Potatoes are no longer a crop where “one treatment is enough.” Weeds steal moisture and nutrients at the most critical early stages, diseases destroy the leaf canopy, pests reduce quality and marketable yield, and mistakes during harvest and storage turn a good crop into losses. That’s why the most effective strategy today is a full-season protection system covering every stage: field preparation → planting and seed treatment → growing season → desiccation → storage. This article summarizes an integrated approach described in the technical materials of the company “Avgust.”
1) Season Start: Weeds Can’t Be “Postponed”
In potatoes, the first weeks are decisive: the crop closes rows slowly, and weeds easily take over resources. In practice, the weed-control strategy usually includes three key “windows”:
Before planting / before emergence
Goal: remove existing vegetation and create a reliable foundation for early cleanliness. This stage typically includes non-selective pre-plant solutions and early soil/early-season options aimed at annual broadleaf and grass weeds.
After emergence / before the canopy reaches about 15 cm
When new weed flushes appear, post-emergence (“rescue”) measures come into play. Programs commonly include options for broadleaf weeds and mixed infestations, including combinations when needed.
Grass control (couch grass, late grass waves)
For perennial and annual grasses, specialized grass herbicides can be used, sometimes in split applications depending on pressure and growth stage.
It’s also emphasized that desiccation can be part of the overall technology—helping to synchronize harvest and reduce risks linked to late-season infections and uneven maturity.
2) The Foundation of Disease Control: Seed Treatment as the First Line of Defense
A key message is that seed treatment is the first and one of the most important steps—either treating tubers before planting or treating tubers and the furrow zone at planting. In some cases, approaches are combined depending on seed lot health and field history. This early barrier helps suppress major threats and protect sprouts and young plants.
Among the most significant early-season risks are:
- Rhizoctonia (damage to sprouts and stolons; issues visible on tubers),
- Fusarium,
- Silver scurf,
- Bacterial rots—with a strong reminder that many storage problems start in the field and “arrive” with the harvested crop.
3) Growing Season: The Main Targets Are Late Blight and Alternaria
During the growing season, the biggest threats are typically late blight and early blight (Alternaria). An important practical point: many fungicides are strongest against one disease and only preventive against the other, so a thoughtful sequence and combinations are necessary.
Late blight
The approach includes recognizing typical symptoms (leaf lesions, sporulation, stem infection, tuber infection) and building fungicide protection into the season strategy based on risk periods.
Alternaria
The materials highlight symptom characteristics and control principles, including the importance of selecting suitable modes of action and timing treatments correctly.
Additional field risks
Beyond the two main diseases, other threats that can affect yield and quality include a broader complex of fungal and bacterial issues. Recommendations focus on integrating solutions through seed treatment and/or in-season applications depending on the farm’s specific situation.
4) Pests and Nematodes: Protecting Yield and Quality
The integrated approach also includes protection against key pests (for example, Colorado potato beetle, aphids, and others) and stresses the need for flexible decision-making based on monitoring and field pressure.
Nematodes are highlighted as a separate concern, including stem nematode and potato tuber nematode, with attention to typical damage patterns and the importance of targeted soil/plant protection tools.
5) Storage: Losses Begin in the Field but Show Up in the Storehouse
A strong idea repeated throughout the guidance is that most storage rot risk is linked to pathogens that enter storage with the harvested crop. That’s why success depends not only on products, but also on agronomic and operational discipline, including:
- healthy planting material,
- proper crop rotation placement,
- balanced nutrition,
- timely desiccation,
- minimizing tuber injuries during harvest,
- correct curing (“healing”) period,
- proper storage regimes for table and seed lots.
6) Programs for Different Goals: Seed, Processing, and Table Potatoes
The approach differentiates strategies depending on the production objective.
Seed production (higher generations)
For seed potatoes, pest control—especially against virus vectors—is typically strengthened. Under high disease pressure, fungicide intervals may need to be shortened to protect the canopy more intensively.
Potatoes for industrial processing (including fries/chips)
Programs may require adjustments for varieties sensitive to certain herbicide actives (a point that can be especially relevant for processing сортов). The focus here is stable raw material quality and a consistent, system-based protection schedule.
Table potatoes
The guidance highlights the value of testing solutions under real farm conditions and building a balanced portfolio that supports both yield and marketable quality.
7) A Core Rule: Anti-Resistance Strategy and Program Flexibility
The described schemes are presented as baseline frameworks that must be adapted to region, variety, weather, and the actual phytosanitary situation. Typical reasons to revise a program include: arid climates, double-cropping, high late blight risk, epidemic pressure, or increased bacterial issues confirmed by tuber analysis. A consistent emphasis is placed on rotating modes of action to reduce resistance risk.
Conclusion
A strong potato protection program is not simply “a list of products.” It’s a managed system: clean start → protected emergence → preserved leaf canopy → pest control → harvest readiness → minimized storage losses. Whether you grow potatoes for seed, processing, or the premium table market, the program must reflect variety sensitivity, infection pressure, and real field conditions.
