Barry Mitchell, Kilberry, Navan, Co Meath
Barry Mitchell, Kilberry, Navan, Co Meath
Our crop was not too bad. We got dug early considering the wet year, but there was a lot of hardship. A lot of muck came in with the crop and we had a lot of sorting out and drying to do. There’s some of it that we would be a little worried about storing in the long term, but so far so good. It’s looking ok at the same time. It kept reasonably dry, but every field you went into, you would certainly leave a little bit behind you. But we did ok, considering there’s still a lot to be dug in our area.
Peter Garrigan, Ballyboughal, Co Dublin
Peter Garrigan, Ballyboughal, Co Dublin
Last year went ok, middle of the road, yields were average. It was a tough year with the weather, but all in all it was ok. We’ve about 25 acres left in the ground. It’s going to be tough to get that out. We harvested a little bit about two weeks ago and it was slow going. The crops were ok, not fantastic, but not as bad as we thought they were going to be. Hopefully when it dries up, we’ll get going again and get it all dug. It’s going to take a long time for the ground to get ready. We’ll try to get the early varieties in as quick as possible, but it’s going to be a couple of weeks before we even look at it.
Charlie Doherty, Burt, Co Donegal
Charlie Doherty, Burt, Co Donegal
I'd say the crop was average this year. Pinks did pretty well in terms of quality, Roosters were average enough. I’m happy enough. It was a struggle getting them dug, but we did get them dug before Christmas. The plan for next year will be the same again. Weather-wise, there’s nothing happening yet anyway, but, hopefully from St. Patrick’s Day on, if the ground is good enough, we’ll plant then. We are where we are, so we’ll have to make do.
Eddie Doyle, Mooncoin, Co Kilkenny
Eddie Doyle, Mooncoin, Co Kilkenny
Our crop was reasonably good. We had a good enough growing season and I had to irrigate. It’s a feature of what I have to do nearly every year, but when the rain came at the end of September, we were able to put irrigation out of our mind. Overall, we were very lucky because we generally try to harvest early and we got everything harvested, bar four acres that were left in the ground by the finish. We would have finished last November. There was no winter corn put in after the potatoes and there’s a lot of work to be done this spring, as there always is, but we get it done every year and we’ll get it done again.
Read more
Potatoes are bought every one second in Irish retailers
Loss of diquat poses a huge challenge for the potato industry
IFA potato report: some early planting under way in Louth and Wexford
Barry Mitchell, Kilberry, Navan, Co Meath
Barry Mitchell, Kilberry, Navan, Co Meath
Our crop was not too bad. We got dug early considering the wet year, but there was a lot of hardship. A lot of muck came in with the crop and we had a lot of sorting out and drying to do. There’s some of it that we would be a little worried about storing in the long term, but so far so good. It’s looking ok at the same time. It kept reasonably dry, but every field you went into, you would certainly leave a little bit behind you. But we did ok, considering there’s still a lot to be dug in our area.
Peter Garrigan, Ballyboughal, Co Dublin
Peter Garrigan, Ballyboughal, Co Dublin
Last year went ok, middle of the road, yields were average. It was a tough year with the weather, but all in all it was ok. We’ve about 25 acres left in the ground. It’s going to be tough to get that out. We harvested a little bit about two weeks ago and it was slow going. The crops were ok, not fantastic, but not as bad as we thought they were going to be. Hopefully when it dries up, we’ll get going again and get it all dug. It’s going to take a long time for the ground to get ready. We’ll try to get the early varieties in as quick as possible, but it’s going to be a couple of weeks before we even look at it.
Charlie Doherty, Burt, Co Donegal
Charlie Doherty, Burt, Co Donegal
I'd say the crop was average this year. Pinks did pretty well in terms of quality, Roosters were average enough. I’m happy enough. It was a struggle getting them dug, but we did get them dug before Christmas. The plan for next year will be the same again. Weather-wise, there’s nothing happening yet anyway, but, hopefully from St. Patrick’s Day on, if the ground is good enough, we’ll plant then. We are where we are, so we’ll have to make do.
Eddie Doyle, Mooncoin, Co Kilkenny
Eddie Doyle, Mooncoin, Co Kilkenny
Our crop was reasonably good. We had a good enough growing season and I had to irrigate. It’s a feature of what I have to do nearly every year, but when the rain came at the end of September, we were able to put irrigation out of our mind. Overall, we were very lucky because we generally try to harvest early and we got everything harvested, bar four acres that were left in the ground by the finish. We would have finished last November. There was no winter corn put in after the potatoes and there’s a lot of work to be done this spring, as there always is, but we get it done every year and we’ll get it done again.
Read more
Potatoes are bought every one second in Irish retailers
Loss of diquat poses a huge challenge for the potato industry
IFA potato report: some early planting under way in Louth and Wexford
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