CapitalPress.com
Friday, January 22, 2021
Researcher solves potato puzzle
By BRAD CARLSON
Capital Press
When potato farmers show the Uni-
versity of Idaho’s Pamela Hutchinson
apparent early season damage from
herbicides, she wonders if excess rain-
fall is to blame.
“The last three
years, I’ve been asked
by growers to go out in
the field in the spring or
early summer. They see
what they thought was
herbicide damage to
potatoes before or right
Pamela
after emergence,” she
said. “Unusual condi- Hutchinson
tions during the spring
probably are what drove what you
would consider injury. That condition
was excess rainfall.”
Hutchinson, associate professor and
potato cropping-systems weed scien-
tist with UI Extension in Aberdeen, is
studying how excess rainfall plays into
potato injury and weed control.
Potato herbicides are safe partly
because potatoes can metabolize them.
Ideally, they work in the soil’s top
two inches or so, where weed seeds
germinate.
But if potatoes get too much her-
bicide, they can’t metabolize it fast
enough and the risk of injury increases.
Variables, in addition to how much rain
falls and when, include soil type, the
potato plant’s growth-cycle stage, and
how soluble a particular herbicide is.
“As we went across the state last year,
there were some areas that got 3 or more
inches of excess rainfall,” Hutchinson
said. “It was after growers applied her-
bicide and after some had incorporated
herbicide in irrigation. Those treatments
were applied after planting but before
emergence.”
Excess rainfall could move some sol-
Forage specialist
focuses on quality
PAMELA J.S. HUTCHINSON
Title: Associate professor, extension
specialist, potato cropping-systems
weed scientist, University of Idaho Aber-
deen Research and Extension Center.
By CAROL RYAN DUMAS
Capital Press
Education: B.S., agronomy and pest
management, Iowa State University,
1980; M.S., weed science and econom-
ics, South Dakota State University,
1987; Ph.D., weed science, University of
Nebraska, 1991.
GLENN SHEWMAKER
Location: Kimberly, Idaho
For nearly 40 years, farmers
and ranchers have counted on
Glenn Shewmaker to help them
figure out the best way to grow
and store a top-quality forage
crop or manage a pasture.
The University of Idaho’s
only department-level forage
specialist, Shewmaker retired
last summer — although he had
been in the office most of the
week when Capital Press caught
up with him in early November.
“I’ve focused most of my
research on forage quality, mea-
suring forage quality as affected
by environmental conditions,”
Shewmaker said.
Home: Aberdeen.
Family: Tom Salaiz, a McCain Foods
executive; adult son.
Hobbies: Downhill skiing, hiking, pet
ownership. Percussionist, Idaho State
Civic Symphony, Pocatello.
uble herbicides farther down into the soil
profile than usual, where it could possi-
bly be taken up by the emerging potato
plant.
“Even though I’ve tested high rates
on multiple varieties, it has always been
under normal growing conditions,”
Hutchinson said.
Hutchinson, using the UI Aberdeen
irrigation system, this year simulated 3
and 6 inches of excess rainfall.
“I saw the symptoms I saw out in the
field, last year especially,” she said.
Yellowing of leaf veins in a potato
variety that typically would not show
that type of damage was one result where
a highly soluble herbicide was used. In
another instance, Hutchinson found less
damage than she expected following
a simulated 6 inches of excess rainfall
where a less-soluble herbicide was used.
She aims to continue the project for
at least another year, possibly cooperat-
ing with a farmer with sandier soils than
Aberdeen’s.
This story was first published Oct. 23,
2020.
Age: 69
Occupation: Professor and
extension forage specialist,
University of Idaho Kimberly
Research & Extension Center
(retired)
Education: Ph.D., rangeland
resources, Utah State Universi-
ty, 1998; M.S., animal science,
University of Idaho, 1976; B.S.
animal science, University of
Idaho, 1973
University of Idaho
Rewarding research
Glenn Shewmaker demon-
strates grass identification
and plant morphology at
the Lost River Grazing Acad-
emy in September 2012.
That career began in 1983
as a research associate at the
University of Idaho Kim-
berly Research & Extension
Center. In 1988 he went to
work as a biological techni-
cian with the USDA Agri-
cultural Research Service at
the Northwest Irrigation and
Soils Research Laboratory,
also in Kimberly.
In 1999, he returned to
the University of Idaho as an
extension forage specialist.
In that role, he has performed
research and field trials,
authored many publications
and given a steady flow of
presentations and workshops.
“To survive the univer-
sity system, you have to pub-
lish or perish. But the ulti-
mate reward is producers
getting the information,” he
said.
His research has allowed
him to get real numbers and
relate beneficial information
to producers, he said.
