Jerry Knox to speak at East of England Potato Day

Dr Jerry Knox of Cranfield University will be examining water use at the East of England Potato Day to be held at Frederick Hiam Ltd, Hill Farm, Tuddenham, Bury St Edmunds, IP28 6TA, on September 1.

Dr Knox will examine water auditing and efficient water use to help plan the management of this limited resource. Dr Knox will also lead on a workshop on soil and water interactions.

In the second seminar, Dr Mark Stalham from Cambridge University Farms will describe how to improve cultivation practices following the completion of a Potato Council research project on this topic. Dr Stalham will also run a workshop in the field to demonstrate the effects of different cultivation practices on soil structure.

This year there will be two short seminars, followed by corresponding workshops, so growers have the opportunity to interact more with the presenters. This will be followed by an open session in the field to stimulate discussions on various areas of production, says Potato Council technical executive Gary Collins.

Other field topics include seed treatments from Bayer, Syngenta and Branston; defoliation timing and chemical choice with Frontier, Alternaria updates and monitoring with UAP, and Biofumigation with Branston.

Furthermore, Grimme will be present at the event with a harvester and topper, and will discuss bruise and damage reduction, thereby helping growers to achieve the best saleable yield possible.

There will also be a range of varieties on display from Agrico, Branston, Cygnet, Caithness, Fenmarc, HZPC, IPM and Potato Innovations.

In response to feedback from last year, the format of this years event has been changed. The morning combination of seminars and field visits will be repeated in the afternoon.

Its a busy time of year for growers, continues Mr Collins. Those who dont want to miss out can attend just half a day.

The East of England Potato Day is organised by Potato Council, hosted by Frederick Hiam Ltd and sponsored by Branston, Fenmarc Produce, QV Foods and McCain Foods.