These are the keys to Seminis’s pepper portfolio
The fact that a variety has been on the market for over a decade is the best sign of its worth. Velero has managed this and campaign after campaign, it shows that it is a significant option for California red pepper farmers who want to obtain maximum production over a short period of time. There is little new to be said about this red pepper which may also be marketed green from Seminis, since those who know about it are aware of how easy they are to handle and the quality of its fruit. Another variety worth mentioning is SV1215PB, which has also been on the market for a while (5 years). The endurance on the plant of this California red pepper is one of its main characteristics and it has important productivity, good form, firmness, a size that allows it be prepared in flow packs and very low levels of cracking.
For early yellow peppers, Tormes is the best option. In its second year on sale, the seed company hopes to reach a good level of presence on the market, having confirmed some the good points of the material: yield, very good firmness and endurance on the plant (ideal for producers who want to wait for the best prices), and very eye-catching lemon yellow colour. The setting with high temperatures, derived from the hardiness of the plant, along with its fast ripening and to the fact that it maintains a G calibre, with some GG, are its best virtues.
In Lamuyo, Brito and Baquero are leaders in the autumn segment. 10 years have passed since Seminis launched the first early variety (transplants from April to the beginning of June) and since then many farmers repeat the crop year after year, attracted by its bright colour and the firmness of its fruit, aspects that are very well appreciated in the auctions. Baquero (transplants from mid-June until the end of July) has only needed two years to reach its position on the market. Its plasticity (adapting to different conditions and soils) and its high production stand out from this variety. And let us not forget its firmness, colour and the prices it gets in September and October, since “it is the only one that reaches a large size on these dates,” affirms the Pepper Development technician, Francisco Tomillero.
For crops planted between the 10th and the 15th of July and the beginning of August, the company has “the firmest variety of the market for these dates,” SV5581PH. The fruit, which is very heavy, obtains a large percentage of top quality produce. In addition, it is suitable for the long cycle from July to April.
Extensive range
Alongside the abovementioned varieties, all with L4 and spotted, Seminis has other materials that complete their pepper offer. An example of this is the orange California pepper Quirón (with G calibre, most for flow packs). Or SV1204PB, a red California pepper that allows the dates to be “toyed” with, because it sets well in hot conditions, it ripens quicker than others and it has an “extraordinary” firmness. Additionally, the sales manager, Luis Twose, affirms that in plantations from the 25th of July, an average of 10 kg/m2 of total production has been reached and that there are companies that have harvested green without any problems, since it has a good colour and shows no problems of silvering.
In Italian peppers, the most outstanding options are SV4502PP (August transplants) and Werta (end of June to July), both with very good fruit quality, an attractive deep green colour and resistance to L4 and spotted; and L3 and spotted, respectively.
Finally, in the hot and spicy line for plantations from May onwards, there are the ‘Hot Pencil’ Cancela and Fireflame in red peppers; Starflame (yellow) and Orangeflame (orange) for three-colour packs, that adapt well to setting in hot and cold conditions, an advantage for long cycles.
In short, a wide range that meets the producers’ needs, with high quality materials for distribution and consumers.
