Alexander Skvortsov, Head of the Potato Department, SumiAgro Russia
In 2021, many potato-growing regions suffered from a lack of rainfall, without receiving significant harvest volumes. This season has once again clearly indicated that it is possible to reduce losses from the vagaries of nature only through the introduction of irrigation.
Compared to field crops, the same grains, growing potatoes requires significantly higher costs for all parts of the technology - planting material, fertilizers, etc. The transition to irrigation will definitely reduce risks and increase yields on average over the years due to intensification.
But the introduction of irrigation will require a more careful approach to building a plant protection system from the farm. It would be wise to discard preparations that are not resistant or insufficiently resistant to rainfall, so as not to speculate about what percentage of mancozeb or copper compounds will remain on the surface of the leaves with a certain amount of sprinkler. A system for protecting against diseases and pests that can cause serious economic damage should not contain any “ifs”, especially since there are a sufficient number of products on the market that allow you to do this.
So, an excellent alternative to mancozeb-based fungicides (by the way, since 2021 this active substance has been banned in many European countries) can be an innovative drug from the Japanese manufacturer of plant protection products SumiAgro - Elektis D®designed to protect potatoes and grapes from late blight and mildew.
At the heart of the drug is a new substance of contact action zoxamide. Zoxamide has a unique affinity (affinity) for vegetable waxes, which gives the highest rain resistance.
The substance has not been previously used on potatoes, it has a mechanism of action different from most fungicidal molecules: it disrupts the process of mitosis in cell nuclei. Zoxamide acts on zoospores after the beginning of their germination, stopping the elongation of the growth tubes. Another important point is that this molecule also disrupts the normal formation of zoospores in zoosporangia, thus preventing epiphytoty “in the bud”.
The second component of Electis D® - dimethomorph - is a translaminar substance that disrupts the growth of the cell walls of the pathogen, has a curative (therapeutic) effect. All of these aspects provide contact-translaminar activity of the fungicide Elektis D®, make it indispensable for irrigation and an excellent alternative to products containing mancozeb or copper compounds. I will add that this fungicide is used in the world on a much larger number of crops - primarily vegetables, such as onions (where affinity for vegetable waxes is more relevant than anywhere else), cucumber and even lettuce.
I also note that, taking into account this drug, the SumiKartofel (SumiAgro) brand portfolio includes six foliar fungicides, five of them are produced in liquid formulations, four are resistant to washout: including a product with systemic properties Consento® (fenamidone + propamocarb hydrochloride), contact-translaminar Mixanil® (chlorothalonil + cymoxanil), Ranman®Top (cyazofamide).
Growing potatoes under irrigation forces farms to impose additional requirements on herbicide protection - it must be more reliable and long-term.
In this regard, I propose to pay attention to another SumiAgro novelty - Akebono herbicide.®, designed specifically for the Russian market. The product will be available for sale as early as 2022, but so far only with permission for use on rapeseed and soybeans (the drug will receive registration for use on potatoes in 2023).
Akebono® contains in its composition clomazone and C-metalochlor, which provide protection against annual dicotyledonous and cereal weeds (including bedstraw, gauze, species of mountaineers, nightshade, which create many problems when growing potatoes). Both components of the herbicide (and above all clomazone) are contained in sufficient quantities to ensure complete control of weeds, and at the same time ensure safety for crops sown next spring. Thus, SumiAgro offers a new basic soil herbicide with all the qualities to form the basis of an effective potato weed control system.
Let me remind you that at the moment in Russian farms, as a rule, one of two common potato protection schemes using soil soils is used: based on metribuzin, or based on prosulfocarb and prometrin. The first is not suitable for everyone: many varieties for industrial processing are inhibited by this substance, in addition, metribuzin has an aftereffect on subsequent crops. The main disadvantage of the second scheme is the very high cost of drugs.
Akebono® has all the prerequisites to become a reliable third option: the drug does not have a negative effect on unstable varieties, has no restrictions on rotation in crop rotation, is economical. Compared to metribuzin, the components of the Japanese herbicide will better protect against grass weeds, control nightshade and mountaineer species. In particular, clomazone is better retained by soil organic matter and is less mobile during rainfall or abundant irrigation, it also has a longer half-life and, accordingly, a prolonged action.
Herbicide Akebono® will be a reliable element in the construction of potato protection against weeds and an excellent alternative to already used preparations.
In conclusion, I would like to say that the SumiKartofel brand line is constantly updated with new products. In addition to the Prestige protector®, fungicides, herbicides and other plant protection products, it also includes a complete set of elements - mineral nutrition correctors. In the 2022 season, it will also be seriously supplemented with new products that will improve the quality and keeping quality of the final product. But this is a topic for a separate post.