Save the date, Thursday February 8, 2024, for the UC Cooperative Extension 58th Annual Sweetpotato Meeting to take place at the UCCE Classroom (2145 Wardrobe Ave., Merced). Growers and industry stakeholders are invited to attend and gain research updates on sweetpotato production and marketing in California. Doors open at 7:30 a.m. where attendees can sign-in, and enjoy some coffee and Jantz Sweetpotato muffins. The meeting will run from 8AM to noon, and conclude with lunch. Following lunch, the Sweetpotato Council of California will convene their BOD Meeting. See the Annual Sweetpotato Meeting agenda below:
Potato chips are America’s classic snack: crunchy, salty, greasy and tasting of potato or flavored with sour cream, vinegar, BBQ, maple bacon or Cajun dill. It shouldn’t be a surprise that Americans eat more potato chips than any other nation; more than four pounds a person a year, according to Potatoes USA. About 22 percent of the U.S. potato crop—nearly 7,500 million pounds annually—are made into chips. Consumers spend more than $7 billion dollars buying potato chips at retailers. And USDA’s Agricultural Research Service helps ensure that the country always has the perfect potato for frying into chips.
ARS’ potato breeding program has already produced some major winners in the potato chip category. One is Atlantic, a variety ARS developed and released in 1976, that remains the number two chipping variety in the United States.
But potato producers have been ready for an Atlantic replacement for years. Atlantic is vulnerable to internal heat necrosis, where darker spots or flecks form in the flesh of the potato particularly in sandy soils during warm, dry seasons. It is also susceptible to Hollow Heart, a condition in which a hollow depression forms in the center of the potato when moisture levels are very uneven while the potatoes are growing.
Every year, scientists in the ARS potato breeding program make thousands of chipping potato crosses with an eye to improving not only disease and pest resistance, but also achieving perfect potato chip color and proper sugar levels, good storage ability and a whole host of superior agronomic traits such as yield, time to harvest and tuber size.
Novy has a very promising new chipping potato in the pipeline at Aberdeen, known right now as A13125-3C, which is showing much potential in Idaho and in the National Chip Processing Trial (NCPT). ARS participates alongside universities and industry in the NCPT, which is run through Potatoes USA, to test potatoes simultaneously at sites all over the country.
A13125-3C won’t get a catchy variety name until after it successfully completes several years of trials and then goes through a tissue culture process to remove any viruses and bacteria to allow the production of certified seed for producers.
“By sharing access to germplasm and testing nationally, you can more quickly identify candidates having variety potential for the chipping industry,” Novy said. “Such a program helps regional chip companies to identify promising new potato varieties for their production of chips.”
Across the country from the Aberdeen lab, ARS Plant Research Geneticist Paul Collins in Orono, Maine, is concentrating on breeding chipping potatoes with better disease resistance for eastern potato growers. One major focus is potatoes that can better withstand Late Blight, a fungal disease that causes an annual loss of $210 million.
“Most diseases we are working on can affect the farmer’s ability to produce a potato crop and they can have a staggering economic impact,” Collins said. “Potato Virus Y, for example, causes annual losses of $103 million in yield and tuber quality.
While ARS scientists are breeding potatoes to fight diseases, most consumers do not have to worry about their snack being affected by any of these viruses. The chipping varieties for the snack aisle, usually Atlantic, Snowden and Lamoka, are not found in the grocery store’s produce bins.
“Our goal is to breed potato varieties which are resistant to these diseases, and with other agronomic traits that are important to farmers while also having quality traits like color, shape and size that are important to consumers and processors,” Collins said.
The Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s chief scientific in-house research agency. Daily, ARS focuses on solutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in U.S. agricultural research results in $20 of economic impact.
Minimizing soil disturbance is one of the key tenets promoted to build soil health in agricultural systems. Many farmers across the county have adopted reduced and no-till systems to build soil carbon, a central component to healthy soils. But what if you grow a crop where the part you sell is underground – like potatoes? What are some options to build soil health in those systems?
In the US, overall, the potato industry was a $4 billion industry in 2020. Americans will eat their potatoes fresh, frozen, fried, chipped, canned, dehydrated. Potato products are also used as food ingredients, like potato starch.
