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Potato Handbook
When potato is grown in a field with another crop, there is intercropping. There are several reasons why growers mix potato with other crops. Resource capture is a major one with, for example, maize tapping water and nutrients from deeper soil layers than potato. More water is made productive when the two crops are grown together.
Mixing crops on the same field places a greater distance between the individual plants of each crop compared to a single crop. Deleterious organisms, pests and diseases have to cross greater distances from host plant to host plant in case of intercropping of maize and potato. They also find a barrier between host plants: the not host plant. The function of the barrier caused by the other crop is evident, with especially movements of insects restricted. Potato, with a prostrate growth habit in the same field, along with erect maize, is shadowed by maize plants. This leads to lower leaf and soil temperature of the crop, which is an advantage for the potato crop when grown at warm tropical mid-elevations.
Occasionally, intercrops are observed such as in South Eastern Europe, where potato is associated with onions, not aimed at improving the use of resources but rather as an insect repellent that reduces the incidence of e.g. white fly and aphids. Planting potatoes on the same day as maize or sowing onion after hilling of the potato crop, is an example of true intercropping with the harvest also taking place almost simultaneously. These intercropping practices, albeit offering advantages for the grower, do not increase the land equivalent ratio (LER). So, if the two crops were placed side by side they would have had the same yield although at lower management costs. The higher costs of intercropping compensate for the advantages that it offers.
Agritechnica focus on trends in potato technology
From 12-18 November Agritechnica takes place in Hannover, Germany. During the event there is a main focus on potatoes. Dr. Rolf Peters presents his vision on trends in potato technology. He states that potato growing has required a particularly high degree of flexibility from farmers in this year’s growing season due to the intensive change…
The efficiency of overhead irrigation for potato crops
Irrigation with sprinklers, rain guns, center pivots or linear systems – as opposed to furrow and drip irrigation delivering water under the canopy – distributes water overhead, much like natural rainfall does.
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Potato Association of America to showcase industry advances during annual meeting
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