Eurostar & PCN

[chipchap]

What are other growers’ experience of growing this variety on fields with low egg counts?
we are predominantly a chipping grower, how will it be received by our customers?

 

[MikeNeaverson]

Generally fries well. Relatively susceptible to PCN if you already have a high egg count but it can completely sort the field out for next time round. Relatively early, quite low dormancy, and quite easy to bruise in my experience - perhaps as badly as Piper.


In a short year you won't have a problem moving it but my experience is that it will have to be at or below bagging Piper money. In a low price year it will be a challenge to move if Markies is offered at low money.

 

[Spud]

Very similar to Innovator. I concur with the above re pcn

 

[Sonoftheheir]

Hard to sell I believe?

 

[Spud]

Hard to sell I believe?

I grew it for packing on contract in 2014 iirc. It moved ok, but for various reasons, we no longer do business with the people that the crop was contracted to.

 

[Sonoftheheir]

It’s a shame the really good PCN varieties aren’t particularly popular with customers. I grew Performer for 3 years, never got on very well with them. 2 years they fried black on the ends and more than one year lots of black leg.

 

[MikeNeaverson]

Tin hat on here- the single best thing that could happen to the potato market is for nematocides to be banned

 

[Spud]

Tin hat on here- the single best thing that could happen to the potato market is for nematocides to be banned

Why do you say that Nev?

 

[MikeNeaverson]

Would instantly save us £400/ha on nemathorin and with less Markies etc in the market, would make these and newer resistant varieties more acceptable to our consumers.

 

[Spud]

No one is forcing you to use it - if you can grow the same crop without it, why spend the money?
Tolerance is at least as important as resistant - the two traits are very different.

 

[MikeNeaverson]

I only use it on perhaps 5% of my own area every year as I have a long rotation but I walk some growers land where you can pretty much guarantee every acre will need it before you've even seen the results.

My own view is that PCN is similar to the wheat disease treadmill. We spend £400/ha on nemathorin when actually we'd be just as well to take a few t/ha less of a resistant/tolerant variety. Cutting the risk of growing and capital involved. If only these were varieties were actually marketable or didn't have other glaring achiles heel.

 

[Spud]

A long rotation is key. I'm looking at species in cover crops as a non chem method of pcn reduction. Innovator, Eurostar, Performer, Royal, Arsenal and Brooke have all assisted in reducing our average pcn level.

 

[chipchap]

We were seed growers up to the 1980s, but have seen eelworm creeping in in limited spots over the last few years. We are currently growing at 1 in 6, but on the lightest land we are going backwards slowly I feel. With a slightly longer rotation and some use of resistant varieties I hope we can avoid starting to use nematocides for now.

 

[Brains]

So what cover crops won’t antagonise pcn, and eal worms on light sands? But will build organic matter without a expensive price tag!

 

[Spud]

So what cover crops won’t antagonise pcn, and eal worms on light sands? But will build organic matter without a expensive price tag!

I use oats, vetch, mustard and radish mostly. Swap vetch for beans on some farms

 

[chipchap]

Thankyou everybody for your very useful replies.

 

[robbie]

I use oats, vetch, mustard and radish mostly. Swap vetch for beans on some farms

I thought mustard and non resistant radish were a host for PCN , they are for BCN

 

[Will 1594]

I thought mustard and non resistant radish were a host for PCN , they are for BCN

What about the biofumigant mustards @Spud ,do you think they help with pcn
@slim shiny does it i think flail itnoff and incorparate it ,and gas given off supposed to have an effect ,as well as the om

 

[Spud]

I thought mustard and non resistant radish were a host for PCN , they are for BCN

I haven't seen any negative effects, but would like to research things in cc like:
At which point do beans (or vetch) produce N?
When do various cc ingredients multiply nematodes?
When (and which) have a positive effect on nematodes?

The more I learn, the less I know

 

[Spud]

What about the biofumigant mustards @Spud ,do you think they help with pcn
@slim shiny does it i think flail itnoff and incorparate it ,and gas given off supposed to have an effect ,as well as the om

Personally, there is too much can go wrong to be viable. Need to be sown in May, rather than July, which knocks a season out, other than possibly after an early silage cut or something.
The flail and incorporate clashes with spud lifting so would never get priority
Leaving a sealed surface all winter is terrible for soil structure
The possible results (80%reduction?) aren't really enough carrot for the compromise.
Root exudates of radish seems a better solution to me