b'INSIDERS ADVICE FROM INDUSTRY EXPERTSPOTATO EQUIPMENTTop Five Tips to Keeping Your Harvester Digging This FallDARREN DEMERS Regional SalesmanLOCKWOOD Manufacturinglockwoodmfg.comAs you roll through your fields this fall, willclean, maintain and best support their equipmentlubrication in heavy conditions. your harvester be your best and most reliableall year, especially during harvest. Tip 4: Done? Not quitefriend, or a frustrating, costly, let-you-down-at- After each day of digging, clean off mud andBefore you take a well-earned moment to the-worst-possible-time adversary? That answervines. Inspect chain webs, watching for bent rods,breathe out post-harvest, give your machine the depends on how you treat your machine.broken rivets, and worn connector clips/rods.care it needs. Brushing off loose dirt and vines Tip 1: Prepare for success Check web apron drive sprockets and bearings foris preferable to washing before storing as a wet Your harvester will only perform well if it isexcessive wear. Test rollers for smooth rolling: rustmachine may not dry enough in cool conditions, ready for success. Carefully inspect, lubricate andand vines can cause strain and drag. Check andpotentially causing rust. As you clean, write a test your machine enough in advance of harvesttighten all roller chains. Check U-joints, greasinglist of anything which needs fixing/replacing. that you can fix any outstanding issues with timeand replacing as necessary.Having a list handy allows you to easily jump to spare. Tip 3: Give extra TLCon wintertime parts specials so you wont be Tip 2: Change your mindset Difficult harvest conditions arent only hard onscrambling pre-harvest next year. Pay extra Once harvest begins and every hour counts,farmerstheyre hard on equipment too. Mudattention to checking hoses and seals. Loosen making time to clean and inspect equipmentstrips lubrication, stretches aprons, pulls on everyyour slip clutches so they dont rust tight over daily can feel like an impossible cost. However,sprocket, rod and chain, and ages equipmentthe winter. Inspect slip clutch pads; replace if maintaining your harvester during harvest willbefore its time. Inspect extra carefully in wetnecessary. ultimately save you time, money and frustration.conditions: components that wouldnt wear out inTip 5: Store properly! Yes, in-field breakdowns happen to everyone.dry conditions will wear quickly in muddy ground.If youd like your harvester to work next year, However, they happen far less to farmers whoAnd, remember rollers and U-joints will need extraindoor storage is truly the only option. POTATO GROWTH REGULATORS AND SPROUT INHIBITORSLooking Beyond CIPC is in Your Best InterestBILL ORR Canada Technical Representative1, 4 Group14group.comOctober 8, 2020, marks the official end of thenaturally occurring, highly effective green alter- later applications with or without CIPC. In our European Unions grace period on CIPC resi- native to CIPC.The bio-chemical can used aloneexperience, 1,4SIGHT offers synergistic benefits to due, following the products June 2019 deregistra- or as a complement to CIPC to help reduce totalCIPC, improving CIPCs efficiency at lower rates tion in that market. While CIPC is not banned instandard pesticide usage. 1,4DMN is formulatedthan CIPC alone, thereby allowing reduced use of North America, the EUs decision is a reminder itsby 1,4Group Inc as 1,4SIGHT for table stock andstandard chemistry. in potato growers best interests to think beyondprocessing potatoes and 1,4Seed for seed stock.Im always disappointed when potato produc-CIPC for sustainable potato storage. Both formulations go beyond simple sprout controlers admit they expect quality degradation through For more than 50 years, potato producers haveto extend field fresh quality.storage. That doesnt have to be the case. Yes, its depended nearly exclusively on CIPC for sprout1,4SIGHT is the only true dormancy enhancertrue potato storage cant operate as a hospital, control. While CIPC is effective at suppressingcurrently available in North America. Appliedtransforming poorer quality tubers into higher sprouting, the worlds view of standard pesticideat or soon after bin close-up, 1,4SIGHT helpsquality. That said, potato producers who invest technology has changed recently. Today, consum- stabilize a pile. In addition to inhibiting sprouting,in a quality building and a multi-staged storage ers, processors and politicians are demanding1,4SIGHT triggers genes which help retain tubermanagement program should expect their storage greener, more sustainable inputs at every stagequality by minimizing both shrinkage and fungalto act as a hotelkeeping tubers comfortable of crop production, including storage. Luckily,spread within storage. On short-dormancyand maintaining quality from storage close-up there is a new and improved storage managementvarieties, 1,4SIGHT can be used as a stand- right through shipping. To provide a five-star product that not only achieves greener, morealone to maintain dormancy and quality andenvironment resulting in superior long-term sustainable storage, but also offers additionalreduce moisture-loss immediately post-harvest.quality, shift from one-time sprout suppression to value-added benefits. On longer-dormancy varieties, 1,4SIGHT can bean effective storage management program. 1,4DMN (1,4-Dimethylnaphthalene) is aapplied at door closure and then followed with 36 SPUDSMART.COM FALL 2020'