Bayer Seminis is expanding its cucumber range through a communication campaign built around a concept based on precision, stability and confidence, transferring the technical attributes of its varieties into a more emotional and differentiated territory. Under the name Precision Pro Range and the claim “Cultivate precision, harvest confidence”, the proposal highlights a range designed to respond to different campaign needs, helping growers confidently choose the variety best suited to each cycle, management strategy and production objective.
The Bayer Seminis team presented the Precision Pro Range and its latest cucumber and tomato innovations during an event held at Club Playa Serena in Roquetas de Mar (Almería) on 21 May. Growers and technicians attending the event were able to discover first-hand the advantages of the Bayer Seminis portfolio.
Within the Precision Pro Range, the company offers two new cucumber varieties already commercially available: Calidus and Galdius, designed to meet the main production cycles of south-eastern Spain and the Canary Islands. This is explained by Development Technician Francisco Tomillero, who highlights that both share the five resistance packages currently demanded by the sector (New Delhi, CGMMV, yellowing, yellow vein virus, powdery mildew and CMV) and deliver outstanding performance even under adverse agronomic conditions.
Calidus: benchmark for the mid-cycle
Calidus is recommended for the mid-cycle segment (transplants from late August to late September), as well as for spring cycles. Its main differential factor lies in plant strength: it has a very powerful root system, a very dark green colour and a rusticity that makes it suitable for different soil conditions, climates, management systems and greenhouse structures. It performs well in Almería, Costa de Granada and the Canary Islands.
“It is under more unfavourable conditions where it shows the greatest differential compared with other materials currently on the market.”
As for the fruit, it is dark, ribbed, without bottle necking and with a small pistil scar. It maintains homogeneous and stable length throughout the cycle, with very little transition between main stem and regrowth, guaranteeing continuous production until practically March.
Trials carried out have been extremely positive: “We have not received a single negative feedback,” says Tomillero, predicting that it will become a benchmark variety within its segment.
Galdius targets January and February production
Galdius, meanwhile, is aimed at plantings from 1 to 20 October in Almería and Costa de Granada. It has the same resistance package as Calidus and delivers homogeneous and stable fruit quality.
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Its most notable characteristic is its ability to maximise production in January and February, months in which growers usually achieve the best prices. Its high vigour and productivity have made it a very well-received option among growers who have tested it.
With these introductions, Bayer Seminis strengthens a portfolio designed to meet the need for earliness and quality, while consolidating complete resistances and agronomic security — the pillars of its strategy.
