About us
Het bedrijf werd opgericht in 1985 en heeft zich in de loop der jaren ontwikkeld tot een gespecialiseerde kwekerij met een duidelijke richting. Calathea vormt het hoofdproduct binnen de teelt. Afhankelijk van vraag en seizoen worden daarnaast incidenteel nicheproducten geteeld. Door de jaren heen is de kwekerij gemoderniseerd, met een sterke focus op het optimaliseren van de teelt. Daarbij wordt gebruikgemaakt van hedendaagse technieken die bijdragen aan efficiëntie en kwaliteit, waaronder een volledig geautomatiseerd sorteersysteem. Anno 2024 worden binnen de kwekerij 14 verschillende Calathea-soorten geteeld in vijf potmaten, op een totale oppervlakte van 60.000 m², verdeeld over twee locaties.
Als Calathea kwekerij richt Shadowplant zich op een zorgvuldige teelt en selectie van verschillende Calathea-soorten. Binnen het teeltproces wordt van jonge plant tot eindproduct elke stap nauwkeurig gevolgd. Op basis van groei, uitstraling en kwaliteit vindt selectie plaats, wat resulteert in een met aandacht samengesteld assortiment dat breed toepasbaar is binnen interieur en retail. Daarbij speelt ook de natuurlijke herkomst van de Calathea een belangrijke rol. Van oorsprong groeit deze plant in schaduwrijke regenwouden, waar balans tussen licht, bescherming en omgeving essentieel is. Deze eigenschappen vormen een rode draad in de manier waarop binnen de kwekerij wordt gewerkt, samen met het team.
Geschiedenis Shadowplant
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1986
Bouw van de eerste werkschuur
Construction of the first work shed on an existing greenhouse to process the orders
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1986
Very first breeding
The first Calatheas are grown. Then there was already a concrete floor with an ebb & flow system. The stakeout was still manual work.
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1986
First cash full
A greenhouse full of Calatheas for the first time! From the start of this company, Calatheas have been cultivated, now still with several pot sizes and a wider range.
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1989
First truck
The first truck was purchased in 1989. The auction has always been close by, of course, so 'a quick ride to Naluk' was there from the start. The plants are now also delivered to the Aalsmeer auction.
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1990
Potting machine
Machine potting for the first time with a Javo machine. The potting machine was quite modern back then. This time this is still used with us with of course a little more options.
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1997
New truck
The old truck was replaced by a new one in 1997. A new logo and a new look are printed on it.
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1999
New barn
1999 construction of the new (mainly larger) barn. The first shed that was built becomes too small to handle all orders. There will also be a dock shelter in this shed to make loading and unloading as easy as possible.
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1999
Extra department
1999 at the same time as the barn, a piece of greenhouse was added. More orders obviously means more production, so something had to be done to achieve this. So an extra department.
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2000
Water system
Eb & flood water system works in the new department. This is still being used to make optimal use of the irrigation and drainage.
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2002
Increased greenhouse
In 2002 the greenhouse was raised for a better climate. In the photo (the right part) the greenhouse as a whole was raised a bit. This is done to stimulate a better climate.
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2002
WPS department
New construction WPS department, to be able to sort the plants optimally. WPS stands for 'walking plant system'. This is literally also used in this way to be able to sort the plants by height and thickness by means of camera systems.
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2002
WPS department (2)
The gutters in which the plants come are installed. The sorted plants are placed in a separate gutter per length and / or thickness. As soon as the first ones are big and full enough, they are moved to the greenhouse via these conveyor belts to be released.
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2008
Opening new department
The opening of the new section full of Calatheas. A festive opening was extensively celebrated. Especially since the entire department is fully automated.
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2012
Green Well Westland
Connection to geothermal energy network Greenwell Westland. This is a well that draws hot water from 3 km depth to heat the nursery. A sustainable way to bring the greenhouse up to temperature. The drilling of this started in December 2011, when the well was put into use together with 4 fellow growers.
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2019
Expansion
Expansion to meet the customer's wishes as much as possible. The almost 6000 m2 that has been added is used to create more supply. The first plants that could be delivered were ready in 2019.