Potato plants blooming in a field in northwestern Washington. Researchers are looking at ways to grow potatoes with less soil disturbance, which can improve soil health. Credit: Deirdre Griffin LaHue
Potatoes are a valuable crop in Washington state and are the second leading producer of potatoes in the United States (after neighboring Idaho.) Central Washington grows Russet potatoes primarily for French fries and other processed potato products. Northwestern Washington is known for colorful, fresh-market potatoes.
The potato industry in Washington recognizes the importance of healthy soils for long-term, sustainable production of the crop. One issue with growing potatoes: they are a tuber crop, growing belowground. Thus, planting and harvesting them disturbs the soil more than a crop like wheat or barley, which are harvested aboveground. Growers and researchers are working on strategies to promote soil health in this typically high disturbance system.
Aerial image of the long-term agricultural experiment to improve soil health in northwestern Washington’s potato-based cropping systems. The research team is looking at the feasibility and benefits of using cover crops to improve soil health. Credit: Kwabena Sarpong
Through Washington’s new Soil Health Initiative, my team and collaborators recently set up a long-term rotational experiment to explore some of these strategies in potato-based systems. The strategies represent the typical rotations and soils of the area. The trial is designed with methods that use changing levels of:
soil disturbance (i.e., tillage),
organic matter inputs,
internal (cover crops and residues) and,
external (compost).
This allows us to study multiple soil health principles and how they interact with one another.
Potatoes in northwestern Washington are typically grown in a particular field every 3-5 years. Soil improvement strategies are really focused on what happens before and after the potato crop.
A three-year cover crop of a grass-clover mixture will be mowed periodically with no other disturbance. Farmers in Washington state typically grow potatoes every 3 to 5 years. Credit: Deirdre Griffin LaHue
One practice many growers are experimenting with is cover cropping. Cover crops are grown between cash crops to provide agroecosystem benefits related to 3 of the 4 main soil health principles: cover the soil, increase diversity, and maximize continuous living roots, which help feed microorganisms in the soil.
Farmers in the area are using two methods. One is winter cover crops, planted in fall and terminated in spring. The other is multi-year cover crops that are mowed and continuously provide organic carbon inputs to the soil.
Our cold, wet fall and spring seasons can be a challenge to establishing winter cover crops. This is due to harvesting potatoes through October. But having cover crops between all other rotational crops may still benefit the soil.
The multi-year cover crop likely provides more soil benefits, but farmers are then missing out on several years of growing a cash crop. Our experiment looks at both cover crop strategies and their effects on soil properties, crop yields, ecosystem benefits, and farm economics.
We are also studying potato-growing systems that reduce soil disturbance. We’re looking at whether it’s both feasible and beneficial to rotate in wheat or barley planted with no-till seeders. Minimizing soil disturbance between potato crops could improve soil health and future potato yields.
Ultimately, we need to take a systems approach to improving soil health with potatoes and with any crop. It is not just about one crop. It’s about how the whole cropping system is managed over time. By finding those intervention points to introduce a soil-building practice, we can steadily improve soil health even with underground crops. — By Deirdre Griffin-LaHue, Washington State University (Soils Matter, Get the Scoop)
The UC Cooperative Extension will be hosting its 2023 Carrot Research Symposium on Tuesday, February 14th online via Zoom from 8 a.m. to noon. Attendance is free and open to the public. The symposium will focus on the latest information in research and activities related to carrots, with 1.5 hrs. of ‘Other’ CEUs applied for from the CA Dept. of Pesticide Regulations. Some of the highlighted topics on the agenda include: screening carrot lines for resistance to cavity spot and other traits, carrot breeding to develop/introduce improved cultivars for CA production, root-knot nematode injury prevention in CA fresh carrot production, steam disinfestation of weed seed banks in carrots, and more. See the full agenda HERE. Register to attend HERE.
Like all living organisms, vegetables need nutrients for their proper growth and development. But where do they get their mineral nutrients from? The answer is soil. Okay, the next question is, how do nutrients go from the soil and into the vegetables?
The three processes responsible for nutrients from the soil reach the plant are diffusion, mass transport, and root interception. I know it seems to be complex to understand, but I promise it is not.
Diffusion
When the concentration of nutrients is higher in the soil than in the plant root, then the nutrients in the soil will move from a region of higher concentration (soil) to a region of lower concentration (vegetable). Potassium and phosphorus are examples of nutrients that get into the vegetables by diffusion.
Mass transport
Nutrients move to the roots via water. As plants transpire water, it draws water and nutrients from the soil up through the root system. Mass transport accounts for nutrient acquisition of mobile nutrients, such as nitrogen and sulfur.