“When you see the light
turn on or they say, ‘Yeah,
that really helped me in my
operation,’ that’s reward-
ing,” he said.
Over the years, he’s con-
ducted forage management
and utilization research,
Editor and contributor:
Numerous publications,
including two books — “Idaho
Forage Handbook,” 2004, and
“Pasture and Grazing Manage-
ment in the Northwest,” 2010
Awards: Numerous awards
including the Don Hale Hall of
Fame Award from the Idaho
Hay and Forage Association
including alfalfa and grass
forage quality, intensive pas-
ture grazing systems, nutri-
ent management planning
and environmental effects of
grazing.
His research has included
variety trials, seeding rates,
hay drying, herbicide and
pesticide trials, crop fertility,
soil health and cover crops.
This story was first published
Dec. 4, 2020.
G&R AG PRODUCTS – RENTAL and SALES
S223242-1
HEADQUARTERS FOR YOUR AG SPRAY & FERTILIZER EQUIPMENT
905 Simplot Blvd., Caldwell, ID 83606
1-800-443-0809 • (208) 454-2288
721 Oregon Ave., Pasco, WA 99301
1-800-788-4453 • (509) 545-5855
gandragproducts.com
S221704-1
IMPROVE YOUR SOIL HEALTH FOR 2021 WITH THE BEST NATURAL FERTILIZER ON EARTH
PERFECT FOR PASTURES, NUTS, FRUIT TREES, VEGGIES, HEMP, AND EVERYTHING ELSE…
How to Use Chicken Soup?
for฀the฀Soil
for฀the฀Soil
OPTION 1: APPLY CHICKEN SOUP STRAIGHT AND WATER INTO SOIL
•
•
•
•
Can be sprayed, irrigated, drip, or knifed.
Easy one-step application at the beginning of the season.
Stimulates life in the soil and supplies all the nutrients most fertilizers neglect.
Improves the quality of all farms, gardens, orchards, and vineyards.
“CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOIL ®
IMPROVES YOUR SOIL BY FEEDING
THE MICROBES AND SUPPLYING
ALL THE NUTRIENTS MOST
FERTILIZERS NEGLECT.”
OPTION 2: MAKE 500 GALLONS OF COMPOST TEA OUT OF A
55-GALLON BARREL
Step 1. Get a large tank and add 1 part Chicken Soup For The Soil® to 9 parts water.
Step 2. Add a handful of good quality soil, or pure earthworm castings.
o After 4 or 5 days your mixture will ferment into a tea.
o Microbes will multiply and deposit waste back into the tea.
o Compost Tea contains all the nutrients in Chicken Soup plus beneficial
microbes. Inexpensive and effective.
Step 3. Use an air compressor and soaker hose to stir the mixture in the tank.
o Can be sprayed, irrigated, drip, or knifed.
o Can also be reapplied periodically as needed.
o Convert into an amazing foliar for an instant bump in nutrition and to
create biological exclusion on the leaf (less bugs and disease).
OPTION 3: USE HALF YOUR BUDGET ON CHICKEN SOUP AND THE
OTHER HALF ON CHEMICAL FERTILIZER
•
Apply Chicken Soup at least 2 weeks earlier than chemical fertilizer. Applying at
the same time will break up the colloidal structure of the Chicken Soup.
•
Example - $50 per acre budget; apply $25 Chicken Soup, then $25 worth of
chemical fertilizer later.
•
•
The Chicken Soup will help make the chemical fertilizer work better than it would
otherwise. Easy way for anybody to incorporate Chicken Soup for the Soil®.
Works with any nutrient program. Improve your soil and increase yields without
spending more.
All Methods of Application Work Great! Which One Is Best For You?
PERFECT FOR AGRICULTURAL USE
Hemp, Apples, Pastures, Almonds, Grapes, etc.
• Grow higher-quality fruits and vagatables with more
color, better taste, and less bug infestations and disease.
64oz
• Non-leaching formula / nutrients accumulate over time.
• Makes an amazing Compost Tea.
• Perfect for Gardeners, Growers, Farmers & Ranchers.
5
$29.9
• Contains all the elements in the periodic table (sea
nutrients, amino acids, humic, fulvic, and other herbal
extracts).
• All natural, toxin free, and bioavailable.
Jug
ING
HIPP
+
E S
FRE
* Makes
up to 128
gallons
with 1
tablespoon
per gallon.
Also Available:
COMMERCIAL QUANTITIES AVAILABLE
208-602-2844
www.DrJimZ.com/farm
TOMATO SECRET
BLOOM KABOOM
TREE SECRET
MYCORRHIZAE
S222982-1
8