Dramatic results on show in war on spud pest
Visitors to the AHDB Strategic Potato (SPot) Farm West open afternoon at Heal Farms, near Shawbury, can expect to see the most dramatic results delivered at a SPot Farm to date.
The farm has a severe Potato Cyst Nematode infestation, which has brought the success of different management techniques trialled into sharp focus.
Visitors to the event on Thursday, August 17, will be able to look at adjacent plots where one crop is virtually dead and the other is thriving. The results are vivid.
The farms' director Matthew Wallace has shown an admirable attitude in inviting local growers and agronomists to a field that those with a less progressive attitude may have sought to hide away due to the extremely high levels of PCN. Of course, the considerable benefit received by Matthew and his team is the input of independent agronomists, and researchers from Harper Adams.
Matthew has said: “As a business, we are interested in improving productivity and the SPot Farm programme provides us with an opportunity to do that. As well as working alongside researchers and experts, it will be interesting to hear about the approach taken by other growers in the West when we get together on Thursday.”
Growers, agronomists and potato breeders from across the country are expected to congregate on Thursday due the clarity of the results on show.
The open afternoon at Heal Farms runs from 3pm to 7.15pm and concludes with a pig roast. Those wishing to attend should email me on anne.stone@ahdb.org.uk
PCN management programmes are about using a balance of different techniques. While I do not want to give anything away before Thursday, suffice it to say visitors will be able to see which elements of the management programme have had the biggest effect at Heal.
Each farm has its own environment and challenges so the results may or may not translate to other farms, but nonetheless we expect results to create a real talking point for the local potato industry.
Heal Farms is one of 30 Strategic Farms, which are part of AHDB’s wider Farm Excellence Platform. The platform is designed to inspire industry to improve performance and succeed through knowledge exchange. AHDB Strategic Farms use farmer-to-farmer learning to accelerate the uptake of the latest thinking and provide a platform for farmers to explore the potential for best practice to have an impact on their business.
Anne Stone, AHDB Potatoes knowledge exchange manager
