quality nutrition system based on the results of soil analysis and data on the programmed level of crop yield and the removal of nutrients,” sums up Vladimir Parkhomenko from Agroleto.
All the main fertilizers are applied to Maentak Matusevichy under celery and green crops: nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. “We do foliar dressing with boron, we apply combined fertilizers,” says the head of the farm. “We also carry out protective measures - we use herbicides before planting seedlings.” Used on the farm and fungicides - up to stage 6
leaves. “Of course, there are problems with diseases, so treatments are necessary,” Vladimir Matusevich is convinced.
One of the ways to protect celery from diseases and pests is to maintain crop rotation. According to Andrey Ivashkin, ideally, the celery should be returned to the same area in 3-4 years.
Since celery is a representative of the umbrella family, which also include carrots, dill, parsley, parsnips, plant these crops one after another categorically
it is impossible. “Celery loves fertile soil - loams with good humus,” Vladimir Matusevich shares his experience. - Desirable predecessors for him are cucumbers
and other crops for which organic is introduced. We usually plant after cabbage, under which we always put manure. " The crop rotation in Maentak Matusevichy is very simple: “We have 20 hectares of our own arable land, we rent another 10 hectares. Thus, all lands are successfully divided into three equal plots: on one we sow grain, on the other - cabbage, and on the third - green crops (celery, parsley, dill, spinach). And next year, instead of grain, we plant cabbage, instead of cabbage - green, and instead of green - grain, ”said the head of the farm.
Sergey Korolev also speaks about the need for alternation of cultures. “We have a small farm - only 120 hectares, so it is not yet possible to organize a full-fledged crop rotation - the area does not allow,” complains the chief agronomist of the Farmers' Agrosoyuz Za Rodina. - We practice
crop rotation to minimize disease problems. " The farm does not grow carrots and other umbellates, therefore, there is no threat of transmission of cercosporosis, downy mildew and powdery mildew between related crops. However, there is bacteriosis in the fields, and it has not yet been possible to completely solve this problem, Sergey Korolev regrets. “Of course, there are disease outbreaks,” he says. - It is precisely to combat them that specialists-agronomists are needed "
Andrey Ivashkin is convinced that the best measure of disease and pest control is preventive. For example, cultivation of resistant varieties and hybrids. In addition, you can make special preparations for the previous culture. By the way, on celery they use mainly those
the same preparations as on carrots are approved for use on the territory of the Russian Federation.
It is believed that the main concern of an agronomist in growing celery is the control of pests such as moths and aphids. You can fight them with the help of insecticides or biological methods - entomophages or special preparations. In practice, however, celery is more often affected by diseases than by pests. The most common diseases of this culture are septoria (affects weakened seedlings), cercospora, sclerotinia, rhizoctoniasis, and fusarium. In the past few years, phytoplasmic aster yellowing (English: Aster Yellows (Phytoplasma), transmitted by sucking insects, primarily by the six-spotted leafhopper), has caused significant damage to the culture of stalked celery. This disease is especially aggressive in the southern regions of Russia, mainly in early - mid-summer ,
after the start of harvesting winter grain crops, when infected insects in search of a forage base migrate to vegetable crops, where the infection spreads. In general, it is necessary to pay special attention to the protection of celery from diseases and pests in order to get a competitive product of excellent quality at the exit, notes Andrey Ivashkin.
What will you sow
As of the end of 2018, 30 varieties of leaf and petiole and 31 varieties of root celery were included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements approved for use in Russia. These are mainly Dutch and Russian varieties. At the same time, the register is constantly updated with new varieties and hybrids.
The selection of the most suitable hybrids and varieties for a particular economy should be given special attention, Andrey Ivashkin is convinced. Among the main requirements for varieties and hybrids of stalked celery, he calls resistance to diseases and flowering, fewer fibers (this is necessary so that the stalks are less rigid and coarse). By the way, buyers mostly prefer dark green petioles, juicy and crunchy.
Andrey Ivashkin notes that Dutch varieties and hybrids are more popular with agricultural producers. “There are several reasons for this: they have higher yields, are more disease resistant and have shorter ripening times,” he lists. - And another attractive side of the Dutch varieties and hybrids - a small number of side shoots or their complete absence and resistance to adverse weather conditions.
It is worth paying attention to specially treated germinated seeds with an awakened embryo - primed, says the specialist. They sprout faster - already on the 4th day under certain conditions. True, they are more demanding on storage conditions (they must be stored at a temperature not exceeding 5 ° C) and they have a shorter shelf life - from 3 to 6 months. “They are usually purchased by large agricultural producers, because they are guaranteed to emerge quickly and evenly, which results in a homogeneous product,” explains Andrey Ivashkin. "Those with large areas usually don't want to take risks, so they are more willing to buy proven seeds." The specialist reminds that, according to the norms, the germination rate of seeds should be above 70%, while for Dutch varieties and hybrids this figure is usually at least 90–95%.
In any case, agricultural producers should give preference to the zoned varieties and hybrids entered in the register from reliable suppliers, the specialist concludes.
Find your buyer
In any agricultural production, the key is the cultivation of quality products and the organization of their sale. According to market participants, there have been no problems with celery marketing in recent years. “We have found buyers for the entire volume of manufactured products,” said the chief agronomist of the Farmer Agrosoyuz Za Rodinu. “Our first harvest from 4 hectares was about 140 tons.” The farm does not work with chains directly — the entire volume is sold to dealers. “Some of our clients work with chain stores, some with restaurants,” says Sergey Korolev. “We cannot work directly with the networks, since our small farm is not ready to provide logistics.”
In the Republic of Belarus, the implementation is approximately the same. “In the early 1990s, we sold our products on the market,” recalls Vladimir Matusevich. “And now we are working with a reseller who buys seasonal products from us, and in the winter period supplies the same products from abroad.” The farmer is convinced that if the manufacturer finds a market for sale, then growing celery is definitely worth it. “We sell our products at an average price of $ 0,5-1 per kilogram,” Vladimir Matusevich is satisfied. “But for me the economic component is not so important: I get satisfaction from growing various crops, and this is much more important,” he concludes.
Andrey Ivashkin is convinced that the popularity of celery among consumers will only grow. “Healthy lifestyles are firmly in vogue, and celery is one of the healthiest foods in almost all diets,” he says. "This culture has a number of useful properties, contains many vitamins, mineral salts, essential oils, phytoncides." While health and beauty are in vogue, celery will be bought, the specialist does not doubt.
With the right approach to this crop, taking into account the prevailing wholesale prices on the market, based on an average yield of 40-70 t / ha and due to the constant growth in demand from retail chains, one can safely count on the profitability of petiole celery at the level of 50-100%, at root - at the level of 30-70%, sums up Andrey Ivashkin