A radish plant with soil pulled aside to demonstrate the root system. Plants get their nutrients from the soil – and if the soil is deficient in nutrients, the resulting crop will be too. Credit: Carlos Bonini Pires
Root interception
Vegetable roots grow through the soil to meet nutrients. As the root grows through the soil it generally only comes in contact with about 1% of soil volume. Good soil structure is essential in the process of root interception. Soil compaction can significantly limit root growth and interception with nutrients throughout the soil. Some important macro and micronutrients such as calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, and zinc are absorbed by root interception.
Of course, some nutrients are absorbed in more than one way. For example, iron and zinc can be absorbed by three different methods. As you can see, there are a lot of variables that may impact how vegetable acquire their nutrients.
Moving within the plant
Once the nutrients get inside the plant, they can move upward to the leaves and developing vegetables. How? Like a human body, plants also have a vascular system. Rather than a bloodstream, they have xylem and phloem. The Xylem distributes water and dissolves nutrients upward to the plant, from the roots to the leaves. The phloem carries nutrients downward, from the leaves to the roots (photosynthesis). In simple words, the root is the mouth and xylem and phloem are the veins of a “plant body.”
Checking soil nutrients
Soils nutrient concentration is crucial for ensuring high nutrient content vegetables. If the soil has few nutrients, no matter how the plant tries, it will not be able to acquire the nutrients it needs for good yields and plant health.
That is why soil testing is important, and correct fertilization might be needed. Understanding how nutrients are absorbed is vital for a placement strategy. Phosphorus and potassium are nutrients with low mobility and are absorbed by diffusion, so it is important to place them near the plant. On the other hand, nitrogen can be spread over the plants since it is mobile in the soil. This is true whether you are applying organic or mineral fertilizer.
In agronomy, we pay attention to the nutrient 4R’s: right source, right rate, right time, and right place. This refers to choosing the right type of nutrient or fertilizer, applying at the right amount, when the plant can use it the most, and in the right location. By applying these principles to your home garden, you can increase your yields and create more nutritious produce for your next meal! — By Carlos Bonini Pires, Kansas State University
An illustration of a soybean plant growing in nutrient-rich soil, producing nutrient-rich soybeans on the left. On the right, a soil that has fewer nutrients will result in soybeans with less nutrients. Credit: Jim Toomey
American Society of Agronomy, Soil Science Society of America, Crop Science Society of America: Collectively, these Societies represent more than 12,000 individual members around the world. Members are researchers and professionals in the areas of growing our world’s food supply while protecting our environment. Together we work toward solutions to advance scientific knowledge in the areas of agronomy, crop science, and soil science.
Minimizing soil disturbance is one of the key tenets promoted to build soil health in agricultural systems. Many farmers across the county have adopted reduced and no-till systems to build soil carbon, a central component to healthy soils. But what if you grow a crop where the part you sell is underground – like potatoes? What are some options to build soil health in those systems?
In the US, overall, the potato industry was a $4 billion industry in 2020. Americans will eat their potatoes fresh, frozen, fried, chipped, canned, dehydrated. Potato products are also used as food ingredients, like potato starch.
Potatoes are a valuable crop in Washington state. We are the second leading producer of potatoes in the United States (after neighboring Idaho.) Central Washington grows Russet potatoes primarily for French fries and other processed potato products. Northwestern Washington is known for colorful, fresh-market potatoes.
The potato industry in Washington recognizes the importance of healthy soils for long-term, sustainable production of the crop. One issue with growing potatoes: they are a tuber crop, growing belowground. Thus, planting and harvesting them disturbs the soil more than a crop like wheat or barley, which are harvested aboveground. Growers and researchers are working on strategies to promote soil health in this typically high disturbance system.
Through Washington’s new Soil Health Initiative, my team and collaborators recently set up a long-term rotational experiment to explore some of these strategies in potato-based systems. The strategies represent the typical rotations and soils of the area. The trial is designed with methods that use changing levels of:
soil disturbance (i.e., tillage),
organic matter inputs,
internal (cover crops and residues) and,
external (compost).
This allows us to study multiple soil health principles and how they interact with one another.
Potatoes in northwestern Washington are typically grown in a particular field every 3-5 years. Soil improvement strategies are really focused on what happens before and after the potato crop.
