Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Twitter LinkedIn
    • FREE Email Newsletters
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Magazine Subscriptions
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    • News
      • Arable & Agronomy
      • Dealership News
      • Environmental Land Management Scheme/Policy
      • Event News
      • Health & Safety
      • Machinery
      • People
      • World News
    • Farm Machinery
      • Amenity & Maintenance
      • Cultivations
      • Drilling
      • Grassland Equipment
      • Harvesting
      • Muck & Slurry
      • Sprayers
      • Telehandlers
      • Tractors
      • Tractor of the Year
      • Tyres & Tracks
    • Precision Farming
    • Markets & Policy
    • Profiles
      • Company Profiles
      • Reader Profiles
    • Livestock
      • Beef
      • Dairy
      • Sheep
    • Magazines
      1. May 2023 Issue
      2. April 2023
      3. Tyres & Tracks April 2023 Supplement
      4. March 2023
      5. February 2023
      Featured

      May 2023 Issue

      By Matthew TiltMay 3, 2023
      Recent

      May 2023 Issue

      May 3, 2023

      April 2023 Issue

      March 31, 2023

      Tyres & Tracks April 2023 Supplement

      March 31, 2023
    • Events
    • Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Arable & Agronomy

    Potato crops boosted by biologicals

    Vicky LewisBy Vicky LewisMarch 24, 20233 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    Potatoes.,Texture,Vegetable,White,Young,Potato.

    A Yorkshire farmer believes that the health of his potato crop benefited from biologicals that he applied to support the crop in coping with fluctuating weather patterns and periods of stress.

    Richard Smith from Bamburgh Grange Farm, near Doncaster, has been applying calcium phosphite to his 320ha of potatoes for the past five years and said that the tailored nutrition and biologicals provide a cheaper means of boosting plant health and resilience. He said: “Risk management in the potato business is relatively simple to talk about but very difficult to do.

    “The cost of growing the crop is now enormous and the risks associated are also huge. We’ve got to cover some of that risk somehow. That means investment in new technologies and trying to make everything a bit more robust.”

    Mr Smith is a third-generation McCain potato farmer and won the 2019 McDonald’s Outstanding Farmer of the Year Award. He first applies Unical, produced by Unium Biosciences, at planting. He continued: “Biologicals have a part to play in general crop health – keeping them in the mix is important, it’s just vital that you understand where best to use them in your programme and having the flexibility – there’s no point putting them on in hindsight.

    “You need to predict where the weather conditions appear to be going and apply them in advance before the problem is there.”

    During the growing season, a foliar application of Calfite Extra is made at the onset of tuber bulking. Mr Smith said that calcium provides general plant health, supports stress resilience and creates a healthy root system.

    Mr Smith believes that biologicals will play a part in helping businesses manage the lack of available pesticides: “New technology in terms of pesticides just isn’t happening because it’s very expensive to register something and we’re losing an awful lot of the active ingredients we’ve already got. So our toolbox of chemicals in much smaller. We need products that can help us keep our crops healthy and that’s where biologicals will come in.”

    He credits his use of biologicals with boosting the marketability of his potato crop and his overall gross margin: “They have definitely had an effect on tuber quality which has, in turn, boosted saleable yield and the marketability of my potatoes.

    “I’m also very positive about the other products Unium Biosciences has in the pipeline – the results I’ve seen look very promising.”

    Tweet
    Share
    Share
    Pin
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    Previous ArticleSouth West AgriTech show to discuss critical tech across supply chains
    Next Article Holden Fencing Imports recommends Milwaukee Crimp Kit
    Vicky Lewis

    Read Similar Stories

    Challenges ahead for key flag leaf spray applications

    May 24, 2023

    Warnings to not ignore lemon blossom midge this season

    May 23, 2023

    New wireless crop moisture and temperature probe launched

    May 22, 2023
    Most Read Stories

    Challenges ahead for key flag leaf spray applications

    May 24, 2023

    New tyre sizes in the Alliance range for agri-transport

    May 24, 2023

    Turning in the centre – telescopic wheeled loaders

    May 24, 2023
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer

    The UK's leading agricultural machinery journal

    Twitter LinkedIn
    © 2023 Lewis Business Media. All Rights Reserved.
    Lewis Business Media, Suite A, Arun House, Office Village, River Way, Uckfield, TN22 1SL

    Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions

    • AA Farmer
    • Poultry News
    • Pig World
    • OvertheCounter

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “ACCEPT ALL”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsREJECT ALLAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Analytics" category .
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional1 yearThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Necessary" category .
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to store the user consent for cookies in the category "Others".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to store the user consent for cookies in the category "Performance".
    PHPSESSIDsessionThis cookie is native to PHP applications. The cookie is used to store and identify a users' unique session ID for the purpose of managing user session on the website. The cookie is a session cookies and is deleted when all the browser windows are closed.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    CookieDurationDescription
    _ga2 yearsThe _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
    _gat_gtag_UA_31822138_191 minuteSet by Google to distinguish users.
    _gid1 dayInstalled by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    CookieDurationDescription
    OAID1 yearThis cookie is set when an AdsWizz website visitor have opted out the collection of information by AdsWizz service or opted to disable the targeted ads by AdsWizz.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    SAVE & ACCEPT
    Powered by CookieYes Logo