Last summer, the Maas flooded the entire company of the Van den Eertwegh partnership. A violent event, the wounds of which are far from healed. “The claims settlement has barely started, but we will have to look forward again. The potatoes will soon have to be put back in the ground”, says Wim van den Eertwegh. Although claims settlement requires a lot of attention and sharpness, there are also ‘smaller’ challenges that the arable farmer remains alert to. One of these is the control of thorn apple, a strongly emerging weed in its area. Doornappel can multiply explosively. If you let it slip, you’ll have a problem.”
Typical are the large trumpet-shaped flowers on which spiky, egg-shaped seed bulbs later develop.
2021 was a very eventful year for the Van den Eertwegh family to say the least. Due to the flooding of the Meuse, their entire company – and a large part of the crops – was flooded by more than a meter. ,,Look, here the water is just below the counter top of the canteen where we are sitting now”, says Wim van den Eertwegh while showing some photos on his mobile. And here’s the barn. One big brown mud puddle.” The arable farmer says that the company has had to deal with flooding more often in the past, but never in the middle of summer.
“The big difference is that now about a third of our crops have been lost – about 50 hectares in all. We were actually just before the harvest. All costs had been incurred and that means maximum loss. All in all, it involves several tons of damage. That will not bother you.” Fortunately, the cattle (fattening bulls), the machines and other equipment were able to be brought to dry land in time. “We also put some of our stuff on a plateau with cubic boxes. In the end it just stayed dry.”
Although the area has been designated as a disaster area and thus also non-insurable damage is compensated, the damage assessment and financial settlement have largely yet to begin – almost six months after the disaster. ,,And that while we already have to incur costs for the new season. The cash flow is therefore definitely not positive for our company; That does cause some concern.”
Clay potatoes are lost
About half of the potatoes – about 40 hectares of Agrias annually – have been lost. Van den Eertwegh knows that this has also put the regular buyer of the potatoes off the table. “We have been supplying our Agrias to Bex Potatoes here in Kessel for many years. He makes fresh chips for the catering industry all year round. We were able to supply most of the early potatoes, which were on the somewhat higher sandy soils. But the clay potatoes needed for longer storage – which were largely on the floodplain – have all been lost. So the company had to buy it through other channels…”
Fortunately, the relationship with the buyer is good, so that the cooperation can continue as usual next season. ,,We ensure a harvest that is as spread out as possible on different soil types, so that Bex can produce fresh chips all year round. In addition, we also focus on quality as much as possible, for which we are also rewarded extra. It would be very harsh if such a good cooperation were to come to an end due to a bad year”, says the arable farmer.
Tackling thorn apple firmly
Of a completely different order, but also important, are the increasing problems with thorn apple. According to Van den Eertwegh, this weed has multiplied and spread enormously in his area over the past ten years. “One plant easily has ten to fifteen seed bulbs. If you give it the chance to pop, you get a true explosion of seeds,” the farmer knows. He himself does everything he can to not get these weeds in the harvester or combine, “otherwise you will find them all over the plot a year later.”
Agrea advisor Peter Ickenroth, who is also present at the meeting, agrees that thorn apple is a strongly emerging weed in the Limburg and Brabant countryside. ,,Because thorn apple can grow quite large, you can often see from the road whether they are present on the field. Growers who do nothing or too little about it will eventually have major problems with these weeds,” he warns.
An effective way to control thorn apple is through (pre-emergence) weed control in potatoes. The soil herbicide Gofor is central to this. Ickenroth: ,,The active ingredient flufenacet in Gofor is known to have a good effect against thorn apple. A pre-emergence spray with 2 l/ha Gofor – supplemented with Boxer® and Proman® for an even broader effect – is therefore a very good option for tackling thorn apple on the one hand and all other troublesome weeds such as melded, nightshade and various grasses on the other. to clean up.”
‘Gofor option’ clearly visible
According to the advisor, it was already quite clear last season which growers had opted for the ‘Gofor option’. ,,There you often still saw some thorn apple on the roadsides, but on the plot itself often nothing at all. That does indicate that Gofor can show excellent results against these difficult weeds, especially on moist and saggy soil.”
For the coming season, Ickenroth expects (even) more potato growers to switch to Gofor. ,,People literally see the success with Gofor in the field. That way the drug sells itself.”
