Mr. Obeed is an innovative horticulture grower near Husban in the Greater Amman Highlands. As a partner farmer to the project, him and the project team worked together to trial out the use of an air blower for aided pollination of tomatoes. The aim was to measure whether an air blower for aided pollination of tomatoes saves on labour costs and increases yields, compared to traditional methods.

“In the beginning I was surprised by the idea and not yet convinced. After realizing that open field tomatoes are naturally pollinated by wind, I realized this might be a very promising innovation!” – Obeed

Open field tomato cultivation does not require any aided pollination. The wind and insects transfer the pollen from flower to flower. In greenhouse cultivation however, aided pollination for tomatoes gives you a higher rate of fruit setting, thus resulting in higher yields and fruit quality.

In Jordan, pollination strategies differ across farmers. Most growers simply ‘tap the wire’ in the top of the greenhouse, use hormones (of which the sale in Jordan has become illegal), vibrating devices, or opt to use bumblebees.

All over the world, internationally competitive horticulture growers have long switched to using air blowers for the aided pollination of tomatoes in greenhouse cultivation. With the help of the project team, Mr. Obeed was introduced to this innovation to increase his competitiveness.

The project team explained and demonstrated how to use an air blower in the greenhouse. After using the air blower for 100 days the project team compared the results to the traditional method of hormones, in a neighbouring greenhouse tunnel:

Seeing these results, Mr. Obeed and the project concluded that a leaf blower for aided pollination of tomatoes in greenhouse cultivation is:

  • Highly effective when used properly
  • Easy to use
  • Saves significant labour costs
  • Improves quality and yields
  • Has a pay-back time of 1 season

Additional instructions and a training video will be posted soon on how to best use an air blower for tomato cultivation in greenhouse tunnels.

 

Our Partners

Advance Consulting

Advance Consulting is a Dutch business advisory firm for investments and projects in emerging economies. It assists companies and advises government agencies and development organisations on sustainable business development. Advance Consulting has a local office in Amman, Jordan and is the project lead in Holland Horti Support Jordan, providing technical assistance, training for partner farmers and monitoring and evaluation activities

Wageningen Plant Research

Wageningen Plant Research (WPR) combines knowledge and expertise in all fields of plant sciences. With this, WPR offers new perspectives for sustainable agriculture to clients and partners from industry and governments to research institutes and universities. In this project, WPR provides support on data analysis, crop guidelines and agronomic best practices.

Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

The Embassy of the Netherlands is the main partner in Jordan. They are the linking pin between the different Dutch programmes on agriculture, water and education in Jordan and ensure close cooperation between activities.

RVO

The Netherlands Enterprise Agency improves opportunities for entrepreneurs, strengthens their position and helps them realise their international ambitions. RVO is the financing partner of the Holland Horti Support Jordan pilot project.