One practice many growers are experimenting with is cover cropping. Cover crops are grown between cash crops to provide agroecosystem benefits related to 3 of the 4 main soil health principles: cover the soil, increase diversity, and maximize continuous living roots, which help feed microorganisms in the soil.
Farmers in the area are using two methods. One is winter cover crops, planted in fall and terminated in spring. The other is multi-year cover crops that are mowed and continuously provide organic carbon inputs to the soil.
Our cold, wet fall and spring seasons can be a challenge to establishing winter cover crops. This is due to harvesting potatoes through October. But having cover crops between all other rotational crops may still benefit the soil.
The multi-year cover crop likely provides more soil benefits, but farmers are then missing out on several years of growing a cash crop. Our experiment looks at both cover crop strategies and their effects on soil properties, crop yields, ecosystem benefits, and farm economics.
We are also studying potato-growing systems that reduce soil disturbance. We’re looking at whether it’s both feasible and beneficial to rotate in wheat or barley planted with no-till seeders. Minimizing soil disturbance between potato crops could improve soil health and future potato yields.
Ultimately, we need to take a systems approach to improving soil health with potatoes and with any crop. It is not just about one crop. It’s about how the whole cropping system is managed over time. By finding those intervention points to introduce a soil-building practice, we can steadily improve soil health even with underground crops. — By Deirdre Griffin-LaHue, Washington State University
Growers were happy to see potato prices rise overall in the Pacific Northwest last year. The final value of Idaho’s 2021 potato crop sold was $1.04 billion, up 14 percent from 2020. The marketing year average price for potatoes in Idaho was $8.46 per cwt, up $1.18 from last year. In Oregon, the 2021 potato crop sold was valued at $218 million, up 10 percent from last year. The potato price was $9.02 per cwt, up $1.02 from last year. Washington’s 2021 potato crop sold was valued at $666 million, down 5 percent from 2020. The marketing year average price for fall potatoes was $7.75 per cwt, up $0.19 from the previous year.
In Idaho, potato production for 2021 totaled 132 million cwt, down 2 percent from 2020. In Oregon, production was 26.3 million cwt., down 3 percent from 2020. Production in Washington was 91.9 million cwt., down 8 percent from 2020. The combined production for the 3 states was 61 percent of U.S. potato production in 2021.
Processors in Idaho and Malheur County Oregon used a total of 83,070 thousand cwt in 2021, down 8 percent from 2020. Washington and Oregon, excluding Malheur County, processors used 94,882 thousand cwt during 2021, up 6 percent from the previous year.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and Mexico’s national plant protection organization (SENASICA) announce that the United States has begun exporting potatoes beyond the 26-kilometer border zone that previously marked the limit of their export. The two countries reached an agreement late last year to expand that market access for U.S. potatoes, something that the United States has sought for more than 25 years.
“Through this accomplishment, we are delivering better markets for U.S. farmers, supporting economic growth, and providing access to our southern neighbors to the high-quality and safe products our farmers work hard every day to grow and sustain. USDA will continue to fight for new and expanded markets for American products as we help the nation build back better,” said U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
The U.S. potato industry estimates that this access for U.S. fresh potatoes to all of Mexico will provide a market potential of $250 million per year, in five years. This is an increase of $190 million from the current export value of $60 million.
Pumpkins (Cucurbita pepo) are a common vegetable crop sold at local pumpkin patches and farmers markets, in addition to commercial production. In 2019, the value of harvested pumpkin was worth $180 million.
In addition to the value of harvested pumpkins for commercial use (canned pumpkin, produce departments, etc.) pumpkins are also a staple crop in agritourism operations. In Kansas alone, there were 409 farms registered in the state in 2020. Agritourism enterprises have shown to benefit communities by connecting consumers with agriculture and help preserve farmland in rural and peri-urban areas.
Vegetable crop production typically involves smaller acreages than agronomic production. However, farmers often rely on intensive cultivation of soil to prepare the seedbed for planting. Tilling also helps manage weeds.
Agritourism enterprises have shown to benefit communities by connecting consumers with agriculture and help preserve farmland in rural and peri-urban communities. Shown here, a pumpkin patch where people can pick their own pumpkin as part of fall activities. Credit: Canva Pro
Over time, extensive tillage can have negative effects on soil structure and microbial properties. Researchers in Kansas recently published a paper studying conservation practices for pumpkin production. The research was published in Soil Science Society of America Journal, a publication of the Soil Science Society of America.
