The 2021 potato harvest is nearly complete with just a few outstanding fields left to be lifted in the northwest.

Despite a tricky start, most growers will agree it has been a good growing year for the crop. The 2021 Bord Bia national potato yield dig report was recently published and makes for interesting reading.

The results are compiled annually by Teagasc and primarily focus on two commonly grown varieties, Rooster and Kerr’s Pink.

While many crops were planted early, cold weather in April and May, coupled with the high temperatures in July, impacted crop development in some areas.

This has resulted in some fairly large variations between crop yields which may impact supply locally. Overall, however, potato crop yields are above the national average and both Rooster and Kerr’s Pink show a significant increase over 2020 yields.

Figure 1 shows the results from the last five years and the average yield from those years while Figure 2 shows the percentage change from year to year.

While 2021’s crops are above average, the report suggests that there is quite a lot of variation in crops. This is mainly due to weather conditions. Figures 3 and 4 show the variation in yields per county.

Crops were affected early in the season by cold weather and frost, which led to uneven emergence in many crops throughout the country.

While this seemed to be problematic all over the country, it proved to be localised in many areas. In some cases, there were fields affected while others close by were relatively unaffected.

This may have been down to planting date or depth or the aspect of the field, ie north-facing or south-facing. We even saw in some cases the effect of tall hedgerows where frosts lingered longer into the day and subsequently delayed emergence. Main crop planting was delayed in other areas due to a wet May.

Crops enjoyed a long season to reach full maturity. There were some reports, however, that some Kerr’s Pink crops had high tuber numbers which delayed bulking and maturity.

Desiccation and harvest

The warm conditions in August and September ensured that bulking continued well into the season. Despite a derogation being granted on Diquat, the good conditions also gave growers a chance to use alternative desiccation methods.

As such, many growers had a good level of success using Spotlight Plus and flails this year. Reports did suggest, however, that skin set was slower this year, especially in the areas where planting was delayed.

Most growers agree that harvest conditions this season were fantastic. Great ground conditions ensured low tare rates and a smooth harvest which was easy on machinery, staff and soil.

There was also ample opportunity in 2021 to sow a winter crop after the potatoes were harvested.

The exception to this was the west and northwest where conditions deteriorated during October. That said, there were many more windows than usual to get crops harvested during November and December and growers are now on the final stretch.

Seed

While many growers have already started sourcing seed for 2022, there are increasing concerns that some varieties may be difficult to secure due to the Brexit ban on seed imports and flooding issues in Europe last summer.

While Rooster supplies might be a little tight, they should be fine for 2022, according to Teagasc.

Growers who intend using home-saved seed are advised to get this seed tested for virus.

Growers normally get this done by NIAB in Cambridge UK. Earlier this year, growers continued to send samples to the lab for analysis but some reported that there was extra paperwork that needed to be completed with the couriers before sending samples, due to Brexit, according to Teagasc.