PRESS RELEASE - Ridder has developed the Ridder Light Diffusion RLD 15 FR O screen together with Duijvestijn Tomaten, a tomato cultivator in Pijnacker. For Duijvenstijn’s new five-hectare unlit greenhouse, the grower needed a screen fabric that would protect the tomato crop against excessive incoming sunlight on hot summer days and offer the best possible ventilation. Together with the grower and the installer, Schermned, a new screen fabric was developed to meet the specific requirements of the grower.

Extra protection on sunny summer days

RLD 15 FR O is composed of a combination of diffusing bands and has an open structure. When the sun is shining directly onto the screen, the fabric provides a shading factor of 13%, which gives the crop additional protection from excessive solar irradiation, but thanks to its diffusing properties, it also enables the moderated light to penetrate deeper into the greenhouse. The open structure of the fabric ensures the best possible ventilation and heat regulation.

An alternative to chalk

A movable screen installation made with Ridder RLD 15 FR O fabric is a much more flexible alternative to chalking or coating the greenhouse roof. After all, a movable screen installation can be opened on overcast days, so that no precious sunlight is lost. And the screen cloth also has advantages when it comes to temperature control and regulating incoming sunlight.

Added ventilation control

The open structure of the RLD 15 FR O screen fabric enables the controlled passage of air, so that excess heat can be allowed to escape in a controlled manner. This makes the fabric highly suitable for regulating incoming sunlight and the temperature of the crop throughout the day. The composition of RLD15 FR 0 screen fabric also provides more control over humidity in the greenhouse, which has a positive effect on the prevention of disease in the crop.

For greenhouses with or without supplemental lighting

Duijvestijn Tomaten uses the RLD 15 FR O summer screen as part of a double screen installation, in combination with the RES 10 FR energy saving screen for tomato cultivation without supplemental lighting. Johan van Erven, Ridder’s Commercial Product Specialist, explains that the new fabric is also highly suited to cultivation with supplemental lighting, too. “This is an ideal summer screen for vegetable crops such as tomatoes, bell peppers and cucumbers. Traditionally, a coating or layer of chalk is applied to greenhouses used to grow these crops, in order to provide protection against the increasingly bright sunshine during the summer. The RLD 15 FR O provides a flexible and fire-retardant solution, which in addition to a better growing environment during the summer, also has other clear benefits."