AgronomyFactors Causing Poor Potato Emergence

Factors Causing Poor Potato Emergence

-

There are many factors affecting potato emergence and stand establishment. Having a checklist of factors causing poor potato emergence is a useful tool for growers. I was able to add a number of factors to that checklistĀ thanks to contributions from experts in Ontario, Canada, and the United States.

Those potato experts include Joe Lach, Kate VanderZaag, Mark VanOostrum, Robert Coffin, Walt Quilty, Paul Van den Borre and Hossein Bagheri from Ontario, and the United States’ Steve Johnson, University of Maine; Andy Robinson, University of North Dakota & Minnesota; and Jeff Miller, Idaho.Ā  The checklist is an excellent source of information when emergence is not as good as expected. Letā€™s see if additional problems causing poor emergence and stands develop this season. If so, they will be added to the checklist.

Meanwhile, the weather is not cooperating with potato planting in Ontario. Ā Mother Nature has been moody this spring! Ā Letā€™s hope her mood improves and planting gets going at full swing this coming week.

Factors Causing Poor Potato Emergence Checklist

Ā 1. Anaerobic conditions due to field flooding.Ā 

2. Seed damaged by low temperatures in the field, in storage or in transit.Ā 

3. Late blight seed infection.Ā 

4. Fusarium dry rot seed infection.Ā 

5. Pythium leak, pink rot seed infection.Ā 

6. Soft rot, blackleg seed infection.Ā 

7. Rhizoctonia infecting emerging sprouts.Ā 

8 Black Dot eye infection.Ā 

9. High Mosaic Virus infection. Weak plants emerge and die in a short period of timeĀ 

10. MH spoiled seed due to field drift.Ā 

11. CIPC contaminated seed in storage.Ā 

12. Herbicide residues in seed due to drift.Ā 

13. Herbicide carryover in soil.Ā 

14. Herbicide damage in sandy soils with low organic matter. There isnā€™t enough organic matter to tie up the chemical. It leaches down and burns the sprouts.Ā 

15. Planting cut seed of varieties with eyes concentrated at the bud end results in manyĀ 

blind seed pieces.Ā 

16. Little potato disorder of physiologically old seed.Ā 

17. Extremely high soil temperature at soil crust.Ā 

18. Varietal susceptibility to erratic/late dormancy affecting uniform sprouting e.g.Ā 

Waneta.Ā 

19. Freshly cut seed that is warmer than the soil it is planted into, can lead to poor stands.Ā 

20. Planting seed pieces into cold, wet soils.Ā 

21. Planting seed in poor condition into cool, wet soils.Ā 

22. Problems with the planter that are row specific: planting too fast, improper seed depth or broken cups on the planter.Ā 

23. Planting pre-cut seed kept in storage with poor ventilation and too wet after cutting.Ā 

24. Black heart- and Hollow heart-affected tubers.

25. Improper application of liquid seed treatments that results in poor oxygen supply to the seed.

 

Trending This Week

To Get Healthy Potato Plants, We Have to Feed the Soil

Soil is not inert. Given the proper conditions, it is a vibrant ecosystem ā€“ full of life. In nature, soil is kept healthy by the...

It Takes Both Faith and Science to Grow a Potato

0
A colleague and I were talking recently, and she mentioned how much hope and faith goes into potato farming. Faith can have different definitions,...

How to Spatially Arrange Spuds to Maximize Their Growth Potential

0
In our spring production webinar, Dr. Mark Pavek explained how much of a difference in-row spacing, between row spacing, and row direction can make...
Rows of planted potato hills

2023ā€™s Huge Crop Influencing Planting Plans for 2024

0
Last fallā€™s record processing crop across the Pacific Northwest is shaping current stores, export opportunities, product movement and planting plans for the year ahead. Though...

The Unintended Limits of Organic Farming

0
I had a conversation some weeks ago that has really stuck with me. The conversation was with Joy Youwakim, an agroecology scientist at Biome...