Potato Review

22 POTATO REVIEW JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020 SEED TREATMENTS W are growers are being urged to prepare now for changes in the potato seed treatment line-up for 2020, as product choices and application method options have narrowed. Seed treatments are used to protect against eld diseases, rather than storage, principally Rhizoctonia solani, which causes black scurf and stem and stolon canker and black dot. Available seed treatments vary in e cacy, formulation and method of application, with liquid products used on seed at grading by seed suppliers or pre-planting on-farm. ere are also powder products applied at planting. Last October, Bayer announced it was pulling sales of market-leading powder treatment Monceren (pencycuron), citing “uncertainty over its regulatory future” as the key reason. is will force a big change in application practice because it was the only powder treatment still allowed to be hand sprinkled on seed tubers, either in the planter hopper, potato boxes or chitting trays. It is estimated that this manual application method still accounted for about 30% of powder seed treatment use in 2019 and these growers will need to reconsider how they treat seed for 2020. Try liquid seed treatments With liquid products applied over a roller table, a more accurate way of application, it could be time to try this method according to Su olk-based potato application expert Richard Lapage. ere are a number of ways of applying liquid products, with those growers receiving seed on a “just in time” basis unlikely to be able to apply on farm. Treatment can be requested at source, depending on seed supplier. ose willing to invest in their own application equipment can buy a Team Sprayers Storemaster tank and pump kit with CTC 2 air treatment canopy, which uses rotary nozzles and air assist fans to force the spray solution at the target, Richard said. “Where growers have time but aren’t willing to purchase application equipment, they can use a mobile contractor to treat seed in the yard,” he said. Distribution and agronomy group Frontier recently increased its eet of mobile applicator units to six to meet increased demand, all of which utilise the Team CTC 2. is typically Are you ready for seed treatment changes? costs about £10/t on top of chemical costs and includes the hire of the machine and a PA12 quali ed operator to ensure correct application. Independent seed tuber treatment expert David Turner says the advantage of applying a liquid product over a roller table is signi cantly improved seed coverage and disease control. He adds that the Team CTC system has further improved deposition on tubers by up to 40% when compared with older available equipment. “Also, planting is a very complex operation and applying treatments before planting is one less job for the planter operator to do,” adds Mr Turner. Liquid options include RhiNo and Maxim 100FS and growers should be aware that both products must be applied before chitting, where practised. Richard Lapage RWS Services Experts advise on alternatives, the kit to apply them and why existing powder applicator users need to prepare.