BEST PRACTICE HIGHLIGHTED AFTER TRIALS
RECENT work by Certis Belchim has underlined the importance of nozzle choice in getting the most out of PPO-inhibiting desiccants in potato crops.
The firm has built up a strong dataset on best practice use and last year ran trials to look at the influence of nozzle choice and whether a pre-flail treatment of treatments such as Gozai (pyraflufen-ethyl) could speed up skin set and stolon detachment ahead of harvest.
The trial tested two nozzles: A standard flat fan and a Lechler IDTA nozzle.
The Lechler is an air induction twin flat fan nozzle with forward and backward facing fans. The nozzle is said to improve coverage and offers 90-95% drift reduction over a standard flat fan.
Certis Belchim’s Technical Account Manager Jeremy Booth said two applications of Gozai plus Toil (95% methylated rapeseed adjuvant oil) were made in 300L/ha of water: T1 on September 6th and T2 on September 13th.
“One week after the first application, the plots treated with the Lechler nozzle improved the level of leaf desiccation by 45% and Gozai’s activity on the stems by 20%,” he said. “Using the backwards and forward twin fan nozzle will achieve the outcome you want much quicker than the standard.”
Jeremy said a pre-flail treatment increased the speed of skin set and stolon detachment, and could be a useful application in some seasons.
With desiccation programmes about to start in earnest, he added that aside from nozzle choice, crop and environmental conditions at application have a big influence on speed of kill.
High UV light intensity helps improve activity of PPO-inhibitors like Gozai, so spraying at the start of a sunny day is best and if flailing, 15-20cm of stem should be left above ground to aid kill.
“Previous work has also highlighted the importance of water rate and we see that 300L/ha balances consistent results with sprayer efficiency,” said Jeremy.
With reports of foliar late blight infection in crops this season, he stressed the importance of maintaining disease protection until all foliage is dead.
“We support the recommendation of Gozai + Toil with our blight fungicide Ranman Top (cyazofamid). Ranman Top offers good protection of both foliar and tuber blight, which is crucial at the backend of the season.”
