I am writing this later than usual because I was very unsure about this year’s potato crops. I kept hearing about good yields around the country whereas our own crops and quite a number in our area looked quite modest. It seems that because ours were planted quite late in the season and we went through a period of low rainfall, our crops have been slow to develop. I am pleased to say that they are now looking much better following the rain.  The rain did threaten Le Grand Depart of the Tour de France but it didn’t seem to dampen the Yorkshire enthusiasm!

We are very pleased to have finished the last of the 2013 crop which became difficult towards the end of the season because of quality issues. In comparison, the quality of the new crop has been excellent so far. We have had to reject a few because of “hollow heart” which, as the name suggests, is a void in the centre of the potato caused by rapid growth and which becomes discoloured and eventually rotten. It is usually in the largest potatoes although it can occasionally occur in smaller ones. The only other problems have been the usual skin scuffing when the crop has been lifted too early before the skin has properly “set”.

During the summer growing period we did have concerns about the potential for serious potato blight outbreaks. The Potato Council have set up a nationwide warning system for growers called “Blightwatch” to warn all growers of potential problems. This service relies on 300 “blight scouts” who regularly walk potato crops around the country. Warnings of “Smith Periods” alert growers to monitor their crops more carefully because these are periods of weather which create ideal conditions for potato blight to develop and spread.

Basically, when the Met Office announces two consecutive days of temperatures above 10°C and 90%+ relative humidity, this is the Smith Period warning that potato growers dread. The sprayers have to be in action as quickly as possible to stop crops being infected. It has certainly paid off because blight seems to have been kept under control in the majority of crops.

Even though it is very early in the maincrop lifting season, most reports suggest it should be a year of better crops with a fair proportion of baker sizes. If there are no major adverse weather conditions in the next few weeks so that lifting can go ahead without problems, we should see good yields and good quality going into store.

Rob Bannister