June 29 2006, 16:40

Annual sales increase of cover materials exceeds 20% in Crimea

According to information of Crimean office, Agricultural Marketing Project, local farmers start to realize importance to extend marketing season for vegetables and berries due to climatic conditions of Crimean region. When the producer harvests commodities 2-3 weeks earlier than other farmers, he often will double or even triple the sales profit.

The experts think early produce let the farmers gain the highest profit. To grow early vegetables, agrofiber is frequently used. This cover material helps create favorable microclimate for plants, protect them from night frosts, and also from pests, heavy rainfalls and even hail. And, utilization of agifiber let the farmers effectively control weeds; the fruiting season is extended as well.

Unlike ordinary film, agrifiber is permeable to air and water, and also transparent. All these qualities ensure favorable microclimate for the plants. There is a type of agrifiber called "non-framed" forcing bed specially to cover greenhouses and protect land from weeds.

In Crimea and other regions of Ukraine "non-framed" forcing beds are used to grow transplants of early vegetables and to cover potato.

Agrifiber is able to protect plants from frost around -1 - -5 Co . Due to this cover material farmers produce vegetables 15-20 days earlier comparing to traditional growing technology. The companies - sellers of agri-fiber record annual growth of cover material sales to be around 10-25%. And, more private producers buy materials to cover vegetables on small houseplots.