According to researcher Peter Tomlinson, “no-till production methods have been widely adopted by agronomic (field corn, soybean, wheat, etc.) growers throughout the United States. However, no-till practices for vegetable production in the Central United States are relatively rare. Mid-Atlantic States such as Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maryland have adopted no-till practices for pumpkin and other large-seeded vegetable crops.”
The study compared growing pumpkins in a biannual tilled control system with annual tilled systems that used cover crops. “This project is designed to compare systems, rather than individual effects of cover crops or tillage,” says Tomlinson. The authors reported the effects of a three-year project on dynamic soil properties.
The annual systems used cover crops planted into the soil. They were terminated before planting the pumpkins. The team researched cereal rye and oat alone, as well as cereal rye with other cover crops mixed in. They performed the study over three growing seasons at two sites – Eastern and South-Central Kansas. Both sites have humid climates with warm summers, and loam-type soils.
A field planted with pumpkins grown in a cover crop system with cereal rye. Cover crops have proven environmental benefits, though many vegetable growers in the Midwest have been slower to adopt this conservation practice. A recent study showed soil health benefits with no reduction in yield. Credit: DeAnn R. Presley
At each of the study sites, soil health was assessed at two key times; plots were sampled 2-3 weeks after pumpkin planting, and immediately after pumpkin harvest.
The main soil physical property that was affected by management systems used in this study was an improvement with the use of conservation systems in total soil aggregation and the presence of very large aggregates. Soil aggregates are small particles of soil held together with a glue-like substance. This is usually due to microbial activity. Soil aggregates help in the stability of the soil making it less prone to wind and water erosion.
“Adding cover crops and reducing tillage in a pumpkin production system can cause a measurable change in soil aggregation in a short period of time, two years in this study,” says Tomlinson.
“There were few instances where the species or mixture of species influenced the results,” he continues. “Rather, the presence of cover crops in the conservation systems appears to have a more dominant role. The significance of this work is that it demonstrated there can be measurable changes in some dynamic soil properties in the short term (two years). This is within a system that involves a reduction in tillage operations and the addition of cover crops.”
“We conclude that the use of less tillage and a cover crop in a conservation system is generally beneficial as compared to a conventional system. This study illustrates the potential for improving some soil health parameters in as little as two years,” says Tomlinson. Future research will focus on how the implementation of conservation system across a range of agricultural systems and time scales effect dynamic soil properties.”
Funding for this research was provided by NRCS Conservation Innovation Grant.
Cathryn Davis measuring infiltration rates in an oat cover crop during her MS research published in this paper (photo by DeAnn R. Presley)
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on May 4th that its Risk Management Agency (RMA) is modifying four Northern Potato Crop Insurance Policy optional endorsements. The options are available to producers who choose to purchase additional coverage on top of their multi-peril crop insurance policy. The changes specify that the premium only applies to planted acreage and is no longer charged on acreage prevented from planting. The changes will be effective for the 2022 and succeeding crop years.
RMA Acting Administrator Richard Flournoy
“Producers will benefit from this change since the premium will only be due for years when the crop is planted, which will make the additional coverage more affordable in years when the crop is prevented from planting,” said RMA Acting Administrator Richard Flournoy.
The modifications are applicable to the Quality Endorsement, Processing Quality Endorsement, Certified Seed Endorsement and the Storage Coverage Endorsement. Currently, insured operations are charged a premium if they elect the optional endorsements by the sales closing date, regardless if the acreage was prevented from planting or not.
For example, the Storage Coverage Endorsement extends crop insurance coverage for potatoes that have been harvested and are in storage. Acreage prevented from planting would not need coverage that is specifically designed for a final harvested crop. Previously the acreage was still charged a premium.
The changes are a result of RMA’s outreach to potato commodity groups and the crop insurance industry. With these changes, producers will see their premium reduced during years when there are prevented planting losses and an offsetting increase in years without those losses, which enhances the overall financial stability provided by insurance.
Crop insurance is sold and delivered solely through private crop insurance agents. A list of crop insurance agents is available online using the RMA Agent Locator. Learn more about crop insurance and the modern farm safety net at rma.usda.gov.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
Like all living organisms, vegetables need 
Pumpkins (Cucurbita pepo) are a common vegetable crop sold at local pumpkin patches and farmers markets, in addition to commercial production. In 2019, the value of harvested pumpkin was worth $180 million.
